“Where did they git you?” asked the leader. “Did they git you in that Red Squirrel Inn?” at which the whole party laughed.
“I b’leeve he tried to git a piece of that wooden ham,” sung out one of the party, and there was another burst of laughter.
“Could you cut that chicken?” repeated another.
“Well, gentlemen, I gave up the chicken as a bad job, broke the ham, paid Mrs. Puffer a sovereign and got no change, being glad to escape alive; for she told me she had hit Joshua with a boot-jack,” at which recital the whole party roared and some of the younger fellows rolled on the ground in delight.
“Did she tell you how beautiful she used to be and how she froze out Nehemiah?” was the next question that gave them all a chance to laugh again.
“Yes, indeed, and she asked me if I ‘didn’t think she would make a smart wife for a nice rich man?’ but I didn’t get a chance for a word in edgewise for an answer,” related Barclugh to the intense delight of the whole party.
“Wal, stranger, I guess you are a purty good fellow. Where did you come from and where are you going?” asked the leader of Barclugh.
“I came from the headquarters of General Washington this morning and gave my passport to those scamps and now they have carried it off.”
“Wal, if you are able to travel we will take you to General Washington’s headquarters right away; for you are a prisoner of the Westchester Independents, and General Washington is at Verplancks Point to-night.”
Barclugh was not much the worse for his mishap, except that his shoulder was strained and he was bruised on the side of his face where he had slid down the hill.