of this change in the position of the scow, which was
effected before Hutter had succeeded in opening the gate of his dock,
the Ark and the Castle lay, as sailors would express it, yard-arm and
yard-arm, kept asunder some ten or twelve feet by means of the piles. As
the scow pressed close against the latter, their tops formed a species
of breast work that rose to the height of a man's head, covering in
a certain degree the parts of the scow that were not protected by the
cabin. The Delaware surveyed this arrangement with great satisfaction
and, as the canoe of Hutter passed through the gate into the dock, he
thought that he might defend his position against any garrison in the
castle, for a sufficient time, could he but have had the helping arm of
his friend Deerslayer. As it was, he felt comparatively secure, and
no longer suffered the keen apprehensions he had lately experienced in
behalf of Hist.

A single shove sent the canoe from the gate to the trap beneath the
castle. Here Hutter found all fast, neither padlock nor chain nor bar
having been molested. The key was produced, the locks removed, the chain
loosened, and the trap pushed upward. Hurry now thrust his head in at
the opening; the arms followed, and the colossal legs rose without any
apparent effort. At the next instant, his heavy foot was heard stamping
in the passage above; that which separated the chambers of the father
and daughters, and into which the trap opened. He then gave a shout of
triumph.

"Come on, old Tom," the reckless woodsman called out from within the
building--"here's your tenement, safe and sound; ay, and as empty as a
nut that has passed half an hour in the paws of a squirrel! The Delaware
brags of being able to see silence; let him come here, and he may feel
it, in the bargain."

"Any silence where you are, Hurry Harry," returned Hutter, thrusting his
head in at the hole as he uttered the last word, which instantly caused
his voice to sound smothered to those without--"Any silence where you
are, ought to be both seen and felt, for it's unlike any other silence."

"Come, come, old fellow; hoist yourself up, and we'll open doors and
windows and let in the fresh air to brighten up matters. Few words in
troublesome times, make men the best fri'nds. Your darter Judith is what
I call a misbehaving young woman, and the hold of the whole family on me
is so much weakened by her late conduct, that it wouldn't take a speech
as long as the ten