Hear 'um laugh," he said viciously and regretfully.

"Say, John, you sly along and peek in and see what they're up to, an' come an' tell me, while I hold the horses," he said, to hide the fact that John was doing a good deal for his benefit.
John got slowly off the wagon and hobbled on toward the saloon, stiff with the cold.

As he neared the door he could hear some one talking in a loud voice, while the rest laughed at intervals in the manner of those who are listening to the good points in a story.

Not daring to open the door, Johnny stood around the front trying to find a crevice to look in at.

The speaker inside had finished his joke and some one had begun singing.
The building was a lean-to attached to the brewery, and was a rude and hastily constructed affair.