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`You perceive, gentleman,' he said as
they read the address, at the begining,
`that I have anticipated your suggestion.
I was interrupted, by your calling, in the
composition of a solemn remonstrance to
their Majesties, against Leisler's government.
I will read to you, what I have
written.'

They listened to the address with deep
attention; and when he had concluded
they both pronounced it satisfactory.

`When that is read by the King,' said
Livingstone, `Leisler's fate is sealed. He
will be put under an arrest by an order
from the crown and sent home to be
tried!'

`How shall you forward this?' asked
Logan.

`By a trusty horseman who is at this
moment making himself ready to start as
soon as I seal and direct it. He goes to
Boston and thence takes the ship to England.
He has orders not to stay travel
until he reaches the foot of the throne
and sees the letter in the King's own
hand delivered!'

`Leisler has then placed a rope around
his own neck,' said Livingstone, with

stern bitterness. `We are well pleased
at finding you in this mind! Let no delay
intervene. If Jacob Leisler suspects
or gets wind of this messenger, he will at
once, having the power, despatch a vessel
direct to forestall you, and so represent
the necessity of his taking upon him
the controul of affairs that we and not he
will be proclaimed the rebels!'

`He shall not know it. No man has
had breath of it save you two!'

`And that we may not delay you in
finishing it, nor your messenger from his
saddle, we will take our leave, having effected
that which brought us hither,' said
Livingstone.

`I will not urge you to stay; but Mr.
Logan, pray by what steps do you hope
to destroy Leisler's power?'

`The most effectual way, sir, is by this
division among the protestants carried
out into open war!'

`How do you mean?'

`I mean that you form at once a strong
party, unite with ours and thus endeavour
to overthrow his!'

`He could not withstand the two combined,'
said Livingstone.

`But suppose we combine and overturn
his government, who then, Mr. Logan, you
or I will be elevated to the authority?'
asked Colonel Bayard, with a significant
smile.

`I should not, sir, much as I esteem
you personally, consent that a protestant
should succeed,' answered Logan, firmly,
`It would be exchanging a penny for a
penny!'

`And I, sir,' answered Colonel Bayard,
`could not, much as I esteem you
personally, consent to use my influence
to replace a paplst in power. If I combine
with you and organize an Episcopal
party, it will be that I may overthrow
Leiler; but I cannot consent to help put
a Roman Catholic in his place. We have
had enough of Romanism under Dongan,'
answered Colonel Bayard in a severe
tone.

`I perceive, sir,' responded Logan,
colouring, yet keeping his temper, `that
we have too many points of difference to
amalgamate as a party; but we agree
both in branding Leisler with rebellion!'

`That we agree in!' answered the protestant
leader, with decision.

`We are then of one mind in a chief
point. There let it rest.'

`There is one thing I would ask of
you, Colonel Bayard?' said Livingstone
in an impressive manner.

`I will hear you, my dear sir.'

`If the Roman Catholics rise in a body
to overthrow Leisler without your co-operation,
will you remain passive? If
you assist not us, will you refuse to assist
them?'

`This you may depend upon. But I
also will put a question to you Mr. Logan?
If I raise a party to overturn
Leisler before you make any such movement,
will you remain passive?'

`We will remain passive so far as that
we will not aid Leisler against you; but
I boldly assure you, Colonel,' continued
Logan with a resolute air, `that if you
overthrow Leisler and assume his authority,
I shall feel it my duty to endeavour
by overturning your governmant to
re-establish that which he has usurped!'

`We then understand one another,'
answered Colonel Bayard in a fearless,
frank manner.

The two Catholic gentlemen now took
their leave with courtesy, and were let
out of the door by their host, who gave
to each of them his hand as if they were
between the utmost harmony on all points.

`We have gained one thing by this
visit,' said Logan, as they passed down
the avenue; `and this is the knowledge
that Bayard contemplates a revolution;
and that we can't act too speedily. We

have to fear him, quite as much as Leisler!'

`The politics of our poor Province,'
said Livingstone, `are in a strange way.
Three parties, and nearly equal in
strength, are about to divide and tear the
land! But it is fortunate for us that the
protestants are at dissension. United,
we should be defeated by them; but dissevered
as they are we can singly oppose
them. It is well we did not unfold all
our plan to Bayard. He might have betrayed
it, because we are papists, especially
if he found that he could not get
his party in force to prevent our attack
on Sunday. You were very prudent to
check yourself as you did!'

`I perceived that he had no sympathy
with us, and that the only union that
could be between us would be based upon
our mutual opposition to Leisler's
government. Here we are now at the
entrance of the main street. Shall you
return to father Stephen's?'

`Yes, and report the result of our interview
with Bayard! Which way do
you take?'

`I proceed down in the direction of
Maiden Lane.'

`Take care of yourself, my friend, or
Leisler will have you in his hands. You
are aware of the reward he has offered
for you?'

`Yes. I shall not remain in the town.
I have a safe retreat at a fisherman's hut
on Governor's Island. I shall, however,
be present at Father Stephen's on Saturday
night.'

The two conspirators then parted, Livingstone
following a path along the skirts
of the town, which brought him, after
five minutes' walk, to the field-gate of
the priest's garden; while Logan took
the side-walk along a narrow lane, which
was subsequently named, after the Prince
of Orange, William street, and after answering
three challenges by as many sen
tries, reached the front of Jacob Leisler's
house. To his surprise he found the well
occupied by the soldiers of Van Vow's
guard, who were lazily seated about upon
the benches around it, under the trees,
some of them smoking, others talking,
while one of their number paced up and
down between the well-curb and the
house, acting as sentinel.

Logan advanced with precaution, and
not seeing any thing of Steiny, he began
to entertain some apprehensions as to his
fate. Van Vow was also no where visible.
Resolved to ascertain, Logan at
once assumed the tipsy air of a fisherman
who had drank rather too much, and
reeled towards them, singing,

`Who goes dere?' cried the sentry.

`A king!' answered Logan, reeling
and speaking in a drunken tone. `A
king o' the sea!'

`He's a fishermans,' said one of the
men on the well-curb. `He ish trunks.'

`Drunk! I am not drunk; I am as
souber as a judge. Who says I am
drunk?'

`Stand and give te word!' cried the
soldier.

`Who are you? What word?'

`The pass-wort!' responded the sentry,
placing his gun at his breast.

`The Prince and the King. Whorray
for King Billy.'

`He ish a true man,, said the sentry,
looking at his comrades for their affirmation.
`But he must be take up.'

`Yish, he ish true mansh,' was the response.
`But ant you te mansh as lost
you poat?'

`I am the man,' answered Logan, deliberately
taking a seat upon one of the
benches. `You take me up, eh! I'd
thank you to take me over to my island.'

`The man dat stole your poat,' said
another of the soldiers, taking his pipe out
of his mouth and filling it with fresh tobacco,
`was the Papist secretary.'

`Logan, you mean.'

`Yish; they say he gone away in her.
He is hid down by te islands.'

`No; he went in the ship you may be
sure. But what are you doing here.'

`Keepin' guart, as you sees.'

`On what?'

`On te Governor's house.'

`Where is your captain?'

`He ish in te house. Don't you know
he ish Mynheer Van Vow, te burgomeister,
ash ish goin' to marry de dochter ov
Jacops Leisler?'

`What can a poor fishermans know?'
said one of the men.

`And tipsy at that,' rejoined another
with a laugh.

`I'm not so drunk as I did not know
Mynheer Van Vow is engaged to the new
Governor's daughter,' answered Logan.
`So he is in there.

`Yish; where should he pe put in
dere?' answered the soldier, taking a
long satisfactory whiff from his pipe.

`I'll sit here and smoke with you if
one of you will lend me a pipe,' said Logan,
placing his hand familiarly on the
shoulder of his nearest neighbor.

A pipe was very cordially given, and
having lighted it, the disguised secretary
proceeded to smoke and chat away with
the soldiers, artfully drawing from them
all they knew touching affairs in the fort,
as well as the engagement between the
little burgomaster and the beautiful Bertha.
From them he learned, also, that
no fisher-lad had been seen by them,
from which he suspected that Steiny was
still in the house, and perhaps unable to
escape. He, therefore, had made up his
mind to go and kock at the door and ask
for him, when the door opened and Van
Vow made his appearance in great bodily
perturbation.

But, before recounting the events that
followed his appearance, we will follow
Steiny into the house on his mission.—
After he had got into the entry, he was
met by Bertha, who, with a light in her
hand, looked at his face closely, and then
told him to follow her. She led him to
a small back sitting room, where, having
set the light down and closed the door,
she said,

`Now, good fisher-lad, tell me speedily
what this is you have for my private
ear.'

Steeiny, instead of immediately replying,
stood gazing with admiration and
wonder upon her extremely beautiful
face. He had never seen any thing, as
he subsequenty declared, half so handsome.
Before he could recover his
tongue to reply, a knock was heard at
the street door.

`There is another,' she said impatiently,
as if she did not care to be interrupted.
`Brecket,' she said, going to the
room door, `go to the upper window and
look down and tell me who it is that calls:
Now, my boy, thy errand quickly.'

`Well, ma'am,' said Steiny, `I'm
blowed if your eyes don't make me all of
a quirl. They shine jist like two drops o'
water sparkling in shells!'

`Was that what you had to tell me, you
freckled little rogue, hey?' said Bertha
laughing.

`No, that's my own errand; but what
I have to tell you, comes from another
guess sort o' person than Steiney Sneek.'

`Who can it be? Who sent you?'

`Ma'am!' cried Brecket, appearing at
the door.

`Well.'

`It is the burgomaster.'

`The plague! What says he?'

`He wants to come in, and smoke his
pipe with you,' said Brecket, delivering

also, the whole of Van Vow's message;
to which, Bertha, with an annoyed air,
sent the reply, already recorded, as delivered
by Brecket from the window, to
the philosophical Van Vow.

`Now, my boy, who sent thee?' inquired
Bertha, closing the door; `sit down and
tell me.'

`I'm afraid you wont like to hear.'

`Then you should not have thought of
giving me a message, improper for me to
listen to,' she said, reproachingly, and
with a maiden's reserve.

`It aint cozactly improper, ma'am, but
it might'nt please you.'

`Why not. Tell me who it is from?'
she asked with a considerable degree of
curiosity, yet, not with too much eagerness.

`To tell you who it is, is the who,' responded
Steiney, very intelligibly.

`How oddly you talk. I shall send
you away, and let whoever gave you a
message to me, find some other person to
deliver it; for I see I can get nothing
from you.'

`Well, I'll tell you, if you'll promise
not to be angry.'

`I promise you!' responded Bertha,
still, wholly at a loss to guess who had
sent him, though it would be doing Logan
injustice, to say, that he did not once
enter into her mind, as she ran over in her
thoughts, the probabilities of who might
be the person.

`You know feyther had his boat stole.'

`Yes, and you have been paid for it,
three marks and a half.'

`Do you know who stole the boat?'

`How should I?'

`Well, I know,' answered Steiney, significantly.

`Then, why do you not secure the
thief?'

`I've got him.'

`You have?' she exclaimed with surprise.

`Yes.'

`Then, where is your boat?'

`I've got that, to.'

`And your three marks and a half!—
You are a young rogue, sirrah.'

`Dont call me names, ma'am. Here's
your money agen, if that's all makes you
talk.'

`I don't want it. What have you said
you wished to see me for? You are trifling
with me.'

`No, I ain't. I like you too well for
that. You see I come here, to tell you I
got the thief.'

`And why do you thing it necessary to
tell me?'

`Because, I guess as how you'd like to
know.'

`How troublesome you act. If you
have anything to say, out with it.'

`Well, you see father's skiff was down
by the ditch, at the back o' the fort, this
mornin', where he left it, and when he
went after it, to go home, for we lives
down on Governor's island, he found it
gone. He hunted heaven and earth for
it, and then took to swearin' and gets
drunk. Well, he did'nt find it in tipsy
town, and so when he gets sober agen,
which he did, arter two hours' nap; he
goes to the new Governor, your dad, I
guess he be. He tells the Governor,
and—'

`But what has this to do with message
you had to me?'

`Well, a good deal, because the message
is from the thief.'

`From the thief!'

`Yes. You see, we cocht him down at
the island with the boat, coz he did'nt
know he was comin with it, right where
it belonged. So we grabbed him, and
when feyther got home in a neighbor's
boat, we built a gallows, as high as a
ship's mast, to hang him on.'

`Hang him for stealing a boat,' she
cried, with a shudder.

`Sartain ma'am.'

`But it would be murder, without the
law. Are you fishermen heathens?'

`Not quite, ma'am. But he stole the
boat without law, and we mean to hang
him without law. That's what we calls
even: and then he deserves to be hanged
besides, cause he is a papist.'

`That is bad, but still, you have no
right to hang him. I am glad you let me
know this. I will at once see my father,
and he will take the matter in hand.'

`And he will hang him, sure.'

`If he does, it will be by the law.'

`Wall, I reckon yon would'nt like to
have him hung, law or no law, if you
guessed who it was.'

`Do I know?'

`You've seen him, and he's seen you.
He is the man that sent me to you, to see
if you would try and save his neck.'

`Who is it? If the poor wretch were
a total stranger to me, I would try to
save him. But, he says he has seen me.
Is he one of the towns folk?'

`Yes.'

`Hang him for stealing a canoe!'

`Yes, he'll be hanged, unless you can
do something for him. He asked us to
spare his life, till he could send word to
you; and gave us fifty dollars to do it,
that's why I come to know what you
would do for him.'

`A man who could pay fifty dollars,
steal a canoe. This is strange! What
is his name? I will save him if I can.—
It is horrible to hang a man so barbarously,
were he the veriest wretch on earth.
What name has he?'

`Robert Logan,' answered Steiney, in
a quiet tone, closely watching the effect
of the name upon her countenance.