Alden did not object, and had hardly swung out of the saddle to the ground, when two men came forward to greet him. One was unusually tall, the other of medium height and both wore heavy beards. The youth scanned them closely, in the partial obscurity, but neither was Mr. Chadwick. They cordially greeted the visitor and invited him to go forward and join in their meal. Most of the group were gathered around the “festal board,” which happened just then to be their blankets spread on the green grass.