"Yas, _ex_ac'ly. So you see dat _pred_icament in w'ich I was placed wid de river. I never liked po' Jacques Renault--" He shrugged his shoulders. "I never _prof_ess to like him, _mais_ he was my brud'-in-law; an' my po' sister--you know Felicite--she is my _twin_. She done not'ing but cry, cry, cry for fo' days an' nights, an' pay all 'er money in de poor-box _to find him_. An' dey tried every way to bring him up. So me, I say not'ing, _mais_ w'en de fif day is come I loan from my cousin Achilles his wide skiff, an' I start out, an' I row two mile below w'ere dey foun' 'is clo'es an' hat, an' den I pull up again--an' wid every stroke I pray to de river to grant me dat satisfaction to find po' Jacques an' to lay him in his grave. "Tell you de trut', maybe I am a sinner to say it, _mais_ I was half afraid in my heart dat may_be_ Jacques was playing 'possum an' some day he would come back; an' w'en somebody is dead--dat's one terrible dread, _yas_--to get such a surprise, _es_pecially for one widow, you understand. It is a _re_striction, more or less, according to--Well, never mind. "You may b'lief me or not, _mais_ w'en de river she _re_quire of me dat ring, laying her wet hand over my hand like to take it, at de same time she turn it to de sun--well, I am not stupid. I dropped it _quick_ to her, an' den I looked _close_, yas, on de water, an' _im_mediately I see one--" "You said jus' now you saw only de glare of de sun--" "_Ex_ac'ly--an' den, naturally, one black spot befo' my eye, an' I t'ink it is de sun; _mais_-- "Well, 't is a _dis_agreeable picture. Never mind! De river she _give me de swap_, an' we had one fine funeral de nex' day; an' my po' sister Felicite had her consolation. "So, like I say, w'at consideration was one small diamond ring for such a pleasure? "A widow widout a grave is like a wind in Feb'uary--crying always forever aroun' de house, wid nowhere to go, an' in her eyes are all kinds of weather. Bff! "It is great consolation, a grave. It is a half-way station between de home an' de church; an' a widow she need dat--for a w'ile. "Tell you de trut', w'en I take time to t'ink, Adolphe, sometimes I am ashame'. So long I am prosperous I am all for dis worl'; den, w'en somet'ing come, like now, an' t'row me on my knees, I feel cheap befo' God, yas. _Mais_, wid de river _so_, w'at can a man _do_ if he cannot _pray_? So, after to-night's _ex_perience, I am at home wid my li'l' family by eleven o'clock every night, _sure_." "'Ow much chillen you got now, Felix? You go too fas' for my 'rit'metic." "Oh, no, not too fas'--just fas' enough. Only nine in over ten year--mos' eleven year. Only _six_, by _right_. I _engage_ for six; _mais_ w'at can a man do w'en his lady present him wid one _extra_, once in a w'ile! I am de las' one to make remark on her for dat, too, biccause I come dat way myself--following behind Felicite. Twins, dey run in some families; an' you know now I am coming to like dem. Dey are so sociable, twins."