she had found the sum of a hundred
gold Napoleons concealed in a belt upon the person of a dead French
officer. This made her a woman of fortune, and led to her marriage with
her present husband, for she had had several, who doubtless were glad to
be released by death from the unnatural tyranny of such a mate.
Macdonald was an easy, good-natured man, who for the sake of peace, let
the wilful woman have her own way, and thrash him and the bairns as
often as the wicked spirit by which she was possessed, prompted her to
exhibit these peculiar marks of her conjugal and maternal love.

Had Macdonald been asked, why he submitted to such base treatment from
his wife, he might have answered with the tall Canadian backwoodsman,
when questioned on the same subject,--

"It pleases her, and it don't hurt I."

Mrs. Macdonald was in a delicate situation, and from the very day the
ship sailed, she gave out that she was on the eve of an increase to her
interesting family: to the great indignation of the captain, who had a
mortal antipathy to babies, and who declared in his rough way, "That it
was an imposition; Mrs. Macdonald had no right to swindle him into
taking out more passengers than he had bargained for."

The stalwart dame was enchanted that she had found out a way to annoy
the captain, to whose orders she was forced to submit, and whom in
consequence she regarded as a bitter enemy. In fact she did all in her
power to encourage his fears respecting her. Whenever he paced the deck
in sullen dignity, she began to sigh and groan, and declare in a voice
loud enough for him to overhear, "That she did na think that she could
haud out anither day ava'."

There was another pensioner on board who was the sworn friend and
countryman of Macdonald. Hugh Mackenzie was a dragoon, and a fine tall,
soldierly-looking man. His wife was a little, chatty, gossiping woman,
from Berwickshire; a good creature in her way, but sadly addicted to the
use of strong waters, drowning the little sense she had in the fumes of
whiskey and brandy. She and her husband spent all their time in eating
and drinking, when they were not taking snuff and smoking. They were
cooking, or preparing for it, from morning till night; and generally
headed the forlorn hope which three times a day besieged the caboose,
and defied the valiant Hannibal to his very teeth.

Mrs. Mackenzie was the very reverse of her gude friend, Mrs. Macdonald;
for she stood in perpetual fear