Rudder Grange.

she neA'er could get the things as cheaply as Ave had them quoted . '' But you see , " said Euphemia , to her , " Ave had to put them down at very IOAV prices , became the model house Ave speak of in the book is to be entirely furnished for just so much . " But , in spite of this explanation , the lady AA'as not satisfied .

We found ourselves obliged to give up the idea of a furnished house . AVe Avould have taken an u i ifurnished one an d furnished it ourselves , but we hadn ' t money enough . AVe Avere dreadfully afraid that we should have to continue to board . It Avas now getting on toward summer ,

at least there was only a part of a month of spring left , and whenever I could get off from my business Euphemia and I made little excursions into the country round about the city . Sometimes Ave had only an hour or two of an evening , but on Sundays

we had all day . One afternoon we Avent up the Harlem river , and there we saw a sight that transfixed us , as it were . On the river bank , a mile or so above High Bridge , stood a canal-boat . I say stood , because it was so firmly imbedded iu the

ground by the river-side , that it would have been almost as impossible to move it as to have turned the Sphinx around . This boat Ave soon found was inhabited by an oysterman and his family . Thej' had lived there

for many years and Avere really doing quite Avell . The boat Avas divided , inside , into rooms , and these were papered and painted and nicely furnished . There was a kitchen , a living-room , a parlour and bedrooms . There were all sorts of conveniencescarpets on the floorspicturesand

every-, , thing , at least so it seemed to us , to make a home comfortable . This was not all done at once , the oyster-man told me . They had lived there for years and had gradually added this and that until the place was as a we saw it . He had an oyster-bed out in

the river aud he made cider in the Aviuter , but where he got the apples I don ' t know . There was really no 1 eason wh y he should not get rich in time . AVell , we went all OA'er that house and we praised everything so much that the

oyster-man ' s wife Avas delighted , and when Ave had some stewed oysters afterward , eating them at a little table under a tree near by , —I believe that she picked out the very largest oysters she had , to stew for

us . When Ave had finished our supper and had paid for it , and Avere going down to take our little boat again , — -for Ave had rowed up the river , —Euphemia stopped and looked around her . Then she clasped her hands and exclaimed in an ecstatic

undertone : " We must have a canal-boat I " And she never swerved from that determination . After I had seriously thought over the matter , I could see no good reason against adopting this lan . It would certainly be

p a cheap method of living , and it would really bo housekeeping . I grew more and more in favour of it . After what the oysterman had done , what mig ht not Ave do ? lie had never written a book on housekeeping , nor , in all probabilityhad he considered

, the matter , philosophically , for one moment iu all his life . But it was not an easy thing to find a canal-boat . There Avas none advertised for rent—at least , not for housekeeping

purposes . We made many inquiries and took many a long walk along the water-courses in the vicinity of the city , but all in vain . Of course , we talked a great deal about our project and our friends became greatly interested iu itandof coursetoothey gave

, , , , us a great deal of advice , but Ave didn't mind that . We were philosophical enough to know that you can't have shad without bones . They Avere good friends and , by being careful iu regard to the advice , it didn't interfere with our comfort .

AVe were beginning to he discouraged , at least Euphemia Avas . Her discouragement is like Avater-cresses , it generally comes up in a very short time after she sows her Avishes . But then it Avithers away rapidly , which is a comfort . One evening

we were sitting , rather disconsolately , in our room , and I Avas reading out the advertisements of country board in the " Herald , " Avhen in rushed Dr . Heareone of our old friends . He Avas so full of something that he had to say that he didn t even ask us how Ave Avere . In fact , he

didn t appear to Avant to knoAV . " I tell you Avhat it is , Arden , " said he , " I have found just the very thing you want . '' A canal-boat ? " I cried . " Furnished 1 " asked Euphemia , her eyes glistening .