comes the battle for the little ones--for the poor weak hand that's
not able to carry the drink to its lips. Poor darlins! Yes, darlins,
your father is now goin' to fight your battle--to put himself, for your
sakes, against the laws of man, but not against the laws of nature that
God has put into my heart for my dying childre. Either the one funeral
will carry three corpses to the grave, or I will bring yez relief. It's
comin' near, and I'll stand undher this tree."

In accordance with this resolution, he planted himself under a large
clump of trees where, like the famished tiger, he awaited the arrival of
the carriage. And, indeed, it is obvious that despair, and hunger, and
sorrow, had brought him down to the first elements of mere animal life;
and finding not by any process of reasoning or inference, but by the
agonizing pressure of stern reality, that the institutions of social
civilization were closed against him and his, he acted precisely as
a man would act in a natural and savage state, and who had never been
admitted to a participation in the common rights of humanity--we mean,
the right to live honestly, when willing and able to contribute his
share of labor and industry to the common stock.

Let not our readers mistake us. We are not defending the crime of
robbery, neither would we rashly palliate it, although there are
instances of it which deserve not only palliation, but pardon. We
are only describing the principles upon which this man acted, and,
considering his motives, we question whether this peculiar act,
originating as it did in the noblest virtues and affections of our
nature, was not rather an act of heroism than of robbery. This point,
however, we leave to metaphysicians, and return to our narrative.

The night, as we said, was dark, and the carriage in question was
proceeding at that slow and steady pace which was necessary to insure
safety. Sir Thomas, for it was he, sat on the dickey; Gillespie having
proceeded in advance of him, in order to get horses, carriage, and
everything safely put to rights without the possibility of observation.

We may as well mention here that his anxiety to keep the events of the
night secret had overcome his apprehensions of the supernatural, and
indeed, it may not be impossible that he made acquaintance with one of
the flasks that had been destined for poor Fenton. Of this, however,
we are by no means certain; we only throw it out, therefore, as a
probability.