debate in which the question before the house was, stated boldly,
Should we or should we not "go native?" In other words, should we hold
ourselves aloof, live contrary to the customs of the country and
mortally offend our hosts,--to say nothing of our hostesses,--or
should we fulfil our destinies, take unto ourselves island brides and
eat our equatorial fruit, core and all?

For the purpose of discussion Whinney was designated to uphold the
negative, and for an hour we argued the matter pro and con. Whinney
advanced a number of arguments, the difference in our nationalities,
our standing in our home communities (which I thought an especially
weak point), our lack of a common language, and several other trivial
objections, all of which Swank and I demolished until Whinney got
peevish and insisted that he and I change sides.

I spoke very seriously of the lack of precedent for the step which we
were considering and of what my people in Derby, Conn., would say when
they learned that a Traprock had married a Filbert. Swank replied with
some heat that he didn't believe that anything could be said in Derby
that hadn't been said already and Whinney was much more eloquent on
the affirmative than he had been on the negative. Finally when I thought
we had talked enough I said--

"Well, gentlemen, are you ready for a ballot?"

"We are," said Swank and Whinney.

"Remember," I warned, "The green nuts are for the affirmative,--the
black ones for the negative. Secret ballots, of course."