ely as our two tails."

Meg. "What! Not to leave out those secret designs on--what did
Manitou-Echo call them--the boy and the girl?"

Nick. "Young Ben Logan and little Bertha Bryant."

Meg, "Not to leave out his secret designs on young Ben Logan and little
Bertha Bryant? The boy to lose his life for envy; the girl her senses
for love--all because of the beautiful moccasins!"

Nick. "Well, well, Meg, mum's the word just there. He's human, remember,
and you know they say that 'Adam's fall made fools of all;' and so, with
their tails up, here they come; and, with their tails down, there they
go--in that respect resembling dogs, who, in their turn, acquired the
habit from their human masters. But I am deviating, and I perceive that
you are wishing to make some further inquiry. What is it, my dove?"

Meg. "I was longing to ask if--what's his name?"

Nick. "Sprigg."

Meg. "If Sprigg has not manifested the deepest sorrow and repentance for
what he has done to-day. Does he not mourn to think of the pain and
distress which, by his most undutiful conduct, he is causing his dear
father and his dear, dear mother?"

Nick. (With a sad shake of the head.) "Not with heart-grief, I fear;
not with heart-grief! He mourns over the ills which he has brought upon
himself by his undutiful conduct, rather than over the wrong thereof, or
because of the pain and distress which it must be causing his dear
mother and his dear, dear father!" And again Nick shook his head, as
were it a desperate case almost beyond hope.

Meg. (With almost as hopeless a shake of the head as Nick.) "Ah, me! who
would have thought it? Who could have thought it? Why, Nick, he is as
bad as Robinson Crusoe, is he not?"

Nick. "Oh, worse than Robinson Crusoe. Robinson Crusoe, it is true, ran
away from home against the command of his father and the prayers of his
mother. But he used no deception in the matter. Robinson did not go
a-sneaking off, with a lie in his mouth and his shoes in the water
bucket; a-sneaking off like a spit-thief dog, to use your own expressive
words. And yet, even his case was considered serious enough for a
putting through on a desert island. Yes! A good deal worse than Robinson
Crusoe, else no need were there of putting him through so."

Meg. "But come, now, Nick; you can't stand there and tell me that Sprigg
is as bad a boy as Jack Bean-Stalk?"

Nick. "Well, no; not so bad as that. Not so bad as Jack Bean-Stalk. Jack
Bean-Stalk was