The spectators had been filled with wonder, but now they saw the ludicrous side of the encounter, and they began to pound each other on the back and shout with laughter.
“I sw’ar, it’s ther funniest thing I ever saw!” roared one.
“Think of Sam takin’ water like that!” shouted another.
“He’s swallered enough ter p’izen him a’reddy!” declared another.
“Bet he ain’t hed a bath afore in a year!” exclaimed a fourth.
And then, in chorus, they roared:
“A-haw! a-haw! a-haw!”
Ephraim Gallup executed a grotesque dance on the sidewalk.
“By gum! this is a reg’lar jamboree!” he giggled. “It oughter be an advertisement fer ther show if Frank does ther bully of ther taown up good.”
“It will be the wonder of the place,” declared Sawyer, the local stage manager. “I don’t understand it now.”