TOM draw's visit TO PINE BROOK. 197 



dogs in. the grun-cases stowed, and store of topcoats, capes, 

 and bear-skins, all displayed, the wagon to the door. 



"I need not tell you, Mae," cried Archer, as he wrung 

 the gallant Celt by the hand, "to make yourself at home — 

 we must be off, you know;" — then opening the window, 

 "hand in those coats, Timothy, out of that drizzling rain 

 — I thought you had more sense." 



"Nay, then, they're no but just coom fra under t' 

 approns," responded Tim, not over and above delighted at 

 the reflection on his genius — "they're droy as booans, 

 Ayse warrant um." 



"Well ! hand them in then — hand them^ in — where's your 

 coat, Tom? — that's it; now look here, buckle on this crape 

 of mine over your shoulders, and take this India-rubber 

 hood, and tie it over your hat, and you may laugh at four- 

 and twenty -hours' rain, let alone two. You have got tog- 

 gery enough, Frank, I conclude — so here goes for myself." 

 Wliereupon he indued, first a pea-jacket of extra pilot- 

 cloth, and a pair of English mud-boots, buttoning to the 

 mid-thigh; and, above these, a regular box coat of stout 

 blue dreadnought, with half a dozen capes; an oil-skin 

 covered hat, with a curtain to protect his neck and ears, 

 fastening with a hook and eye under the chin, completing 

 his attire. In we got, thereupon, without more ado. My- 

 self and Timothy, with the two setters, in the box-seat 

 behind, the leathern apron unrolled and Wttoned up, over 

 a brace of buffalo robes, hairy side inward, to our middles 

 — Harry and Tom in front, with one superb black bear- 

 skin drawn up by a ring and strap to the centre of the 

 back rail between them, and the patent water-proof apron 

 hooked up to either end of the seat — the effeminacy of 

 umbrellas we despised — our cigars lighted, and our bodies 

 duly muffled up, off we went, at a single chirrup of our 

 driver, whose holly four-horse whip stood in the socket by 

 his side unheeded, as with his hands ungloved, and his 

 beautiful, firm, upright seat upon the box, he wheeled off 

 at a gentle trot, the good nags knowing their master's 

 hand and voice, as well as if they had been his children, 

 and obeying them far better. 



Our drive, it must be admitted, through the heavy rain 

 was nothing to brag of. Luckily, however, before we had 

 got over much more than half our journey, the storm grad- 

 ually ceased, as the night fell ; and, by the time we reached 



