repared all this on purpose for him. At last the
other relieved my embarrassment, by thanking me politely for all my
proffered services, and only begged I would show them an apartment
where they could take some rest, as they were very tired, not having
slept in a bed for six weeks, or lain down at all for two days.

Poor creatures! I quite pitied them--not to have slept in a bed for
six weeks!

"Indeed!" I exclaimed, "it must have been very uncomfortable to have
been obliged to sleep on a divan, or even in a camp-bed, for six
entire weeks!"

They both laughed. "On the bare ground--on the snow--under the clear
sky," they replied.

Oh, heavens! even our servants would have died, had they been obliged
to pass one winter's night out of doors.

I begged them to follow me, and showed them our best room, in which
there were two beds. As the servants were all out, I was going to make
down the bed myself.

"Oh, we cannot allow that!" they both exclaimed, "we can do that
ourselves;" and seeing they had need of rest, I bowed, and hastened to
leave them alone.

Scarcely had I reached my own room, when I heard a terrible shriek,
which seemed to proceed from the apartment I had just left, and cries
of "Help! robbers! murder!"

I knew the voice, but in my terror I could not remember who it was,
and still the cries continued, "Help! murder!"

If you can imagine my situation, you may suppose that I never moved
from the spot on which I stood, till the voice, echoing through the
rooms, at last approached my apartment.

It was my dear mamma!--but in what a plight!

Her clothes all crumpled, her cap over her eyes, one of her shoes off,
and her whole face as red as if she had come out of an oven. It was a
long time before I could make out where she had been, or what had
happened to her. Well! only fancy. She had hid in the very room where
I had quartered my two guests, and where, do you think?--in one of the
beds, under all the feather quilts! Now you may imagine the rest, and
the surprise of the national guard officer when he threw himself down
half dead with fatigue. Poor mamma had good reason to cry out; but
what an idea, to hide there!

After much trouble, I calmed her a little, and endeavoured to persuade
her that these national guards had not come to rob or kill us; and,
finally, I succeeded so far, that she promised not to hide again, and
I undertook to explain to the officers, that mamma had the rheumatism,
and was o