As Nixon had his feet propped up on the back of a chair in front of him, Sir William, in order to put his guest thoroughly at his ease, secured a chair and cocked _his_ feet up in the air, too. And, in order that Nixon might not he embarrassed by suddenly finding out that he was the only one who was spitting copiously on the tiles in front of the fireplace, Sir William also occasionally contributed a light expectoration in that locality. Spitting had been a yet unlearned accomplishment with Ware; but, by watching John Nixon, who was a pastmaster, the baronet learned, in the course of half an hour or so, to hit the centre of the tiling with a fair degree of accuracy, and without leaning forward in his chair. As far, however, as putting Nixon at his ease was concerned, Sir William need not have troubled. It was an oft-enunciated maxim of John Nixon's that whatever he did was right, if he did it. "Do's you wanter," was the way Nixon put it; "dun't ast nobuddy fur nawthun." Presently, noting that the moistened area in front of the fireplace threatened to overflow and inundate the flooring about the tiles, Sir William jumped up, as though with a sudden inspiration and said, smiting Nixon playfully on his tree-stump shoulder: "Take you on at billiards upstairs, old chap!" "Ur-rh?" Another salivation dampened the tiling as Nixon twisted his stocky torso about. "I was about to say," Sir William pursued--having gathered from his guest's tone and attitude that John Nixon did not know anything about playing billiards--"that I would take you on at a game of billiards, only it's so jolly uninteresting. Shall we stroll out and see the deer?" "Ain't interested in deers," said Nixon, "'n I wun't budge a step to see nawthun I dun't want for to see. Never _would_." "You're jolly well right," agreed Sir William; "I can thoroughly sympathize with you, Nixon, old man.... Silly things, deer, after all--aren't they?" "I tell you, though," Nixon arose, grunted, stretched, scratched, shook his legs, and, with a certain awesome gapping sound and a gust of fetid breath, yawned in his host's face, "what I _will_ do, English. Take me somewhurs whurr I ken git a schooner o' beer--thuh drinks on you, mind, fur I ain't got a cent to spare--an' I'll go along, every steppuh the way. How des that ketch you?" "Happy thought!" Sir William clapped his guest heartily on the back. "Bright idea! Nixon, you're a man after my own heart. Half a jiff, till I bring our hats and coats." The two left the house by the side door; but, as they reached the gate of the grounds, Sir William on the excuse that he had forgotten his pocket-book, requested Nixon to walk on slowly, and himself hurried back to the house. "Was you tannin' thuh leather furr a new bill-book, er whutt?" demanded John Nixon, testily, as his host, after quite a lapse of time, rejoined him.