Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-07-26
THE PEwT TER DOLLAR.
/ YANKEE SKETCH

YANKEE SKETCH.
Travellers have all discovered that strangers
making their debut in large or small villages
generally create more or less sensation among
the natives" who-if the stranger puts on
the slightest degree of mystery, or stops among
them any length OF hme-lose no space nor
spare any exertion 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 enseDs-
bfs bespoke him from % the land of pork and
beans, OF, as some seem to rec kOn it, "the land
of steady habits, away down east The crit
ter seemed somewhat out Of his latitude and
how or whittier be came, none appeared able to
elucidate; but certain IL was, the stranger ere
ated little sensation arOu nd the village peep
ing everywhere, with his fsts carefully slowed
away into the deep recesses of his capacious
pockets, and his fuzzy white hat knocked and
&" crowded" into all manner of acute angles a nd
lndentatiOns, sitting jauntily upon his tow hair
covered head
lie had been seen making his entire into tho
village upon the tow path Of the canal, from to-
ward Cincinnati, eally in the morning; and
about noon, after having well threaded each by
way, lane, street, avenue and alley of the VIII
lage, lie brought up at a cake and beer shop
near the centre OF the village, and Immediate
ly walked into the aforesaid depot of cheap fod-
der Dutchman kept the shop and as it was
place of common resort of the idlers and strag-
glers, II was tolerably well slowed when our
dOwn-esst genius popped his hatchet-shap ped
pblz into 1t. He took cool survey of things
In general and the pyramid of gingerbread and
eatable things IN particular.
: Heow dye deou ?" said he, giving the fat
old Dutchman behind the counter a familiar
nod, which the cake and beer man returned
with another nod, and sort Of low cultural
vibration between that Of a snort and grunt.
"Guess yeou got some cakes and beer, here,
hain't We ?''
Well, tink has few" said the beer
man.
Yeou hev, that's a fact; well I'm darned
hungry, hain't had a bit o nothin' tn day, and
guess I'll hey a few o them notions any way"
said the stranger, who by this time was the
cynosure of all eyes. and the object Of consd-
cradle merriment to the crowd in and about
the beer shop.
The butchman and the Yankee " dckered'
awhile about quantity and price. but finally
the matter being adjusted, the Yankee sat
down upon a whisky cask, arranged his fodder
before him on the end of the counter, and
started his nasticating fossils full chizzIe.
Stranger" says one of the crowd, ''Ill bet
something You re ankee"
Well, guess yeou'd win, tu, on that" says
the Yankee
''Oh! know'd you was; you re all terrible
creatures for gingerbread, haint you ?'' con-
unued the inquistor-
fe-es." says the Yankee, taking pull at
his beer, . reckon we du devour it once in a
while. Taint hard to take when a feller's in
nsrds are nigh to a collapse
Where do you hail from when you're at
home. anyhow
Whar du L hail trom?'' says the Yankee.
les, where do you belong ?" continued the
questioner.
. Where du 1 belong? Ye-es, fanother swis
oil the heer,l well, squire, seein' its yeou, I'll
tell yeou. cum from mighty ways deown
to-ards sunrise; ye-es, mighty surprisin' folks
dao"n our way; spry, teOu, always up afore the
sun, darned old critter-often hev tn give it a
Pry IN the cold morning tn get it off beout its
business. Fact, by golly, Wern't for spry
folks deown there in Maine, guess yeou'd d hev
to du without sun 'easiOnally out this way,
Tor II often takes a heap of coaXn' and stirrin'
to get the old blazer to rise and spread herself
Reckon you have mighty cold snaps down
that way" says one.
Cold snaps" says the Yankee, q guess
we deou get up leetle the eoldest snaps deown
there in Maine, casiOnally, ever you did see,
pre- haps"
hat do you call cold weather ?" saws he
Ken tell you squire; when the cattle tail
drops clean OF, and the grindstone busts; when
ram horns snap like pipe stems, ceows bags
freeze VI; when snow falls fifteen feet ON n
when four-and "a half proof brandy freezes. and
the hre goes cut; then just about, then, squire
we consider 1t a mighty cold snap Of weather.
This picture of cold-weather symptoms in
Name tickled the crowd amazingly, and the
laugh seemed to Gre-up the Yankee
Guess yeOu needn take ON Sc ,eout IL; bet
nVe dollars yeou hain't got no such cold snaps
bsout here, anyhow"
As no disposition manifested itself among the
croWd 70 chalk up TO the ankee' cold weather
In M,lne, hs chOked down his rising dander,
ana with y gulph swallowed the residue of his
beer, crowded the last cake into his month
ana giving that aperture a wipe with the back
- oil MS bOny hand, he faced the Dutehmap
Meow, landlord, cipher up the damages, and
ii square the account"
Veil, der vos der beer, six, and der We. der
cakes, ten, dat vos sixteen cents"
sixteen cents. L swan, that's heap o.
money 10 invest in cakes and beer ANYHOW:
sixteen cents Guess twelve and a half will do,
won't it, w
No, dat it Won t. said the beer man; "chust
down init der moneys"
wall, meow, guess yeou needn't get riled
up oeout 1t, anyhow; guess | kin plank the
pewter thout gittin' cantankerous beout il
But spose yeou call it jest fourteen cents. cash
up, and no grumblin,'
" Bosh' growled the Dutchman, s.Jown nit
der money, and clear out o mine house init
your tam lankees"
Oh' meow show yeour monkey will yeoul
Tuess yeOu can skeer a feller no heo ": but
say ysou, hold yeOur gizzard and let's arrange
business fourteen cents and-a ci-gar-what
dye say"
Esady 10 explode, the old Dutchman frothel
:; me mouth like n fresh- tapped beer cask but
hHding that his cool, self possessed antagonist
was not to be got rid of without a pecuniary
advantage, be made the sacrifice. and dumpsd
down melee on the counter, and demanded
the cash. fourteen cents in full
Lelsurely hauling out an old greasy wallet
carefully eucir;led with immune IA BILE tapss and
yarns, Spanish dollar was brought forth, the
wallet re-closed and slowed away, and the dol
!ar PAnenuy placed upon the counter by the
Imperturbable down-easter
\ cow there's the pewter, Jest smash that
and take eoat your bill =" SAYS he.
The moment the Dutchman put his finger ON