The Complete Works of Artemus Ward — Part 1: Essays, Sketches, and LettersWard, Artemus
General
The Complete Works of Artemus Ward — Part 1: Essays, Sketches, and Letters
Ward, Artemus
American wit and humor
My friend Mr. D.T.T. Moore, of the "Rural New Yorker," thinks if I
"keep on" I will get in the Poor House in about two years.
If you think the honest old farmers of Barclay County want me, I
will come.
Truly Yours,
Charles F. Browne.
1.34. BUSTS.
There are in this city several Italian gentlemen engaged in the bust
business. They have their peculiarities and eccentricities. They
are swarthy-faced, wear slouched caps and drab pea-jackets, and
smoke bad cigars. They make busts of Webster, Clay, Bonaparte,
Douglas, and other great men, living and dead. The Italian buster
comes upon you solemnly and cautiously. "Buy Napoleon?" he will
say, and you may probably answer "not a buy." "How much giv-ee?" he
asks, and perhaps you will ask him how much he wants. "Nine
dollar," he will answer always. We are sure of it. We have
observed this peculiarity in the busters frequently. No matter how
large or small the bust may be, the first price is invariably "nine
dollar." If you decline paying this price, as you undoubtedly will
if you are right in your head, he again asks, "how much giv-ee?" By
way of a joke you say "a dollar," when the buster retreats
indignantly to the door, saying in a low, wild voice, "O dam!" With
his hand upon the door-latch, he turns and once more asks, "how much
giv-ee?" You repeat the previous offer, when he mutters, "O ha!"
then coming pleasantly towards you, he speaks thus: "Say! how much
giv-ee?" Again you say a dollar, and he cries, "take 'um--take
'um!"--thus falling eight dollars on his original price.
Very eccentric is the Italian buster, and sometimes he calls his
busts by wrong names. We bought Webster (he called him Web-STAR) of
him the other day, and were astonished when he called upon us the
next day with another bust of Webster, exactly like the one we had
purchased of him, and asked us if we didn't want to buy "Cole, the
wife-pizener!" We endeavored to rebuke the depraved buster, but our
utterance was choked, and we could only gaze upon him in speechless
astonishment and indignation.
1.35. A HARD CASE.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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