“Sensibly spoken,” said Halberd. “All we desire of you is that you let the Sachem know we are come.”
“But I said I didn’t know this Sachem!” cried the exasperated boniface.
“True, true,” said Pike. “But it seems too monstrous to be so.”
“But,” put in Halberd, “you must remember that wealthy young nobleman, who paved our way with gold, when we were with you a number of years ago. Surely you cannot yet have spent what we scattered in your house?”
“And you will certainly remember the drubbing we gave those varlets, with the flat of our swords, here in this very room—some dozen of the fellows there were in all,” added the other of the pair. “They dared to insinuate that we were beggars—aye, beggars, forsooth!”
The landlord remembered them now, clearly enough. He restrained himself from calling them vile names, by making an effort truly heroic.
“Oh, to be sure, I do recall it now,” he said, cunningly. “I believe your Sachem did even call here, to ask if you had come. Yes, yes. I think he said he meant to return here this afternoon again. Was he not a tall, noble-looking gentleman?”
“Like a king,” said Pike.
“With a manner like this,” added Halberd, strutting and swaggering across the room. “He should have walked in over several prostrate forms, in the manner of a prince and our associate.”
“The same, the very same,” agreed the landlord. “He is certain to be here within the hour. Sit down, gentlemen, and let me serve you, and then I shall be honored to have a look about, myself, to see if I may not find him.”