"Go on," said Mrs. Bigsby.

"'Got a fine hoss thar,' sez I; 'reckon I never see such a purty
color,' sez I. 'He is purty,' sez he, 'per'aps too purty for ME to
be a-drivin', but he isn't fast.' 'I ain't speakin' o' that,' sez
I; 'it's his looks that I'm talkin' of; whar might ye hev got him?'
'He was offered to me by a fr'en' o' me boyhood,' sez he; 'he's a
pinto mustang,' sez he, 'from Californy, whar they breed 'em.'
'What's a pinto hoss?' sez I. 'The same ez a calico hoss,' sez he;
'what they have in cirkises, but ye never see 'em that color.' En
he was right, for when I looked him over I never DID see such a
soft and silky coat, and his mane and tail jest glistened. 'It IS
a little too showy for ye,' sez I, 'but I might take him at a fair
price. What's your fr'en' askin'?' 'He won't sell him to anybody
but me,' sez Lummox; 'he's a horror o' hoss traders, anyway, and
his price is more like a gift to a fr'en'.' 'What might that price
be, ef it's a fair question?' sez I, for the more I looked at the
hoss the more I liked him. 'A hundred and fifty dollars,' sez he;
'but my fr'en' would ask YOU double that.' 'Couldn't YOU and ME
make a trade?' sez I; 'I'll exchange ye that roan mare, that's
worth two hundred, for this hoss and fifty dollars.' With that he
drew himself up, and sez he: 'Mr. Borem,' sez he, 'I share my
fr'en's opinion about hoss tradin', and I promised my mother I'd
never swap hosses. You ought to know me by this time.'"

"That's so!" said Mrs. Bigsby; "I'm wonderin' ye dared to ax him."

Dan'l passed his hand over his mouth, and continued: "'I dunno but
you're right, Lummox,' sez I; 'per'aps it's jest as well as thar
wasn't TWO in the Bank in that bizness.' But the more I looked at