222 WILD SCENES AND SONG-BIRDS. 



" I tell you, my good fellows, the old man will be sound 

 asleep yes, dead asleep for I know him of old ! How he 

 sleeps ! Why, you might fire a pistol in his ear when he 

 once gets at it, and he would never hear it." 



A low, broad-shouldered fellow with wiry muscular frame, 

 a throat hairy as a grizzly bear's with a black tangled shag 

 upon his head, mean, narrow wrinkled forehead, and thick, 

 inky brows that sat above his vulture beak, and shaded a 

 pair of small black eyes, the cunning and remorseless feroc- 

 ity of the expression of which I never saw surpassed in man 

 or beast now turned upon me with a sharp suspicious look, 

 as if he questioned my meaning in this last speech, but the 

 expression of maudlin jollity into which my features had 

 fallen, seemed to satisfy him. 



The Yankee now too came to my rescue, and produced a 

 diversion of attention also from my friend and myself, by 

 obstreperous displays of the convivial spirit which were alto- 

 gether too unmistakable for even lingering suspicion. 



The bottle was once more passed to him, but when they 

 did me the honor to pay me the same favor, after pretending 

 to drink again, I insisted that they should also drink with 

 us, " in compliment," not as a pledge of hospitality, which 

 appeal as I knew among men of loyalty, however rude, 

 would have been considered sacred, but among such as those 

 into whose power we seemed to have fallen, would only have 

 been regarded as indicating suspicion on my part. 



They all made a noisy parade of their readiness to drink 

 with the " gentleman," but each one of them, as he received 

 the bottle, turned his back upon us while he drank, or, as I 

 was convinced, pretended to drink. 



The fellows continued to grow very familiar and obstrep- 

 erous, especially when the Yankee, in an astonishingly short 

 time, began to give satisfactory indication of having got his 

 full " dose." His eyelids became exceedingly heavy, while 

 his gait wavered, and his tongue stuttered. 



Now the revel ran high apparently, although he was the 



