“Perhaps they will some time,” said the squire, encouragingly. “I wish you would come and take tea with me to-morrow,” he continued, after a pause. “I should like to confer with you about these things.”
Consent was readily accorded; and the next afternoon found Peter Plunkett a guest of the squire. The latter, unperceived, mingled a potion with Peter’s tea; and the result was that in half an hour he was in a sound sleep. In this condition, the squire had him conveyed in a carriage to the depot; and, in a few minutes, they were travelling towards Boston. They reached the city in the evening; and Peter, still sleeping, was conveyed to the Revere House, carried to a bed-chamber, and deposited in bed. Squire Eveleth then retired, and, after leaving a note on the table, left the house; and, after passing the night at another hotel, returned, in the morning train, to Portland.
The sun was already high in the heavens when Peter Plunkett awoke. He gazed, bewildered, at the unwonted appearance of the room, and, jumping out of bed, walked mechanically to the window.
“Surely this can’t be Portland,” he said to himself, as the towers and steeples of Boston met his view. “Where am I? What can have happened to me?”
Turning from the window, his eye rested upon a letter lying upon the table, addressed to himself.
He opened it hastily, and read as follows:—
“Mortal! be thankful; for to you, in return for your unquestioning faith, has been vouchsafed a favor which distinguishes you above your fellow-men. I who write to you am Aldabaran, the potent genie of the air. Last night, I snatched you from your couch, in the dead of night, and bore you hither. You are now at the Revere House, in Boston. In your pocket you will find gold, which I have placed there. It will defray all your expenses, and bear you back to Portland. But beware lest you divulge to any one the chance that has befallen you; for, should you be so indiscreet, I swear to you by Solomon’s seal, which glows with unapproachable splendor, that you will instantly be transformed into a gigantic jackass, and be doomed in that shape to walk the earth for ever as the penalty of your folly.
“Farewell, and beware!
“Aldabaran.”
As Peter Plunkett read this terrible missive, his hair stood on end with affright; yet, in the midst of his terror, he was filled with joy at the nature of the favor which had been granted him.