and then we walked up to
the South Ostable tavern. Peleg Small, who runs the place, he knows me,
so he let me have a room and I turned in for a nap. I slept about three
hours. When I woke up I started out to hunt the automobile and Billings.
Both of 'em looked consider'ble better than they had when I see 'em
last. The shover had got a gang of men and they'd got the gas cart
ashore, and Billings and a blacksmith was workin' over--or rather
under--the clockwork.

"'Hello!' I hails, comin' alongside.

"Billings sticks his head out from under the tinware.

"'Hi, pard!' says he. I noticed he hadn't called me 'Grace' nor 'Dewey'
for a long spell. Hi, pard,' he says, gettin' to his feet, 'the old gal
ain't hurt a hair. She'll be good as ever in a couple of hours. Then you
and me can start for Orham.'

"'In HER?' says I.

"'Sure,' he says.

"'Not by a jugful!' says I, emphatic. 'I'll borrer a boat to get to
Orham in, when I'm ready to go. You won't ketch me in that man killer
again; and you can call me a coward all you want to!'

"'A coward?' says he. 'You a coward? And--Why, you was in that car all
night!'

"'Oh!' I says. 'Last night was diff'rent. The thing was on water then,
and when I've got enough water underneath me I know I'm safe.'

"'Safe!' he sings out. 'SAFE! Well, by--gosh! Pard, I hate to say it,
but it's the Lord's truth--you had me doin' my "Now I lay me's"!'

"For a minute we looked at each other. Then says I, sort of thinkin' out
loud, 'I cal'late,' I says, 'that whether a man's brave or not depends
consider'ble on whether he's used to his latitude. It's all accordin'.
It lays in the bringin' up, as the duck said when the hen tried to
swim.'

"He nodded solemn. 'Pard,' says he, 'I sure reckon you've called the
turn. Let's shake hands on it.'

"So we shook; and . . ."

Captain Bailey stopped short and sprang from his chair. "There's my
train comin'," he shouted. "Good-by, Sol! So long, Barzilla! Keep away
from fortune tellers and pretty servant girls or YOU'LL be gettin'
married pretty soon. Good-by."

He darted out of the waiting room and his companions followed. Mr.
Wingate, having a few final calls to make, left the station soon
afterwards and did not return until evening. And that evening he heard
news which surprised him.

As he and Captain Sol were exchanging a last handshake on the platform,
Barzilla said:

"Well, Sol, I've enjoyed loafin' around here and yarnin' with you, same
as I