and beery breaths a cheerin' him on up the political arena."

"Oh wall," sez Josiah, "the doin's in them woods is enough to
make anybody a dumb lunatick. The crazyest lookin' lot of stuff
I ever set eyes on."

"Wall, anyway," sez I, "it is a good crazy, if it is, and a
well-meanin' one."

"Oh, how cross Josiah Allen did look as he heered me say these
words. That man can't bear to hear me say one word a praisin' up
another man, and it grows on him.

But good land! I am a goin' to speak out my mind as long as my
breath is spared. And I said quite a number of words more about
the deep enjoyment it gin' me to see these broad, pleasure
grounds free for all, rich and poor, bond and free, hombly and
handsome, etc., etc.

And I spoke about the charitable houses, St. Christiana's home,
and the Home for Old Female Wimmen, and mentioned the fact in
warm tones of how a good, noble-hearted woman had started that
charity in the first on't.

And Josiah, while I wuz talkin' about these wimmen, became meak
as a lamb. They seemed to quiet him. He looked real mollyfied
by the time Ardelia got there, which wuz anon. And then we sot
sail for the Encampment.

The Encampment is encamped on one end of a big, square,