What is Tom Walker's first encounter with the stranger in the forest like?

Considering that Tom is incredibly stubborn and gruff and the fact that he is meeting Satan, the meeting is overall fairly cordial. Tom had decided to take a shortcut home, and he kicks a skull at one point. Old Scratch magically appears and yells at Tom to stop kicking stuff. The Devil is a bit angry and questions why Tom is on his land. Tom, not one to back down from confrontation, fires right back at Satan with an argument of his own.

"What are you doing on my grounds?" said the black man, with a hoarse, growling voice.
"Your grounds!" said Tom, with a sneer; "no more your grounds than mine; they belong to Deacon Peabody."

Incredibly, the encounter doesn't escalate into a screaming match from this point. Old Scratch defends his property rights and explains to Tom who he is. We are even told that the Devil announces his name with a "half-civil nod." Tom is unbelievable at this point. He is talking to Satan, and Tom isn't even fazed.

One would think that to meet with such a singular personage in this wild, lonely place would have shaken any man's nerves; but Tom was a hard-minded fellow, not easily daunted, and he had lived so long with a termagant wife that he did not even fear the devil.

The two of them have a "long and earnest conversation." At the end of the conversation, the Devil makes an offer to Tom, and Tom Walker has the nerve to essentially tell Satan himself "I'll think about it."

Tom initially meets Old Scratch while taking a shortcut home through the dark swamp. Irving describes the swamp as being full of quagmires, mud, moss-covered rocks, and fallen trees. Tom eventually walks onto a thin peninsula in the swamp, which used to be an old Indian stronghold. Tom then kicks an Indian skull, and the devil suddenly tells him to let the skull alone because he is trespassing on his ground. Tom and Old Scratch proceed to argue about who owns the grounds before the devil introduces himself. The devil then offers Tom a deal regarding Kidd's treasure in exchange for his soul. However, Irving does not elaborate on the details of their conversation, and Tom responds by telling the devil that he will think about the deal. Before Tom leaves the swamp, the devil presses his finger against Tom's forehead, leaving his signature on Tom's skin. Overall, Tom has an interesting first meeting with the devil and does not initially accept his terms until after his wife disappears.