182 OCEAN TO OCEAN ON HORSEBACK. 



called upon me at the St. James before the lecture 

 was Samuel A. Lester, a fellow-soldier of the Harris 

 Light Cavalry, with whom I talked over many of 

 our experiences in Company " E ^' of the "Old Regi- 

 ment. '^ Nothing has been so gratifying to me in the 

 course of my journey, changes of scene, or new faces, 

 as these meetings with old comrades, and the talks of 

 camp and field. Separating at the close of the war, 

 when the trying experiences we had equally shared 

 had drawn us strangely together, it was natural that a 

 glimpse of those we had known under such circum- 

 stances should be a delight after so many years. It gave 

 a different phase to my journey, too, and made it not 

 only a series of new and pleasant changes, but an 

 extended visit which might delight any traveller. 



Qll)irti3-eigl)tl) Slau. 



Crossroads, 



Near Croft's Station, New York, 



Ja7ie Fifteenth. 



I did not find it convenient to leave Batavia until 

 eight o'clock in the evening, but as most of the six 

 miles between the two places lay through a swampy 

 region, I had a running fight with the mosquitoes, 

 which encouraged me to make good time, so that I 

 reached "Croft's" in an iiour. On my arrival I found 

 Babcock awaiting me with accommodation provided 

 at a quiet little retreat situated at the Crossroads, 

 which was hotel, grocery and farm-house in one. 

 This odd grocery-tavern is about half a mile from the 

 station ; just far enough away to have peculiarities of 

 its own. While its proprietor was throwing down 



