"I waken in the early morning," said Anthony, "and see a man with whom I talked the night before holding a pistol pointed at me. A few minutes later I see him about to drive off, assisted by the landlord. I attempt to follow; the landlord tries to prevent me, and you all stand about and agree that he's in the right." Out of the tail of his eye he saw his horses being put into the sleigh; and he went on: "I think I could remain here to good advantage for an hour or two," said he, "but the gentleman who just now took to the road has the first claim to my attention." He moved with a long stride toward the sleigh, and helped the hostler with the traces and reins; also he looked sharply to the buckles; and while doing so he continued, "However, I shall keep this place in mind, and the questions I have to ask I will ask some of you when we meet again." "You think, then, there will be another meeting," laughed the big young man. "At any rate," said Anthony, "you and I shall meet." He got into the sleigh, wrapped the robes about him, and took up the reins. "So give thought to it; I've had you in mind for some time, and want no advantage over you." And then he spoke to the horses; in a moment they were out of the inn yard, and Anthony was facing toward New Castle in the track of the man with the patch over his eye. XIX Anthony had a feeling that the one-eyed man had taken the road toward Wilmington; so he put the sorrels to their best, and the miles spun behind them. The man ahead had no such horses, and Anthony felt he'd bring up with him before the next few hours went by. His first halt was at a decent-looking tavern on the verge of Wilmington. While giving his horses time to blow, he ate a little food and talked with the landlord. "It's early for travel at this time of year," said he, as he munched the boiled beef and the good white bread. "I suppose I'm the first of the morning." "Oh, no," said the host, an honest, stout man, who looked as though his judgment of ale was of the best; "there have been several passed before you." "None you knew, however," said Anthony. "I knew them all," said the stout tavern-keeper. "There was old Ned Dance with his bags of meal from the miller's, and Simon, the cabinet-maker's man, from Chadd's Ford; and then there was the master of the French ship--" "What French ship?" asked Anthony. "She that lies a few miles below; an armed ship she is, too, perhaps a letter-of-marque, but with only a few men aboard of her." "What appearing man is her master," asked Anthony with interest. "Not a Frenchman, though you'd expect him to be. He's American, right enough, and one that I'm not fond of because of a kind of slithering laugh he's got. And he wears a patch over one of his eyes." Anthony smiled and seemed to enjoy the bread and beef much more than before.