Julia looked happy.  I have no authentic information in regard to the exact words which she made use of to express her joy, but from what is known of girls of her age in general, it is safe to infer that she exclaimed, “Oh!  I’m so glad!”

While Andrew stood there smiling, with Julia near him, August having gone to the assistance of the carpenters in a matter demanding a little more ingenuity than they possessed, Jonas came up and drew the Philosopher aside.  Julia could not hear what was said, but she saw Andrew’s brow contract.

“I’ll shoot as sure as they come!” he said with passion.  “I won’t have my niece or August insulted in my house by a parcel of vagabonds.”

“O Uncle Andrew! is it a shiveree?” asked Julia.

“Yes.”

“Well, don’t shoot.  It’ll be so funny to have a shiveree.”

“But it is an insult to you and to August and to me.  This is meant especially to be an expression of their feeling toward August as a German, though really their envy of his good fortune has much to do with it.  It is a second edition of the riot of last spring, in which Gottlieb came so near to being killed.  Now, I mean to do my country service by leaving one or two less of them alive if they come here to-night.”  For Andrew was full of that destructive energy so characteristic of the Western and Southern people.

“Oh! no, don’t shoot.  Can’t you think of some other way?” pleaded Julia.

“Well, yes, I could get the sheriff to come and bag a few of them.”

“And that will make trouble for many years.  Let me see.  Can’t we do this?” And Julia rapidly unfolded to Andrew and Jonas her plan of operations against the enemy.

“Number one!” said Jonas.  “They’ll fall into that air amby-scade as sure as shootin’.  That plan is military and Christian and civilized and human and angelical and tancy-crumptious.  It ort to meet the ’proval of the American Fish-hawk with all his pinions and talents.  I’ll help to execute it, and beat the rascals or lay my bones a-bleachin’ on the desert sands of Shady Holler.”

“Well,” said Andrew to Julia, “I knew, if I took you under my roof, you’d make a Christian of me in spite of myself.  And I am a sort of savage, that’s a fact.”

Jonas hurried home and sent Cynthy over to the castle, and there was much work going on that afternoon.  Andrew said that the castle was being made ready for its first siege.  As night came on, Julia was in a perfect glee.  Reddened by standing over the stove, with sleeves above her elbows and her black hair falling down upon her shoulders, she was such a picture that August stopped and stood in the door a minute to look at her as he came in to supper.

“Why, Jule, how glorious you look!” he said.  “I’ve a great mind to fall in love with you, mein Liebchen!”

“And I have fallen in love with you, Caesar Augustus!” And well she might, for surely, as he stood in the door with his well-knit frame, his fine German forehead, his pure, refined mouth, and his clear, honest, amiable blue eyes, he was a man to fall in love with.