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OUR Travellers rose refreshed from their hard couches, and
went out to perform their morning ablutions at the moss-covered
horse-trough at the tavern door. But neither of them
murmured at having to perform that necessary duty in such
a place; but on the contrary, they both acknowledged that it
was more invigorating, and far pleasanter, to wash in the open
air, from a clear mountain stream, than to perform the same
office in a confined chamber, with stagnant Manhattan
water.

Although it was cold and stormy the night before, the sun
was now shining bright and warm; the wind had died away
and the soft balmy air was filled with the pleasant and cheerful
notes of myriads of twittering birds. The tavern was
situated in one of the pleasantest valleys in Massachusetts,
with a shallow but swift and sparkling stream running close
by the door. The hills, which rose to a great height on either
side, were covered to their very summits with beautiful trees,
while all the level lands were under a high state of cultivation;
and although the white farm-houses which were scattered
along the valley did not wear a very comfortable appearance,
on close inspection, yet they were highly picturesque at
a distance. There were large flocks of snowy sheep feeding upon
the delicate white clover that grew upon the hilly fields, and
numerous herds of fat and lordly-looking cattle were grazing

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in the rich meadows by the side of the little stream. Jeremiah
declared he had never looked upon so fair a scene before,
and he thought that the demon of avarice must have a
strong hold upon a man's heart, to cause him to leave the
pleasant hills and valleys of New-England, to seek for richer
soils in the flat prairies of the West.

“I know it is very fine,” said John, whose taste for the
sublime and beautiful was not fully matured, “but for my
part I should much prefer to look upon a good plate of toast
and some hot coffee, for I am very hungry.”

“And so am I,” said Jeremiah; “this fresh air, and these
pleasant sights and sounds, have given me a very keen appetite.”

On returning to the tavern, they found the breakfast table
spread, and a lady and gentleman, whom they had not seen before,
just sitting down. John looked upon the table and
smacked his lips, as his eyes took an accurate inventory of
the good things with which it was covered; there were eggs
and fried ham, apple-pies and waffles, butter and cheese, and
rye-and-Indian bread, together with a great variety of dishes
of the composite order, the names of which he did not know.
But neither he nor Jeremiah offered to sit down, because there
were but two chairs in the room, and they were occupied by
the lady and gentleman, who apparently wished to be quite
exclusive, and who certainly gave proofs, by their conversation,
that they were no common kind of people.

As John had never seen the inside of a New-England
tavern before, he took particular notice of the painted floors,
the wooden-bottom chairs, the green paper curtains at the
windows; of an old-fashioned mahogany secretary, with a
large Bible and two or three hymn books placed with religious
care on top; and of the profiles of the family, cut in white
paper, and hung up in black frames around a yellowish sampler,
with the name and age of the feminine prodigy who
worked it somewhat ostentatiously emblazoned in gilded

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letters upon the glazing; and of several other little matters,
which appeared very odd to him, as every thing will appear
to travellers, which they may not have been in the habit of
seeing at home. But all these curiosities did not divert John's
mind from the breakfast upon which he feasted with his eyes
until his appetite increased to such a degree of intensity, that
he came very nigh behaving with great rudeness. A modest
little hazel-eyed girl waited upon the table, and poured out
coffee for the gentleman and lady.

“Young geurl!” said the lady to the little waiter, “does
your father keep this establishment?”

“Yes m'am,” replied she.

“Then have the kindness, if you please, Miss,” said the
lady, “to request him to come to me.”

The little girl tripped out, and in a few minutes returned
with her father.

“Are you the proprietor of this hotel, Sir?” inquired the
lady.

“Wal, I own this house, I believe,” said the tavern keeper.

“Do you?—ah, very well,” said the lady; “I wished to
inquire if these eggs are fresh laid.”

“Wal, I can't exactly say as to that,” said the tavern-keeper,
“but you can try and see.”

“That is my lady, Sir,” said the gentleman, starting upon
his feet; “she is very choice in her eggs, and she isn't up to
that kind of talk.”

“Wal, then I guess she might as well go where she can get
better,” replied the landlord.

Here the gentleman gave evident signs of strangulation,
upon which the lady exclaimed, “Don't, my dear, get excited;
don't, I beg of you, for my sake; do be composed;
I would rather eat addled eggs, and rancid butter, and stale
bread, and drink muddy coffee, all the rest of my days, than
see you unhappy.”

The gentleman then assured his lady, that for her sake

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he would be patient, but that nothing but a due regard for her
peculiar situation could induce him to remain quiet under
such treatment. “However,” said the gentleman, shaking his
head, “I'll put the whole thing in the papers, as soon as I
return to the city; if I don't, my name ain't Jacobs, no how
you can fix it!”

“My dear!” exclaimed the lady, “what do you mean?”

“I mean my name ain't G. Washington Mortimer, no how:
I am blest, my dear, if I warn't thinking of your maiden name
when I spoke.”

The lady and gentleman continued to eat their breakfast,
and to find fault with every thing before them. But the
tavern-keeper left them to make such comments as they
pleased upon his provisions.

Jeremiah followed him out, and requested breakfast for
himself and companion upon credit; promising to pay as
soon as he could get an answer to a letter he had just sent off
by the mail stage. The tavern-keeper hesitated a long time,
but at last consented to give them a bowl of bread and milk
in the kitchen.

Our travellers now went into the kitchen to get their bread
and milk, where they found the tavern-keeper's wife, a very
different sort of a person from her husband. She was very
fat, with a florid complexion, and a thick short neck, which
was ornamented with a string of gold beads, as big as goose-berries.
She was seated in a capacious arm chair, and one of
her hands was employed in holding a large horn snuff-box,
while the other was occupied in conveying the yellow dust to
her nostrils. Altogether, she appeared disposed to take the
world very easy. “Do tell me,” she said, addressing Jeremiah
“if you are all the way from York?”

“Yes, madam,” said Jeremiah; “we left there the day before
yesterday.”

“Well, I want to know if York isn't quite a place?”

“It is a large city,” said Jeremiah.

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“Well, I shouldn't wonder if it was,” said the lady; “do
tell me if you know a man that keeps a shoe-store in Chatham
street?”

“Perfectly well, madam,” replied Jeremiah.

“Well now, do you know he is our son-in-law?”

“Is he indeed,” said Jeremiah; “what is the gentleman's
name to whom you allude?”

“Well, it is Pinkum, to be sure,” said the lady.

“Then I don't know him,” said Jeremiah.

“Do tell me!” said the lady; “I thought you said you did.”

“But there are several shoe-stores in Chatham-street,” said
Jeremiah.

“Do tell me if there are!” said the lady; “I want to know!
What a pretty creature that young man is!”—looking at
John; “I want to know if he is your brother?”

“No, madam,” replied Jeremiah.

“Well, I thought you didn't look much alike,” said the
lady. “Do tell me if his mother warn't dreadful sorry to let
him leave her?”

“He has got no mother,” said Jeremiah.

“I want to know!” said the lady; “precious soul! Huldah,
bring out a currant pie. And do tell me if either of you
has ever experienced religion?”

“I am afraid not,” replied Jeremiah.

“Do tell!” replied the querist; “what a pity that such a
sweet pretty creature shouldn't get religion! Huldah, bring
out some ham and coffee, and give 'em. Precious souls!”

So our travellers made a hearty breakfast; and then the
kind hearted landlady called John to her side, and having
smoothed down his hair, she gave him a kiss; and begged
him, for her sake, to try and get religion, which he promised
to do.

Jeremiah met the gentleman, whom he had seen at the
breakfast table, smoking a segar on the piazza after his breakfast,
and he told the stranger of his mishap, and of the

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unpleasant situation in which he found himself in consequence

“I see you have got a watch,” said the stranger; “why
don't you pledge it with the landlord, and then you will be
under no obligation to him.”

“I would not do that upon any account,” said Jeremiah,
“because the watch is not my own; it is one that I borrowed
from a fellow clerk.”

“Is it waluable?” inquired the gentleman.

“I believe it is,” replied Jeremiah, showing it to the
stranger.

“Yes, it's very waluable,” said the stranger; “too much
so to put into the hands of such a rascal as the keeper of this
house is, any how. But I will tell you what I will do for
you. I am going to wusticate here with my wife some time
and I'll keep it for you, and come under obligation to the
landlord for your expenses, until you get your wemittances
by mail.”

“I should be very thankful if you would,” said Jeremiah:
“and as I am going to take a ramble in the woods with my
young companion, you would oblige me by taking care of it
until I return, for I should be extremely sorry to injure it.”

“With the gwatest pleasure into the world, Sir,” replied
the stranger, “and I will give you a weceipt for it, to prevent
accidents.”

“That will be quite desirable,” said Jeremiah, “as we are
strangers to each other.”

Accordingly the gentleman took out his memorandum
book and wrote a receipt for the watch, and Jeremiah bade
him a good morning, and went to look after his companion
who was having fine sport with a large watch-dog in the
stable. And then they set out on a ramble in the woods, and
a long way they rambled too, and much longer they would
have continued to do so, but they began to grow hungry, and
were obliged to leave all the pleasant allurements of the woods
to return to the tavern for their dinner. But when they got

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there, dinner was over, and Jeremiah being too modest to
make a bustle, especially as he was living upon credit, they
had to wait a long time before they could get any thing to
eat; and then it was given to them very grudgingly. The
fat good-natured landlady was taking her afternoon nap, and
Jeremiah told the tavern keeper that he need be under no apprehension
about getting his pay for their board, as he had
put abundant security into the hands of Mr. Washington
Mortimer, who would be responsible for all charges.

“Wal, Mister,” said the tavern-keeper, “I thought you
said you was from the city?”

“So we are,” replied Jeremiah.

“Wal, I never knew before that any green-horns quite
as green as you, ever came from there,” said the tavernkeeper.

“What do you mean!” exclaimed Jeremiah, a sudden suspicion
flashing on his mind; “you don't mean to say that
Mr. Mortimer is gone.”

“Wal, I expect he has,” replied the tavern-keeper; “he
started off in his shay more than two hours ago.”

“And has he taken his baggage with him?” inquired Jeremiah.

“Wal, all the baggage he had was that she critter of his'n,
and he took her,” replied the tavern-keeper.

“O, oh!” groaned Jeremiah; “he has taken the gold watch,
that I borrowed from one of the clerks! What shall I say, or
what can I do!”

“Never mind, Jeremiah,” said John, “I will give you my
watch in the place of it, when I get it from the watch-maker's.”

But Jeremiah was so much overcome at this intelligence
and at the recollection of his want of discretion, that he could
not eat his dinner, and he left his companion and went away
by himself; and when John saw him again, his eyes were
red, as though he had been crying. That night the tavern
keeper gave them a bed, but the next day he was so cross and

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surly, that Jeremiah resolved that he would not stop another
hour in the tavern, but that he would travel on foot to Willow-mead
Academy, and send a conveyance back for his companion.
But John would not listen to such a proposition;
he insisted on accompanying Jeremiah, and accordingly they
set out on their journey toward Willow-mead, which was
forty miles distant. As their road lay through a pleasant
country, the time passed swiftly, and they travelled a
long distance without feeling at all weary. Sometimes they
would stop to slake their thirst in a clear running book, and
sometimes they would stretch themselves out on the dry
leaves, beneath the shade of a sycamore or a walnut tree, until
they were refreshed, and then they would continue their
journey again. At last, however, they were driven by hunger
to beg for something to eat at a farm-house door. The
farmer's wife civilly asked them to walk in, and then placed
before them, on a nice white table, a piece of cold veal, some
brown bread and cheese, and a pitcher of hard cider, of which
they partook heartily, and having thanked the good woman
for her kindness, they continued on their way; but night overtook
them at a desolate-looking place. It was on the summit
of a bleak hill, with but few signs of civilization around them.
There were no farm houses near; and to add to their uncomfortable
prospects, the sky became suddenly overcast with
heavy clouds; and sudden gusts of wind, forewarned them of
an approaching storm. Jeremiah now bethought himself
that they had done a very foolish thing in leaving the tavern,
as he had directed Mr. Tremlett to write to him at that place
and it was probable that a letter with money would arrive
there for him that very evening. But it was too late to
return, and they had no other alternative but to push ahead
until they should arrive at a farm house or a tavern. Having
looked about them in vain for some signs of a dwelling house
they began to descend the hill, which was very rugged, although
it was a gradual slope. By the time they reached the

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bottom, it was pitch dark, and the rain had begun to pour
down in torrents; and notwithstanding it was in the summer
time, the weather was very cold, the wind blew fiercely from
the north east, and the big drops of rain struck upon the flesh
of our travellers with such force that they thought it was
hail.

“Poor John!” exclaimed Jeremiah, “I am afraid you will
not be able to bear up under this pelting storm. I do not care
for myself; this cold rain and these rough roads do not make
me feel half as uncomfortable and wretched as I have often
felt, when under the warm shelter of a roof, at the harsh replies
I have received from a brutal employer. Indeed I do not
know, Johnny that I should feel very bad, even though I
were certain that I should never see the sun's light again, for
there are none who would shed a tear over me when they
heard of my death. But there is one, at least, who would
weep for you, and for his sake as well as your own, I hope
we may soon find a shelter.”

“And there is one that would weep for you, Jeremiah,”
said the boy: “for I should cry very hard if any thing should
happen to you. So cheer up, and don't be cast down on my
account, for I do love you, indeed I do.”

By this time they had reached the foot of the hill, when
they soon came to a wooden bridge which crossed a mill
stream, that foamed and fretted over its rocky bottom, and
made a much louder noise than does many a deeper river.
As soon as they crossed the bridge, they discovered a mill
and a little farther on they perceived a small but bright light
glimmering through the darkness. They ran toward it, and
very happy they felt when they discovered that it proceeded
from the kitchen window of a large farm house. The numerous
outhouses and a large barn gave promise of good
quarters, and our travellers entered the house with great confidence
of a kind reception. As they opened the door, a truly
pleasant sight met their eyes. A long table was spread on the

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floor, and a bright, cheerful fire, of good stout hickory sticks,
burned in the capacious fire place; a steaming tea-kettle and
a frying pan, full of thick slices of ham which sputtered merrily,
gave assurance that supper was nearly ready. And long
shelves full of tin pans and pewter dishes, as bright as silver
reflected back the bright light which the hickory fire threw
out. A buxom, rosy-cheeked girl, with a blue-striped long-short,
and arms bared to her elbow, was busied about the
fire-place, while an elderly woman, with three or four young
children were seated in the chimney corner.

But few words were necessary to relate the necessities of
the travellers, and the woman bade them seat themselves
by the fire before they were half told. The preparations for
supper were carried on with great spirit by the buxom young
woman in the striped long-short, and John thought he had
never seen a comelier specimen of her sex. Presently three
young men came in looking very grave and steady, as though
supper was a serious business and not to be made light of,
and shortly afterwards the master of the house made his appearance.
He was a very saintly personage, altogether too
much so for an every day existence, and Jeremiah, with his
accustomed ingenuousness, congratulated himself upon falling
into the hands of such a pious looking individual; for Jeremiah
never could learn to put a proper value upon external
appearances, which is not to be wondered at, for how is it
possible to believe, upon theory alone, that a human being
should be such a half way admirer of goodness, as to care
no more for it than only to wish to seem good. But a keener
sighted man than Jeremiah might have been deceived by the
very smooth exterior of the farmer. He wore a coat of an
exceedingly doubtful hue, cut after the straightest manner
of his sect, and adorned with a formidable row of horn buttons;
his hair was trimmed with a precision that hair scarce
seemed capable of; and his plain speech left no doubt in the
minds of the travellers that he belonged to the society of

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friends. Upon hearing Jeremiah's story, friend Hogshart, for
that was the farmer's name, smoothed down his hair and hemmed
two or three times with a solemnity that went to the
hearts of the benighted travellers.

“Although we have no money now,” said Jeremiah, “we
shall soon have it in our power to pay you well, if you
will allow us to sleep here to night.”

“Doubtless thee will my friend,” said the farmer, “but we
do not keep a house of entertainment, except for friends at
yearly meetings; and then the discipline of society does not
allow us to claim money.”

“It is a generous discipline,” replied Jeremiah, “but I hope
it will not prevent your taking pay from us, as we shall
never have it in our power to return your kindness.”

“Thee is kind,” said friend Hogshart, “but we have got
no spare beds in the house; and it is not, moreover, in conformity
with our customs to entertain strangers.”

“I would not insist, or even expect it, but we are strangers
to the road,” said Jeremiah, “and the night is so stormy that
I fear my young companion would not survive until morning
if he were exposed to the weather.”

“Truly friend, thee cannot expect that we should depart
from our established customs because the night is stormy,”
replied friend Hogshart in a bland and convincing manner.

“I must not insist,” replied Jeremiah, “and I would not,
for I do not pretend to have any claim upon you, but for the
sake of this poor lad; if you will allow him to sleep by your
kitchen fire I will willingly sleep in your barn myself.”

“Thee is very plausible my friend,” said the farmer, “but
if thee did not understand what I have been saying I will repeat
it.”

“I understand perfectly,” replied Jeremiah, “but I hoped
that you might he persuaded to alter your determination.”

“I perceive thee is a stranger to friends,” said the farmer,
“but as supper is waiting, I will not detain thee from

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proceeding on thy journey. Thee will find a large house with a
small family a mile or two beyond, where they may be disposed
to entertain thee.”

John had been twitching Jeremiah by the sleeve with
manifest impatience to be gone, for some time, and now Jeremiah
caught him by the hand, and with a degree of spirit he
had never shown before dragged him hastily out into the
pelting rain again. Friend Hogshart accompanied them to
the door, and as they emerged into the drakness he said
“farewell friends, farewell, I wish thee good night, farewell.”

Jeremiah could not say farewell, without, belying his
feelings, and he wouldn't be rude, so he said nothing, and his
young companion was at first so bewildered by coming suddenly
into the darkness that he could not speak, and they
felt their way along the road, with the rain beating in their
faces, for some distance in silence; at last John said, “I
wouldn't care about being turned out of doors Jeremiah, if
that nice old fellow hadn't said farewell to us.”

“We are certainly under obligation to him for civil language,”
said Jeremiah, “and he doubtless had good reasons
for not allowing us to remain in his house, although they may
not appear so to us.”

“But he might have given us some supper,” said the boy,
“and if he had I would have liked his reasons better. I can't
reason at all in this cold rain while I am so hungry.”

The wind now blew so fiercely in their faces and the roads
had become so slippery and uncertain, that they were obliged
to stop and take breath; indeed they could hardly move
ahead at all. The blustering little river which they had
crossed was swollen to double its usual width and the
ricketty wooden bridge cracked and quivered, as the flood
rushed past its old piers, and seemed every moment on the
point of giving away. Fearful of losing themselves on the
road the travellers had retreated to the old mill and sheltered

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themselves under its projecting eaves, where they stood wet
to the skin and shivering with cold, when their attention
was suddenly arrested by the noise of a carriage coming down
the hill on the opposite side of the river. Although they
could distinctly hear the tramp of horses' feet and the
rattling of wheels, it was so dark they could see nothing
of carriage or horses. It approached very rapidly and the
horses' hoofs were soon heard upon the hollow sounding
bridge, and then a loud crash and a cry, rose above the
howling of the wind and the roaring of the waters. The
white foam of the turbulent water enabled them to catch a
glimpse of the horses' heads and the top of the carriage as they
were hurried along towards the edge of the dam. John ran
to the farm house shouting for help with all his might, while
Jeremiah ran down the stream to give such aid as he could,
but he could do nothing to aid them except encourage the
driver who still clung to his seat and bid him hold on as
help was at hand. John soon returned with friend Hogshart
and his three sons, who were soon joined by the young lady
in the long-short carrying a lantern which she contrived to
hold in such a manner that the light blinded their eyes and
almost prevented them from doing any thing but run afoul
of each other. The carriage had fortunately floated against
some obstruction in the stream where it hung, and the driver
was crying to them to hurry for God's sake, as there was a
gentleman in the carriage who would certainly be drowned.
There was a large pile of boards near at hand with which a
loose raft was soon constructed and floated to the carriage,
from which they rescued the driver and the inside passenger,
but the horses they could not get ashore and they were carried
over the dam. The unfortunate passenger was quite exhausted
and unable to speak, but they bore him to the house,
John supporting his feet and Jeremiah his head. Friend
Hogshart humanely waived all considerations of discipline

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and suffered them all to enter his house, where they placed
the gentleman upon the floor and began rubbing him with hot
flannels, while the farmer unlocked a corner cupboard and
took out a small phial of French brandy, a few drops of which
he poured down the gentleman's throat who very soon after
began to revive, and when he opened his eyes Jeremiah fell
upon his knees, and to the astonishment of every body exclaimed
“merciful heavens!” and John clasped his arms
around the gentleman's neck and kissed him. It was Mr.
Tremlett.

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