Guy said:  “Pooh!  Tain’t half as big as that there big Woodchuck I killed, an’ you never would have got him if I hadn’t thought of the axe.”

Yan thought it would weigh thirty-five pounds.  Caleb guessed it at twenty-five (and afterward they found out that it barely weighed eighteen).  While they were thus talking the Dog broke into an angry barking such as he gave for strangers—­his “human voice,” Caleb called it—­and at once there stepped into the circle William Raften.  He had seen the lights in the woods, and, dreading a fire at this dry season, had dressed and come out.

“Hello, Da; why ain’t you in bed, where you ought to be?”

Raften took no notice of his son, but said sneeringly to Caleb:  “Ye ain’t out trying to get another shot at me, air ye?” ’Tain’t worth your while; I hain’t got no cash on me to-night.”

“Now see here, Da,” said Sam, interrupting before Caleb could answer, “you don’t play fair.  I know, an’ you ought to know, that’s all rot about Caleb shooting at you.  If he had, he’d ‘a’ got you sure.  I’ve seen him shoot.”

“Not when he was drunk.”

“Last time I was drunk we was in it together,” said Caleb fiercely, finding his voice.

“Purty good for a man as swore he had no revolver,” and Raften pointed to Caleb’s weapon.  “I seen you with that ten years ago.  An’ sure I’m not scairt of you an’ yer revolver,” said Raften, seeing Caleb fingering his white pet; “an’ I tell ye this.  I won’t have ye and yer Sheep-killing cur ramatacking through my woods an’ making fires this dry saison.”

“D——­ you, Raften, I’ve stood all I’m goin’ to stand from you.”  The revolver was out in a flash, and doubtless Caleb would have lived up to his reputation, but Sam, springing to push his father back, came between, and Yan clung to Caleb’s revolver arm, while Guy got safely behind a tree.

“Get out o’ the way, you kids!” snarled Caleb.

“By all manes,” said Raften scoffingly; “now that he’s got me unarrumed again.  You dhirty coward!  Get out av the way, bhoys, an Oi’ll settle him,” for Raften was incapable of fear, and the boys would have been thrust aside and trouble follow, but that Raften as he left the house had called his two hired men to follow and help fight the fire, and now they came on the scene.  One of them was quite friendly with Caleb, the other neutral, and they succeeded in stopping hostilities for a time, while Sam exploded: 

“Now see here, Da, ’twould just ‘a’ served you right if you’d got a hole through you.  You make me sick, running on Caleb.  He didn’t make that fire; ‘twas me an’ Yan, an’ we’ll put it out safe enough.  You skinned Caleb an’ he never done you no harm.  You run on him just as Granny de Neuville done on you after she grabbed your groceries.  You ought to be ashamed of yourself.  Tain’t square, an’ ’tain’t being a man.  When you can’t prove nothin’ you ought to shut up.”