intentions of the
individuals were honorable, they went into the house and placed their
names on the register; Overdale, who did not understand this last
performance, expressing his surprise that they should be required to
sign a note for their board as soon as they came into the house. They
were shown to separate rooms, and each proceeded to make himself as
comfortable as his limited knowledge of the uses of the bedroom
furniture would admit, preparatory to making his appearance in the
dining-room. They were all shown this latter part of the establishment,
after they had visited, arm-in-arm, the barber's shop, the ladies'
parlor, and the hat-shop next door, in their vain search for something
to eat.

As they entered the room, and the head waiter approached, for the
purpose of showing them some seats, Overdale took his arm, and, having
marched the whole length of the room, was finally seated at one end of
the table, while his two companions were accommodated with chairs
immediately opposite. Their exploits at their first dinner in the city
were many--being all of them ignorant of napkins, and innocent of silver
forks, their performances with those unknown articles were something out
of the common order.

Having recovered from their first impression, that the bills of fare
were religious tracts, left for the spiritual improvement of the
boarders, by the Moral Reform Society, and having ascertained that they
were in some way connected with the science of gastronomy, they
proceeded to call for whatever they imagined would suit their palates.
Wagstaff began with tarts, then taking a fancy to a jelly, he reached
for them, and devoured them all, seventeen in number; and concluded his
dinner by eating a shad without picking out the bones.

Dennis, had somewhere heard of ice cream, for which frigid monstrosity
he immediately called; when it came, not knowing exactly how to dispose
of it, and perceiving that other people made use of the bottles from the
caster-stand, he concluded that it would be proper to season his cream
in like manner. He began with the pepper, followed it with vinegar, kept
on to the Cayenne, added a good quantity of oil, drowned it with
ketchup, and then with unusual impartiality, not wishing to neglect any
of the bottles, he poured Worcestershire sauce over the whole. He eat it
with the mustard-spoon and pronounced it excellent.

Overdale seeing a gentleman, on leaving the table, throw down his
napki