simplicity, had slipped into my haversack; and while regaling
ourselves in this unpretending manner, the major, whose ardor was
rather increased by the liquid he mixed with his water, resumed the
recital of his first adventure in New York: "Being desirous of
facilitating the Quaker's honesty, my companion, General Fopp,
suggested an easy way of disposing of the matter. The pocket-book,
he said, no doubt contained an enormous amount, which the unlucky
owner would be anxious to regain as early as possible in the
morning, and to that end would advertise in all the newspapers,
offering a large reward to the lucky finder, as an inducement for
him to preserve his honesty. The first step then would be to find a
convenient place for counting the contents of the pocket-book, and
considering the amount which could be properly offered the Quaker,
as the reward of his honesty. So, after consulting within myself for
some few minutes, I followed my companion and the Quaker into the
back parlor of a cigar shop, where we carefully counted the great
roll of notes, and found the amount to be exactly four thousand
three hundred and twenty-two dollars, which nice little sum,
together with papers of great value, showing the owner, one Henry
Paterson, to be a man of large dealings in Wall-street, were
entrusted to my care. My companion expressed his inability to trust
himself with so large an amount of property, especially as the
servants at his hotel were proverbially inclined to take liberties
with other people's goods. At my request, he said he thought two
hundred and fifty dollars would be a moderate consideration, since
the owner would no doubt value the restoration of his property at
twice that sum. I was not possessed of so large a sum; but being
anxious not to wrong the Quaker, whose quiet demeanor completely won
my confidence, I produced one hundred and fifty dollars, which he
accepted, saying it was much more than he expected. My political