“Well, I’m jest agoing to take hold of that now,” said Davis; “and so, says I, ‘Miss Andrews, have you got another firkin of butter to sell?’ And says she, ‘Yes, I have.’ And says I, ‘How big is it?’ Says she, ‘It weighs thirty-six pounds, and the firkin weighs six pounds, and that leaves thirty pounds of butter.’ And says I, ‘How much is it a pound?’ Says she, ‘Tenpence.’ So, after I went in and looked at it, I agreed to take it. It come to one pound five, and I took out the money and paid her, and put the firkin in my wagon and carried it home. Well, we never mistrusted there was any thing in the butter; and we went right to using of it; I guess we had some of it on the table that very night for supper; didn’t we, Judy?” turning to his wife. “You needn’t ask your wife any questions,” said the judge. “Tell what you know yourself about the matter, and then she may tell what she knows about it.” “Well, what I know myself about the butter is, we eat out of it about a week, and then Judy comes to me, and says she, ‘Mr. Davis, the first layin’ is all out.’ Says I, ‘It can’t be out so quick, it aint but a week since we had it.’ ‘Well, ’tis out,’ says she, ‘every morsel of it; but the layin’ wasn’t more than half as thick as it was in t’other firkin.’ ‘Well,’ says I, ‘Judy, if the first layin’ is out, you must dig into the second, that’s all.’ So off she went to get some butter for supper, and we was jest a setting down to the table, and byme by back she comes, all in a fluster, her eyes staring out of her head half as big as saucers, and she sot a plate on to the table with a great stone in it, half as big as my head; and says she, ‘there, Mr. Davis, if you’re a mind to eat such butter as that, you’re welcome to, but I shall wait till I get a new set of teeth before I try it.’ Says I, ‘Judy, what do you mean? where did that stone come from?’ Says she, ‘It came right out of the middle of the butter tub.’” “You may be a little particular along here,” said the judge, “for you are getting into the very marrow of the subject now. What happened next?”