The Complete Works of Artemus Ward — Part 2: WarWard, Artemus
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The Complete Works of Artemus Ward — Part 2: War
Ward, Artemus
American wit and humor
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. He was quite perlite, and axed
me to sit down and state my case. I did it, when he larfed
and said his gallunt men had been a little 2 enthoosiastic in
confisticatin my show.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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