High Life in New York: A series of letters to Mr. Zephariah Slick, Justice of the Peace, and Deacon of the church over to Weathersfield in the state of ConnecticutStephens, Ann S. (Ann Sophia)
General
High Life in New York: A series of letters to Mr. Zephariah Slick, Justice of the Peace, and Deacon of the church over to Weathersfield in the state of Connecticut
Stephens, Ann S. (Ann Sophia)
New York (N.Y.) -- Social life and customs -- 19th century
Wal, while we were talking about the banks, and old times, and
Weathersfield folks dying off so, that coot of a nigger cleared the
table right off as slick as a whistle, and afore I hardly knew what the
fellow was up tu he come along and sot down a set of decanters, and two
cider bottles with the necks all covered over with sheet lead, and then
he brought two baskets made out of silver, one on 'em was filled chuck
full of oranges, and t'other was heaped up with great purple grapes; I
declare it eenamost made my mouth water to see the great bunches a
hanging over the edge of the basket. I'd jest put a whopper of a bunch
on the little Chena plate which the feller set for me, and was
considering whether it would be genteel to cut the grapes in tu with the
cunning little silver knife which was put by the plate, when all tu
once, pop went something, eenamost as loud as a pistol, close by me. I
jumped up about the quickest, I can tell you; but it was only the nigger
a opening one of the cider bottles; he poured out some for me in a great
long glass with a spindle neck, and I drunk it all at a couple of
swallers, without stopping to breath. By jingo! but it was capital
cider! arter I'd drunk one glass I begun tu feel as spry as a cricket.
"Here, snowball," says I, "give us another; these glasses are awful
small; now, I like to drink cider out of a pint mug."
"Take care," says cousin Beebe, "I'm afeard you'll find the cider, as
you call it, rather apt to get into your head."
"Not a bit of it," sez I, "I can stand a quart any day. Here, cousin
Mary, take another glass, you hain't forgot old times have you? though I
s'pose they don't have applecuts and quiltings here in York, du they?"
I don't remember what she said, but I know this, my eyes begun to grow
allfired bright, and afore I got up tu go hum that nigger must have put
more than twenty baskets of grapes on the table, and the oranges seemed
to grow bigger and bigger every minit, and I know there wur more than
three times as many glasses and decanters on the table, as there was at
fust.
I ruther think it was purty nigh tea time when I got up to go back to
the sloop agin. I insisted on giving cousin Mary a buss afore I went;
and I won't be sartin, but I kinder seem to remember shaking hands with
the nigger, consarn him, jest afore I went down the steps.
I don't feel very bright this morning, and I begin to think that maybe
I shall come back to Weathersfield arter all. The York cider don't seem
to agree with me. I've felt dredful peaked ever since I drunk it, and
kinder hum sick tu boot.
Your loving son,
JONATHAN SLICK.
* * * * *
LETTER III.
Jonathan visits the Express Office--Sensations on seeing himself in
print.
DEAR PAR:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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