or indeed considered at all; though, in fact, his arm
complained, and his leg ached distressingly, and he was faint and weak
without confessing it long before the tiresome journey reached its end.

"No matter," he said to himself; "it'll be all well, or forgotten, at
least, when I see Sallie once more; and so, what odds?"

The end was gained at last, and he would have gone to her fast as
certain Rosinantes, yclept hackhorses, could carry him, but, stopping
for a moment to consider, he thought, "No, that will never do! Go to
her looking like such a guy? Nary time. I'll get scrubbed, and put on a
clean shirt, and make myself decent, before she sees me. She always used
to look nice as a new pin, and she liked me to look so too; so I'd
better put my best foot foremost when she hasn't laid eyes on me for
such an age. I'm fright enough, anyway, goodness knows, with my
thinness, and my old lame leg; so--" sticking his head out of the
window, and using his lungs with astonishing vigor--"Driver! streak like
lightning, will you, to the 'Merchants'? and you shall have extra fare."

"Hold your blab there," growled the driver; "I ain't such a pig yet as
to take double fare from a wounded soldier. You'll pay me well at
half-price,--when we get where you want to go,"--which they did soon.

"No!" said Jehu, thrusting back part of the money, "I ain't agoin' to
take it, so you needn't poke it out at me. I'm all right; or, if I
ain't, I'll make it up on the next broadcloth or officer I carry; never
you fear! us fellows knows how to take care of ourselves, you'd better
believe!" which statement Jim would have known to be truth, without the
necessity of repetition, had he been one of the aforesaid "broadcloths,"
or "officers," and thus better acquainted with the genus hack-driver in
the ordinary exercise of its profession.

As it was; he shook hands with the fellow, pocketed the surplus change,
made his way into the hotel, was in his room, in his bath, under the
barber's hands, cleaned, shaved, brushed, polished, shining,--as he
himself would have declared, "in a jiffy" Then, deciding himself to be
presentable to the lady of his heart, took his crutch and sallied forth,
as good-looking a young fellow, spite of the wooden appendage, as any
the sun shone upon in all the big city, and as happy, as it was bright.

He knew where to go, and, by help of street-cars and other legs than his
own, he was there speedily. He knew the very room towar