Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1853-08-10
THE PEWTER DOLLAR.
A YANKEE SKETCH.

making their debut in large small villages,
generally create more or less sensation among the
''natives; who-if the stranger puts on the slight
est air of mystery, stops among them any length
of t:me-lose no space nor spare any exertions to
sift him to the very bottom
In one of these localities, the over-grown viii
lage of Dayton, Ohio, several years ago, there
made his appearance, a long-legged, lean, lank
specimen of human nature, whose tout ensemble
bespoke him from ssthe land of pork and beans,'
or some seem to reckon it, sthe land of steady
habits,' away down East The critter seemed
somewhat out of his latitude, and how, or whittier
he came, none appeared able to elucidate; but
certain it was, the stranger created TO little SEN
sation and observation as he walked around the
village, peeping everywhere, with his fists care
fully slowed away into the deep recesses of his
capacious pockets, and his fuzzy white hat, knock
ed and crowded into all manner of acute angles
and indentations, sitting taunty upon his tow-har
covered head. He had been seen making is en-
tree into the village by the path of the canal,
from toward Cincinnati, early in the morning.;
and about noon, having we'll threaded each by
way lane, street, avenue and alley of the village,
he brought up at cake and beer shop near the
centre of the place, and Immediately stalked in
to the aforesaid depot of cheap fodder. A dutch
man kept the shop, and as it was place of COM
mon resort for the idlers and stragglers, it was
tolerably well slowed when our down-East genius
popped his long, hatch-sharpened phiz into it
He took a cool survey of things in general, and
the pyramid of ginger bread and eatable things in
particular.
''Heow dye deou 2" said he, giving the fat old
Dutchman behind the counter a familiar nod,
which the cake and beer man returned with anoth-
er nod, and sort of low gutteral vibration be-
tween that of snort and grunt. "Guess you
have got cakes and beer here, hain't ye p 1-
'sVell tnk have few,'' said the beer man.
sWell, yeou hev, that's fact; we'll yeou, I'm
darned hungry, hain't had bit O. noth:n' tu-day,
and guess I'll hev few o. them notions, any
way, said the stranger, who by this time was the
cynosure of all eyes, and the object of consider
able merriment to the crowd in and about the
beer-shop. p.
The Dutchman and the Yankee sdckered'
awhile about the quantity and price, but, finally
the matter being adjusted, the Yankee sat down
upon whiskey cask arranged his fodder before
him on the end of the counter, and started his
mastlcating fossils, full chizzel.
"Stranger,'' said one of the crowd, 'sI'll bet
something you're Yankee"
"Well, guess yeou'd win, tu, on that,'' says
the Yankee.
go, ] know'd you was; you're all terrible crit
ters for gingerbread, hain't you 90 continued the
inquistor. :...-. =
eyes," says the Yankee, taking another pull
at his beer 81 reckon we du devour it once in a
while. 'Taint hard tu take when feler's in
nards nigh to eollapse.'
"Whar do you hail from when you are at home,
anyhow %
"Where du I hail from % says the Yankee.
"Yes-whar dye b'long %
aye es."-Another swig at the beer. Well
squire, seein' its yeou. I'll tell yeou. cum
from mighty ways daown towards SUNRISE
Ye es mighty surprisin' folks daown our way;
spry, teou, always up before the sun, darned old
crtter-often hev TIL give it pry in the cold
morning tu get it off abeout its business. Fact,
by goly! Weren't for spry folks daown mere in
Maine, guess yeou'd hev tu du WITHOUT sun Ca
sionally out this way, for it often takes heap of
coaxin' and stirrin tn get the old blazer to rise
and spread herself.''
"Recon you have mighty cold snaps down that
way" said one. .......
"Cold snaps ?'' says the Yankee, ri guess we
du get up little the coolest snaps daown thar in
Maine casionally, ever yeou did see, perhaps"
ssWhat du you call cold weather, down there
among you Yankees :" ...-
"What du we call cold weather o. says he
''I ken tell yeou, squire; when the cattle's tails
drop clean off, and the grindstones bust; when
rams horns snap like pipe-stems, and caows
bags freeze up; when snow falls fifteen feet upon
a level, and hard enough to bear an OK; when
four and half proof brandy freezes, and the fires
goes out, then, just abeout then, squire, we con-
slider it mighty cold snap o. weather."
This picture of cold weather symptoms in Maine
tickled the crowd amazingly, and the laugh seem
ed to fire up the Yankee t.-
"Guess yeou needn't take on so about it; BET
five dollars you hain't got no such cold snaps
'beout here anyhow
AS no disposition manifested itself among the
crowd to chalk up to the Yankees weather in
Maine, the critter choked down his rising anger
and with gulph swallowed the residue of his
t beer, and giving that aperture wipe with the
, back of his bony hand, he faced the Dutchman
"Neow, landlord, cipher up the damages, anc
4 I'll square the account
ssVell, dere vos der beer, six, and dere vos del
cakes, ten dat vos sixteen cents.'
"Sixteen cents! swan, that's heap of money
0 to invest in cakes and beer, anyhow sxteel
e cents. Guess twelve and half will do, won
Q t."
ceTz J. 81 A. l>oo~ oI111