we'll soon see whose hide is the thickest, hisn or ourn,
won't we? Let's see whether he will say chee, chee, chee,
when he gets to the t'other eend of the gun."

"What is the meaning of that saying?" I asked. "I never
heard it before."

"Why," said he, "when I was a considerable of a grown up
saplin of a boy to Slickville, I used to be a gunnin'
for everlastinly amost in our hickory woods, a shootin'
of squirrels with a rifle, and I got amazin' expart at
it. I could take the head off of them chatterin' little
imps, when I got a fair shot at 'em with a ball, at any
reasonable distance, a'most in nine cases out of ten.

"Well, one day I was out as usual, and our Irish help
Paddy Burke was along with me, and every time he see'd
me a drawin' of the bead fine on 'em, he used to say,
'Well, you've an excellent gun entirely, Master Sam. Oh
by Jakers! the squirrel has no chance with that gun,
it's an excellent one entirely.'

"At last I got tired a hearin' of him a jawin' so for
ever and a day about the excellent gun entirely; so, sais
I, 'You fool you, do you think it's the gun that does it
_entirely_ as you say; ain't there a little dust of skill
in it? Do you think you could fetch one down?'

"'Oh, it's a capital gun entirely,' said he.