y rapped on the door
with the heavy oak butt-end of his whip. Still there was no response.
Again he knocked, this time louder than before, and was preparing for
an even more vigorous assault upon the unhospitable entrance, when the
door swung back and the landlord, a tall, gaunt individual, confronted
the driver.

"Well, I heard ye," he said testily. "Are ye coming in or shall I
bring it out?"

"Bring it out," was the gruff response of the disgruntled teamster.

Shortly afterwards mine host reappeared with a tankard of generous
dimensions. The teamster raised it; slowly drained it to the bottom;
dropped a coin into the landlord's hand; cracked his whip in a lively
manner and moved on. The steam from his horses mingled with the mist
and he was soon swallowed up, although the cheerful snap of his whip
could yet be heard. Then that became inaudible and the boniface who
had stood for a brief space in the doorway, empty tankard in hand,
re-entered the house satisfied that no more transient patronage would
be forthcoming at present.

Going through an outer room, called by courtesy a parlor, the landlord
passed into an apartment which served as dining-room, sitting-room and
bar. Here the glow of a wood fire from the well swept hearth and the
aspect of the varied assortment of bottles, glasses and tankards, gave
more proof of the fitness of the appellation on the creaking sign of
the road-house than appeared from a superficial survey of its exterior
and far from neat stable yard, or from that chilly, forbidding room,
so common especially in American residences in those days, the parlor.
Any doubt regarding the contents of the hospitable looking bottles was
dispelled by such prominent inscriptions in gilt letters as "Whisky,"
"Brandy" and "Rum." To add to the effect, between the decanters were
ranged glass jars of striped peppermint and winter-green candies,
while a few lemons suggested pleasing possibilities of a hot sling,
spiced rum flip or Tom and Jerry. The ceiling of this dining-room was
blackened somewhat and the huge beams overhead gave an idea of the
substantial character of the construction of the place. That fuel was
plentiful, appeared in evidence in the open fireplace where were
burning two great logs, while piled up against the wall were many
other good-sized sections of hickory.

Seated at a respectful distance from this cheerful conflagration was a
young man of perhaps five-and-twenty, whose travel-stained