the fire. "They calkilated they'd gobble up the hull of Canada;
but 'stead of that, they lost the hull State of Michigan an' their
great General Hull into the bargain," and he chuckled over his
play upon words, after the manner of a man who has uttered a
successful pun.

"You must tell us all about it," said Neville: "I have not heard
the particulars yet."

"After supper," said the squire. "We'll discuss the venison first
and the war afterwards," and there was a general move to the
table.

When ample justice had been done to the savoury repast, Miss
Katherine intimated that a good fire had been kindled in the
Franklin stove in the parlour, and, in honour of the guest,
proposed an adjournment thither.

The squire, however, looked at the leaping flames of the kitchen
fire as if reluctant to leave it, and Neville asked as a favour to
be allowed to bask, "like a cat in the sun," he said, before it.

"I'm glad you like the old-fashioned fires," said the farmer.
"They're a-most like the camp-fire beside which we used to bivouac
when I went a-sogering. I can't get the hang o' those new-fangled
Yankee notions," he continued, referring to the parlour stove,
named after the great philosopher whose name it bore.

A large semicircle of seats was drawn up around the hearth. The
squire took down from the mantel his long-stemmed "churchwarden"