Dick Birch, perhaps somewhat modified by matrimony, is a happy man. He is hardly appreciated by the people; if he had been, he would have gone to Congress before this time; but Mrs. Birch declares that he is the best man in the world, though he is just a little too fond of having his own way--a grievous fault, said to be almost universal among husbands. By no means let it be supposed that Mr. and Mrs. Birch quarrelled, though without any positive information on the subject, we will venture to say that Julia occasionally went into a huff, and that Dick had to pacify her. As each had a will and a way, it is more than possible that concessions were necessary on both sides; but as both were reasonable, and there was true love, concession was easy, and even pleasant. There was only a little spice to give variety to life, and no happier couple lived in the whole world. They still continued to be on the same side of the bridge. Master Eugene Hungerford Birch is a remarkable child; it is absolutely necessary that this fact should be stated, otherwise it would not be known. Besides being able to sleep and to eat bread and milk, which he did very naturally, if not gracefully, he could perform as many tricks as the clown in a circus, and he was duly exhibited to the crowds of admiring guests who came to Pine Hill. He could fall off the sofa, tumble down stairs, and roll out of bed with remarkable facility; and these feats were usually succeeded by healthy exercise of the lungs, causing them to grow strong and vigorous. Master Johnnie Hungerford was even a more remarkable young gentleman than his cousin. He was four years old; and though he had, as yet, made no speeches in town meeting, or in the hall of the Poppleton Library, he could talk faster, and say more in a given time, than any other child of his age in the county. His extraordinary talent in this direction already pointed him out as a future member of Congress, to which honorable position no one doubted that he would ultimately arrive. Johnnie was not surpassed in anything by his remarkable cousin. He could fall off the sofa, tumble down stairs, and roll out of bed with no less facility than Master Eugene H. Birch; and, in the preceding summer, he had contrived to outdo him by tumbling into the duck pond, to the great astonishment of the ducks, and the mortal terror of his mother. This was certainly a very enterprising feat, and Johnnie was a hero for seven days afterwards. Besides his strictly gymnastic ability, John had other talents and accomplishments of the highest order. He could break crockery and glass ware beautifully; he could purloin his mother’s scissors and hack a cambric handkerchief to pieces in the most artistic manner; he could root out a rare geranium in the conservatory in the twinkling of the eye.