“At what hour do they pass here?”
“At half-past ten, sir, almost to a minute.”
“And they pass directly through Hammondsville?”
“Directly, sir.”
“And Hammondsville is within six or eight miles of Old Lyon Hall, while Saulsburg is nine or ten miles off. Besides, at Hammondsville, I shall be near enough to my place, Hammond Hill, to get my own horses, with altogether a better chance of reaching our destination to-night. Come! I have a good mind to have my luggage taken off, and to wait for the Bee-line coach. What do you say, gentlemen!” inquired Dick.
“I say that we had best first be sure that we can get places in the new coach before we give up our seats in the old one. ‘A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,’ you know,” answered the lawyer.
“What are the chances of our obtaining places, landlord?” inquired the clergyman.
“How many places do you want, gentlemen?” inquired ‘my host.’
“Only three; and, rather than miss, we would not mind taking outside places.”
“Oh, be at ease, sir; I can almost insure you places on these terms, either outside or inside. At this season of the year, the coaches are very seldom crowded.”