The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1855-09-05
III / strllanD. .
A Queer Fish,

| lie was short, stubby man, OF about
thirty years Of age, with long brown
soap-locks and ford face. He SEEM
ed quite impatient, and at short inter,
walls would raise fyom his seat and then
sit down again. He watched the Jud &C
closely, seemingly anxious to hear his
own named called. After waiting for
some time without being gratifed in his
wish, he addressed tie Court. lie
said =
" Why in thunderation, Squire.
don't you give 'Mericans the fust
chance, and not keep 'em waitin' till
you've put all them darned Greeks
asoak."
The Court-What's your name sir
Prisoncr-Bill Sherman, and moth i
ing shorter, Squire.
The Court--Well, Mr.. Sherman.
your case will be reached in few min
utes. In the mean time keep cool.
Mr.. Sherman-Squire, you might
as well ask a man to keep cool when
he was losin' at game of old slcd9c
in an air>tight oven.
After disposing of three or four
short cases the Judge called out the
name of William Sherman.
Mr.. Sherman stepped forward.
The officer who arrested Mr.. Shcr,
man stated that he found him cndcav.
oring to pull a canvas awning down
from its place in Nassau.st. on OK
postulating with him for his conduct,
Mr.. Sherman swore that it was a shirt
which belonged in his berth, because
he had put private mark upon it the
week previous ; the mark, he said
was red spot where he had killed a
bed bug by hitting it with an anvil !;
believing Mr.. Sherman to be mistaken,
he brought him in.
The Court--NIr. Sherman, what
have you to say =
Mr.. Sherman-I 'spect that the
less said the better the soger here
who brung me in is purity decent
feller, considerin', though Hank Spen.
Ger, who used to be captain of the
Tocnail 1nvincibles, has got coat
that takes the shine right out of his'n.
" Where are you from, Mr.. Shcr-
man -
:" ] was born and raised in Port
Bay, but have spent considerable time
around Crusoe Lake"
" What State, l mean p
"Wcll, Squire, in a state of starva-
ton, or else shouldn't gone boatn'
it in the canal. Squire, was you ever
at Port Bay ?"
No, | was not. In what county
is it 2"
" Well, Squire, Tn Gust if you're
very well posted. For the accommo-
dation of the popcrlation, Port Bay
was put down next to Lake Ontario, in
the north side of Wayne county, to
keep the bullheads from dyin'. BY
thunder, Squire, you hain't never seen
the world till you've seen Port Bay !;
there's moro Shermans there than you
can shake stick at in a week. The
poperlation lets corn and pcrtators
grow wild, but the great agricultural
product is bullheads. A young gals
edication isn't finished till she can skin
a live bullhead and fry it inside of three
minutes. The poperlation never sees
money except when there's a circus or
show, and then bullhcads sell in the
villages, ready skinned at a shillin' a
hundred. Water is considered an cx
cellent thing for bullhead raising by
the men, and for sleeping green tea by
the women when the bullhead crop
is harvested the popcrlation goes to
trappin' mush rats the outlet of the
bay is about four feet wide and six
inches deep, and the poperlation quar-
rels like thunder sometimes about who
has the best right to put their fykes in
it ; old Alvah Rood stuck to it once
that if could cut a canal from Port
Bay to Crusoe Lake the poperlation
could find a market for bullheads in
New York"
"Where is Crusoe Lake, Mr.. Sher-
man Z"
esquire, I amt a iography teach,
er, but | don't care if | do enlighten
you little. You see, Squire, one
side of Wayne County was set aside
and called Savannah. That corner
happens to be thundcrin' big swamp
except Crusoe Lake, which is all water.
Well, there is numerous population
of swamp angels and muskeeter's veg,
etables. Every family that hasn't got
COW keeps barrel of rot>gut, and
it's surprisin' how quick the babies
learn to smell out the bung. They
wean 'em when they're three months
old, and let 'em suck whisky and warn
water. | lived between Port Bay and
Crusoe Lake twenty,six years and
then cut sticks for the canal. I've
been bowsman on scow ever since
except in the winter, when scows aim
allowed to run. Squire, what you
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