So the waiter set before him a plate of six raw clams.
That was a good beginning; for every one of them seemed to speak to him of the salt ocean.
After that he went farther down the bill of fare and selected such dishes as, he said, "nobody ever saw in Crofield."
It was a grand dinner, and Jack was almost afraid he had been too long over it.
He went out to the office and looked around, and asked the clerk if Mr. Magruder had been inquiring for him.
"Not yet, Mr. Ogden," said the clerk. "He is not yet through dinner. Did you find your room all right?"
"All right," said Jack. "I'll sit down and wait for Mr. Magruder."
It was an hour before the railway gentlemen returned. There were twice as many of them now, however, and Mr. Magruder remarked:
"Come, Ogden, we won't detain you long. After that you can do what you like. Thank you very much, too."
Jack followed them into a private sitting-room, which seemed to him so richly furnished that he really wished it had been plainer; but he found the men very straightforward about their business.