Hiram tackled the head stage agent at Marysville, and allowed that this
yer pesterin' and persecutin' had got ter stop--what did that yer head
agent tell him? Told him to 'shet his head,' and be thankful that his
'thievin' old shanty wasn't burnt down around his ears!' Forget that six
months ago the coach was held up near here? Not much, sonny--not much!"
The situation was embarrassing to the guests, as ordinary politeness
called for some expression of sympathy with their gloomy hostess, and
yet a selfish instinct of humanity warned them that there must be some
foundation for this general distrust of the public. The journalist was
troubled in his conscience; the expressman took refuge in an official
reticence; the lady coughed slightly, and drew nearer to the fire with
a vague but safe compliment to its brightness and comfort. It devolved
upon Mr. Heckshill, who felt the responsibility of his late airy
introduction of the party, to boldly keep up his role, with an equally
non-committal, light-hearted philosophy.
"Well, ma'am," he said, addressing his hostess, "it's a queer world,
and no man's got sabe enough to say what's the rights and wrongs o'
anything. Some folks believe one thing and act upon it, and other folks
think differently and act upon THAT! The only thing ye kin safely say is
that THINGS IS EZ THEY BE! My rule here and at the mill is jest to take
things ez I find 'em!"
It occurred to the journalist that Mr. Heckshill had the reputation,
in his earlier career, of "taking" such things as unoccupied lands
and timber "as he found them," without much reference to their actual
owners. Apparently he was acting upon the same principle now, as he
reached for the demijohn of whiskey with the ingenuous pleasantry, "Did
somebody say whiskey, or did I dream it?"
But this did not satisfy Frenshaw. "I suppose," he said, ignoring
Heckshill's diplomatic philosophy, "that you may have been the victim
of some misunderstanding or some unfortunate coincidence. Perhaps the
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