“I dare say, now, that they would think of asking, for a place like this, as much money as would buy a good wholesome ship—­a regular A. No. 1.”

“No such thing; a thousand or twelve hundred dollars would purchase the house, and all the land we can see—­some twelve or fifteen acres, at the most.  You have more than two thousand salted away, I know, Moses, between prize-money, wages, adventures, and other matters.”

“I could hold my head up under two thousand, of a sartainty.  I wish the place was a little nearer Clawbonny, say eight or ten miles off; and then I do think I should talk to the people about a trade.”

“It’s quite unnecessary, after all.  I have quite as snug a cove, near the creek bluff at Clawbonny, and will build a house for you there, you shall not tell from a ship’s cabin; that would be more to your fancy.”

“I’ve thought of that, too, Miles, and at one time fancied it would be a prettyish sort of an idee; but it won’t stand logarithms, at all.  You may build a room that shall have its cabin look, but you can’t build one that’ll have a cabin natur’ You may get carlins, and transoms, and lockers and bulkheads all right; but where are you to get your motion?  What’s a cabin without motion?  It would soon be like the sea in the calm latitudes, offensive to the senses.  No! none of your bloody motionless cabins for me.  If I’m afloat, let me be afloat; if I’m ashore, let me be ashore.”

Ashore we were by this time, the boat’s keel grinding gently on the pebbles of the beach.  We landed and walked towards the cottage, there being nothing about the place to forbid our taking this liberty.  I told Marble we would ask for a drink of milk, two cows being in sight, cropping the rich herbage of a beautiful little pasture.  This expedient at first seemed unnecessary, no one appearing about the place to question our motives, or to oppose our progress.  When we reached the door of the cottage, we found it open, and could look within without violating any of the laws of civilization.  There was no vestibule, or entry; but the door communicated directly with a room of some size, and which occupied the whole front of the building.  I dare say this single room was twenty feet square, besides being of a height a little greater than was then customary in buildings of that class.  This apartment was neatness itself.  It had a home-made, but really pretty, carpet on the floor; contained a dozen old-fashioned, high-back chairs, in some dark wood; two or three tables, in which one might see his face; a couple of mirrors of no great size, but of quaint gilded ornaments; a beaufet with some real china in it; and the other usual articles of a country residence that was somewhat above the ordinary farm-houses of the region, and yet as much below the more modest of the abodes of the higher class.  I supposed the cottage to be the residence of some small family that had seen more of life than was customary with the mere husbandman, and yet not enough to raise it much above the level of the husbandman’s homely habits.