or door. A pretty kettle of fish it would be for me, too, to be caught
with them both here, just now! No; they'll have to be got off tonight."

"Tonight! How is it possible?--where to?"

"Well, I know pretty well where to," said the senator, beginning to put
on his boots, with a reflective air; and, stopping when his leg was half
in, he embraced his knee with both hands, and seemed to go off in deep
meditation.

"It's a confounded awkward, ugly business," said he, at last, beginning
to tug at his boot-straps again, "and that's a fact!" After one boot
was fairly on, the senator sat with the other in his hand, profoundly
studying the figure of the carpet. "It will have to be done, though, for
aught I see,--hang it all!" and he drew the other boot anxiously on, and
looked out of the window.

Now, little Mrs. Bird was a discreet woman,--a woman who never in her
life said, "I told you so!" and, on the present occasion, though pretty
well aware of the shape her husband's meditations were taking, she very
prudently forbore to meddle with them, only sat very quietly in her
chair, and looked quite ready to hear her liege lord's intentions, when
he should think proper to utter them.

"You see," he said, "there's my old client, Van Trompe, has come over
from Kentucky, and set all his slaves free; and he has bought a place
seven miles up the creek, here, back in the woods, where nobody goes,
unless they go on purpose; and it's a place that isn't found in a hurry.
There she'd be safe enough; but the plague of the thing is, nobody could
drive a carriage there tonight, but _me_."