18 WARWICK WOODLANDS. 



DAY THE SECOND. 



Much as I had heard of Tom Draw, I was I must con- 

 fess, taken altogether aback when I, for the first time, set 

 eyes upon him. I had heard Harry Ai'cher talk of him 

 fifty times as a crack shot ; as a top sawyer at a long day's 

 fag; as the man of all others he would choose as his mate, 

 if he were to shoot a match, two against two — what then 

 was my astonishment at beholding this worthy, as he 

 reared himself slowly from his recumbent position ? It is 

 true, I had heard his sobriquet, "Fat Tom," but, Heaven 

 and Earth ! such a mass of beef and brandy as stood before 

 me, I had never even dreamt of. About five feet six inches 

 at the very utmost in the perpendicular, by six or — "by'r 

 lady" — nearer seven in circumference, weighing, at the 

 least computation, two hundred and fifty pounds, with a 

 broad jolly face, its every feature — well-formed and hand- 

 some, rather than otherwise — mantling with an expression 

 of the most perfect excellence of heart and temper, and 

 overshadowed by a vast mass of brown hair, sprinkled 

 pretty well with gray! — Down he plumped from the 

 counter with a thud that made the whole floor shake, and 

 with a hand outstretched, that might have done for a 

 Goliah, out he strode to meet us. 



"Why, hulloa! hulloa ! Mr. Archer," shaking his hand 

 till I thought he would have dragged the arm clean out 

 of the socket — "How be you, boy ? How be you ?" 



"Kight well, Tom, can't you see? Why confound you, 

 you've gTowu twenty pound heavier since Jul.v ! — but here, 

 I'm losing all my manners! — this is Frank Forester, whom 

 you have heard me talk about so often! He dropped 

 down here out of the moon, Tom, I believe! at least I 

 thought about as much of seeing the man in the moon, as 

 of meeting him in this wooden country — but here he is, as 

 you see, come all the way to ""take a look at the natives. 

 And so, you see, as you're about the gi-eatest curiosity I 

 know of in these parts, I brought him straight up here to 

 take a peep! Look at him, Frank — look at him well! 

 Now. did you ever see, in all your life, so extraordinary 

 an old devil ? — and yet, Frank, which no man could pos- 

 sibly believe, the old fat animal has some good points 

 aboiit him — he can walk some! shoot, as he says, first 

 best! and drink — good Lord, how he can drink!" 



