One evening, after the meeting, to my great surprise, Ward fell into step with me. We had up to that moment never exchanged a word.
"Farm bred, of course?" he remarked. "Where?"
"Ashbury in Vermont," I replied, without the slightest feeling that he was intrusive.
He stopped short in the street and looked me up and down reflectively, but without comment.
"I've been watching you at these fool meetings," said he, falling into step again.
In spite of myself I experienced a glow of gratification at having been the object of his interest.
"Suppose, by a miracle, all that lot could agree, and could start for California to-morrow, in a body--that's what they are organized for, I believe," he countered--"would you go with them?"
"Martin is why not; and Fowler is why not; and that little Smith runt, and six or eight others. They are weak sisters. If you are going into a thing, go into it with the strong men. I wouldn't go with that crowd to a snake fight if it was twelve miles away. Where do you live?"
"That's not far. Have you a good big room?"
"I have a very small hall bedroom," I replied wonderingly; "a number of us have the whole of the top floor."
Somehow, I must repeat, this unexplained intrusion of a total stranger into my private affairs did not offend.
"Then you must have a big sitting-room. How many of you?"
I stopped to laugh. By some shrewd guess he had hit on our chief difficulty as a community. We were all four country boys with a good deal of residuary energy and high spirits; and we were not popular with the tenants underneath.
"You see I'm pretty big----" I reminded him.
"Yes, I see you are. That's why I'm with you. Do you think you can lick me?"
He laughed, and the devils in his eyes danced right out to the surface of them.
"I asked you a plain question," he said, "and I'd like the favour of a plain answer. Do you think you can lick me as well as your rural friends?"
We found two of my roommates smoking and talking before the tiny open fire. Talbot Ward, full of the business in hand, rushed directly at the matter once the introductions were over.
Our arrangements were very simple; the chairs were few and pushed back easily, and we had an old set of gloves.
"Which is it to be?" I asked my guest, "boxing or wrestling?"