172 TRAVEL, ADVENTUEE, AND SPORT. 



of miles of palmetto ground, all in a blaze the 

 flames draAving nearer every minute, and having, in 

 some places, already reached up to the shores of the 

 creek. On the other side a couple of dozen wild 

 Acadians, firing right and left, without paying the 

 least attention where or whom their bullets struck. 

 Carleton and myself, up to our waists in water, and 

 the Americans, chatting together as unconcernedly 

 as if they had been sitting under the roofs of their 

 own blockhouses. 



" Do you live far from here ? " said I at last to the 

 Yankee, rather impatiently. 



"Not so far as I sometimes wish," answered he, 

 with a contemptuous glance at the Acadians, "but 

 far enough to get you an appetite for your supper, if 

 you ain't got one already." And taking a thin roll 

 of tobacco out of his pocket, he bit off a piece of it, 

 laid his hands upon the muzzle of his rifle, leant his 

 chin upon his hands, and seemed to have forgotten 

 all about us. 



This apathy became intolerable to men in our 

 situation. 



" My good man," said I, " will you put your hos- 

 pitable offer into execution, and take " 



I could not continue, for I was literally suffocated 

 with the heat and smoke. The very water of the 

 creek was getting warm. 



" I've a notion," said the Yankee, with his usual 

 drawl, and apparently only just perceiving our dis- 



