Without revealing to my companion the terrible scene I had been witness to, I told him that we were in the same house with a fearful malady,--an announcement I well knew had greater terror for none than an Irish peasant. He at once decided on departing; and, although day was barely breaking, he awoke the others, and a low whispering conversation ensued, in which I felt, or imagined, at least, that I was an interested party. At last Joe, turning towards me, said, "And you, sir, what do you mean to do!" "The very question," said I, "that I cannot answer. If I were to follow my inclination, I 'd turn homeward; if I must yield to necessity, I 'll call upon the Governor-General, and remain with him till I hear from my friends." There was a pause; a moment of deliberation seemed to fall upon the bystanders, which at length was broken by the old man saying, "Well, good luck be with you; any way, 't is the best thing you could do!" I saw that I had overshot my bolt, and with difficulty concealed my annoyance at my own failure. My irritation was, I conclude, sufficiently apparent, for Joe quickly said, "We 're very sorry to part with you; but if we could be of any use before we go--" "Which way do you travel?" said I, carelessly. "That's the puzzle, for we don't know the country. 'T is New Orleans we'd like to go to first." "Nothing easier," said I. "Take the steamer to Montreal, cross over into the States, down Lake Champlain to Whitehall, over to Albany, and then twenty hours down the Hudson brings you to New York." "You know the way well!" said Joe, with an undisguised admiration for my geography, which, I need not tell the reader, was all acquired from books and maps. "I should think so," said I, "seeing that I might travel it blindfold!" "Is it dangerous? Are there Injians?" said the old man, whose mind seemed very alive to the perils of red men. "There are some tribes on the way," said I; "but the white fellows you meet with are worse than the red ones,--such rogues, and assassins too!" "The saints presarve us! How will we ever do it?" "Look out for some smart fellow who knows the way and thoroughly understands the people, and who can speak French fluently, for the first part of the journey, and who is up to all the Yankee roguery, for the second. Give him full power to guide and direct your expedition, and you 'll have both a safe journey and a pleasant one." "Ay, and where will we get him?" cried one. "And what would he be askin' for his trouble?" said another; while Joe, with an assenting nod, reiterated both questions, and seemed to expect that answer from me. "It ought to be easy enough in such a city as this," said I, negligently. "Are you acquainted with Forbes and Gudgeon? They are my bankers. They could, I am sure, find out your man at once." "Ah, sir, we know nobody at all!" exclaimed Joe, in an accent of such humility that I actually felt shocked at my own duplicity.