“‘Sperit?’ Oh, that’s the sportin’ paper down to York. Nolan, and Hooper, and Steve Tucker writes to it. Some jokes in that ar sheet, onst in a while.” “Occasionally, I calculate; but this jugging for buffaloes.” “Sartin. You see it’s as easy as fallin’ off a log. Git a dozen jugs en two canoes; hitch your lines to the handles of the jugs, put on your bait, and then toss them overboard. When you sees a jug begin to bob, there’s a buffalo thar: en when it begins to dive and run, you may calk’late there’s one varmint hooked. Strike out like a pointer, pull up the line, and the fish is _thar_; but you’ve got to keep your weather eye open, or you lose him.” “I understand; but the awkward accident you spoke of?” “Yes, of course; that’ll come in good time. D’you recollect that feller with the one eye that stuck by me in that scrimmidg at Orleans?” “Perfectly; I _felt_ him audibly that night.” “Joe Stilwell. Wal, Joe and I run together, en we run sens, tel we fell out on one of these jug affairs; en then he sot up for hisself—oppersition. ’Bout the last of A-_prile_ we hap’nd to come together to Saint Lewis, en started down the river the same day. Joe had the start five hours, an’ I were glad of it; for he hadn’t no good feelin’ towards me, en’ I hadn’t none for him, I swar. It war two days ’fore I see anythink of him, but a man who got on at Milses wood-yard said Joe wanted to tackle me; en sez he, ‘Z’likes not he’ll stop to Ransom’s for freight, for he han’t got more’n two-thirds his complement,’ Sez I: ‘Ef Joe runs across my bows, he knows what’ll be the konsekens;’ an’ we didn’t say no more about the matter. “It was midnight when we got to Ransom’s, an’ I was debatin’ whether it warn’t better to shove along then to stop, when I here’s Joe’s voice a usin’ of my name. That was all war wanted to settle the matter. I tied up, and asked all hands to licker. Joe he was the fust one to come up, sez he: “‘Ben, we’ve had some rily feelin’s, en let’s settle them rash’nally.’ “‘How?’ sez I, not ’zactly understandin’ him. “‘Rash’nally,’ sez he. ‘I’ll drink with you, and you drink with me, en then we’ll call it squar.’ “‘’Greed!’ sez I, en we lickered round twiste, en Joe and I shook hands, en squar’d off all old ’counts _pertensively_. “Thar was suthin’ in his looks I didn’t like when we shuck hands; but sez I to myself, ‘this ’coon sleeps in the day-time maybe, but he’s wide awake on this yer night.’ Ransom, he seemed glad we’d made up again ‘fer all time,’ es he said, and we lickered ’long a him. “While we was drinkin’ ’long a Ransom, one of my hands come in en whispered softly in my ear, all unbeknown to the rest, that somebody hed ben tryin’ to cut my starn-cable, and then he sneaked back to watch for the marorder.