The Complete Works of Artemus Ward (HTML edition)Ward, Artemus
General
The Complete Works of Artemus Ward (HTML edition)
Ward, Artemus
American wit and humor
Sez I, "My fragrant roses of the Southern clime and Bloomin daffodils,
what's the price of whisky in this town, and how many cubic feet of that
seductive flooid can you individooally hold?"
They made no reply to that, but said my wax figgers was confisticated.
I axed them if that was ginerally the stile among thieves in that
country, to which they also made no reply, but said I was arrested as a
Spy, and must go to Montgomry in iuns. They was by this time jined by a
large crowd of other Southern patrits, who commenst hollerin "Hang the
baldheaded aberlitionist, and bust up his immoral exhibition!" I
was ceased and tied to a stump, and the crowd went for my tent--that
water-proof pavilion, wherein instruction and amoosment had been so
muchly combined, at 15 cents per head--and tore it all to pieces.
Meanwhile dirty-faced boys was throwin stuns and empty beer bottles
at my massiv brow, and takin other improper liberties with my person.
Resistance was useless, for a varity of reasons, as I readily obsarved.
The Seseshers confisticated my statoots by smashin them to attums. They
then went to my money box and confisticated all the loose change therein
contaned. They then went and bust in my cages, lettin all the animils
loose, a small but helthy tiger among the rest. This tiger has a
excentric way of tearin dogs to peaces, and I allers sposed from his
gineral conduck that he'd hav no hesitashun in servin human beins in
the same way if he could get at them. Excuse me if I was crooil, but I
larfed boysterrusly when I see that tiger spring in among the people.
"Go it, my sweet cuss!" I inardly exclaimed. "I forgive you for bitin
off my left thum with all my heart! Rip 'em up like a bully tiger whose
Lare has bin inwaded by Seseshers!"
I can't say for certain that the tiger serisly injured any of them, but
as he was seen a few days after, sum miles distant, with a large and
well selected assortment of seats of trowsis in his mouth, and as he
lookt as tho he'd been havin sum vilent exercise, I rayther guess he
did. You will therefore perceive that they didn't confisticate him
much.
I was carried to Montgomry in iuns and placed in durans vial. The jail
was a ornery edifiss, but the table was librally surplied with Bakin an
Cabbidge. This was a good variety, for when I didn't hanker after Bakin
I could help myself to the cabbige.
I had nobody to talk to nor nothin to talk about, howsever, and I was
very lonely, specially on the first day; so when the jailer parst my
lonely sell I put the few stray hairs on the back part of my hed (I'm
bald now, but thare was a time when I wore sweet auburn ringlets) into
as dish-hevild a state as possible, & rollin my eyes like a manyyuck, I
cride: "Stay, jaler, stay! I am not mad, but soon shall be if you
don't bring me suthin to Talk!" He brung me sum noospapers, for which I
thanked him kindly.
At larst I got a interview with Jefferson Davis, the President of the
Southern Conthieveracy.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account