value to us.

This left us in hard luck, as we had only about money enough to buy each
of us another shirt, a box of paper collars and cuffs, and some cheap
socks upon arrival at Fort Wayne.

It was economy to wear paper, so as to lighten our laundry bills.

Another exceedingly bad feature of our loss was the absence of a piece
of baggage to help convince the landlord of our responsibility.

However, we ventured to a very respectable hotel, where we engaged a
first-class room, and waited patiently for the return of our Power of
Attorney from Washington. The landlord was a very pleasant, agreeable
gentleman, quite suitable to our convenience. We made it as pleasant as
possible for him. A stranger might easily have mistaken one of us for
the proprietor and him for the guest.

By telling innumerable good stories, and constantly reminding him of his
excellent qualities as a hotel-keeper, and the wide reputation he bore
as such, we managed to "hold him down," as we termed it, very
satisfactorily.

In the meantime we were constantly on the alert for some one who would
like to speculate, so we could make a deal without delay, after the
arrival of our papers from Washington. After being there about three
days, we concluded to change shirts, which brought our new ones into
requisition. We then sent the ones we took off to a washerwoman, a few
doors away. These we left with her until obliged to make another change.
When that time came, three or four days later, we were at our wits' end
to know how to get possession of the clean ones, as we were completely
stranded.

We held a consultation, and almost every imaginable scheme suggested
itself. At last we hit upon one that seemed feasible.

A bright young boot-black frequented the hotel corner, and had taken
quite a fancy to us, and given us an occasional complimentary shine.

We asked him to our room, and informing him that we had a great plot
that needed his assistance, we required him to make an oath never to
"give it away," nor to betray us in any way, shape, form or manner. He
agreed to swear.

I then procured a Bible from the landlord, and "the kid," as we called
him, placed his left hand on the Book, and raised his right, as I
administered the oath.

He swore by all the Gods in Israel, and all the people in Indiana, that
he would be true to his trust.

Frank and I then took off our shirts, and wrapping them in paper,
informed "the kid" of our predicament, and o