panied him; "for though I have to sleep on the floor, I must see a
man of whom I hear such high encomiums;" and then dismounting he called
for supper, which was immediately placed before him. Presently an
alguazil dropped in--as they commonly do at the inns in small towns--and
taking a seat, entered into conversation with the cavalier while he
supped; not forgetting at intervals to swallow three large glasses of
wine, and the breast and leg of a partridge, which the cavalier gave
him. He paid his scot meanwhile by asking news of the capital, of the
wars in Flanders, and the decay of the Turk, not forgetting the exploits
of the Transylvanian, whom God preserve. The cavalier supped and said
nothing, not having come from a place which would have supplied him with
the means of satisfying these inquiries. By and by, the innkeeper,
having seen to the nag, came in and sat down to make a third in the
conversation, and to taste his own wine no less copiously than the
alguazil; and at every gulp he leaned his head back over his left
shoulder, and praised the wine, which he exalted to the clouds, though
he did not leave much of it there, for fear it should get watered.

From one subject to another, the host fell at last upon the praises of
the first comer; told how he had fainted, how he had gone to bed without
supper, and had locked himself in; and spoke of his well-filled
saddle-bags, the goodness of his nag, and the handsome travelling-dress
he wore, all which made it strange that he travelled without any
attendant. The cavalier felt his curiosity piqued anew, and asked the
landlord to contrive that he might sleep in the second bed, for which he
would give him a gold crown. The landlord's fingers itched to take the
money; but he said the thing was impossible, for the door was locked
inside, and he durst not wake the sleeper, who had paid so well for both
the beds. The alguazil, however, got over the difficulty. "I'll tell you
what is to be done," said he. "I will knock at the door, and say that I
am an officer of justice; that I have orders from the senor alcalde to
see this cavalier accommodated in this inn; and that as there is no
other bed, he must have one of those two. The landlord will cry out
against this, and say it is not fair, for the second bed is already
engaged and paid for; and so he will clear himself of all
responsibility, while your honour will attain your object." This scheme
of the alguazil's was unanimously a