“Yes, the star of hope is rising in the sky, brighter and brighter; and the wise men are even now coming from afar over the desert, seeking diligently where this redeemer is to be found.” He sot demute. He did not frame a reply: he had no frame, and I knew it. Silence rained for some time; and finally I spoke out solemnly through the rain,-- “Will you do Dorlesky's errents? Will you give her her rights? And will you break the Whisky Ring?” He said he would love to do Dorlesky's errents. He said I had convinced him that it would be just and right to do 'em, but the Constitution of the United States stood up firm against 'em. As the laws of the United State wuz, he could not make any move towards doin' either of the errents. Says I, “Can't the laws be changed?” “Be changed? Change the laws of the United States? Tamper with the glorious Constitution that our 4 fathers left us--an immortal, sacred legacy?” He jumped right up on his feet, in his surprise, and kinder shook, as if he was skairt most to death, and tremblin' with borrow. He did it to skair me, I knew; and I wuz most skaird, I confess, he acted so horrowfied. But I knew I meant well towards the Constitution, and our old 4 fathers; and my principles stiddied me, and held me middlin' firm and serene. And when he asked me agin in tones full of awe and horrow,-- “Can it be that I heard my ear aright? or did you speak of changing the unalterable laws of the United States--tampering with the Constitution?” Says I, “Yes, that is what I said.” Oh, how his body kinder shook, and how sort o' wild he looked out of his eyes at me! Says I, “Hain't they never been changed?” He dropped that skairful look in a minute, and put on a firm, judicial one. He gin up; he could not skair me to death: and says he,-- “Oh, yes! they have been changed in cases of necessity.” Says I, “For instance, durin' the late war, it was changed to make Northern men cheap blood-hounds and hunters.” “Yes,” he said. “It seemed to be a case of necessity and econimy.” “I know it,” says I. “Men was cheaper than any other breed of blood-hounds the planters had employed to hunt men and wimmen with, and more faithful.” “Yes,” he said. “It was doubtless a case of clear econimy.” And says I, “The laws have been changed to benifit whisky-dealers.” “Wall, yes,” he said. “It had been changed to enable whisky-dealers to utelize the surplufus liquor they import.” Says he, gettin' kinder animated, for he was on a congenial theme,-- “Nobody, the best calculators in drunkards, can't exactly calculate on how much whisky will be drunk in a year; and so, ruther than have the whisky-dealers suffer loss, the laws had to be changed. [Illustration: A CASE OF NECESSITY.]