Part 19 (1/2)

At this moment the driver, a negro wearing a straw hat with a very broad brim, came out of the shop, wiping his mouth with the sleeve of his coat. He bowed with even more deference than the generality of the people. The strangers were not elegantly or genteelly dressed, but they wore good clothes, and would have pa.s.sed for masters of vessels, so far as their costumes were concerned.

”Is this your carriage?” demanded M. Rubempre.

”Yes, sir,” replied the man in good English.

”How far you must go to get into Na.s.sau?” inquired the detective, mangling his English enough to suit the occasion.

”Two miles, sir.”

”How much you make pay to go to Na.s.sau in ze carriage?”

”Fifty cents.”

”Feefty cents; how much money was zat?”

”Arn't you Americans?”

”_Non!_” replied M. Rubempre with energy. ”We have come from ze France; but I was been in London, and I comprehend ze money of Eengland.”

”Two s.h.i.+llings then,” replied the driver, laughing.

”We go wiz you to ze Na.s.sau,” added the Frenchman, seating himself in the carriage, his companion taking a place at his side.

”Where do you want to go, sir?” asked the negro, as he closed the door of the victoria.

”We must go to Na.s.sau,” replied the detective, mangling his p.r.o.nunciation even more than his grammar.

”Yes, I know; but where in Na.s.sau do you wish to go? Shall I drive you to a hotel? The Royal Victoria is the best in the place.”

”You shall take us to zat hotel.”

For the sake of appearances, rather than for any other reason, each of the visitors to Na.s.sau had brought with him a small hand-bag, containing such articles as might be useful to them. Having these evidences that they were travellers, it would be prudent to go to a hotel, though the want of more luggage had made the landlord in Hamilton suspicious of their ability to pay their bills.

Christy found enough to do during the ride to observe the strange sights presented to his gaze, even in the outskirts of the town. The people were full of interest to him, and he wondered that his father had never made a winter trip in the West Indies in former years, instead of confining his visits to the more northern islands of the ocean.

The carriage arrived at the Royal Victoria Hotel, located on a ridge which has been dignified as a hill, a short distance in the rear of the business portion of the town. M. Rubempre produced his purse, which was well stuffed with sovereigns, more for the enlightenment of the clerk who came out when the vehicle stopped, than for the information of the driver, to whom he paid four florins, which was just double his fare.

”Do you speak French?” asked the guest in that language.

”No, sir; not a word of it,” though he understood the question.

”We must have two chambers for one, two, t'ree day.”

”All right; we have two that were vacated this morning,” replied the clerk, as he led the way to the office, where the Frenchman registered his name, and his residence as in Paris.

Christy wrote the name of Christophe Poireau, also from Paris. Then they chatted together in French for a moment, in order to impress the clerk and others who were standing near with the fact that they spoke the polite language. They were shown to two small chambers, well up in the air, for the hotel seemed to be as full as the clerk had suggested that it was. The blockade business made the town and the hotel very lively.

The newly arrived guests did not waste any time in their rooms, but entered at once upon the work of their mission. On the piazza they halted to size up the other visitors at the hotel. From this high point of view they could see the harbor, crowded with vessels.

CHAPTER XVIII