“Wall,” sez he, “I knew you wuz always wantin’ to buy sunthin’ to remember sech romantic places by, and I thought here would be a good chance.”
I wuz so touched by his thoughtfulness that I sez—“Dear Josiah, what had you got it into your head to buy?”
And he said that he thought a few crackers and a little cheese and a herrin’ or two would be as good as anything.
“Did you mean to keep ’em, Josiah?” sez I, for a dark suspicion swept over me.
And he owned up that he layed out to nibble on ’em a little on the way back to the hotel.
I see right through it, and I didn’t fall in with his overtoor. Somehow, herrin’s and cheese seemed incongrous with Lally Rooks, and Peris, and Paradises, and I told him so.
And he sez, “Dum it all, they had to eat in Paradise if they kep’ alive, and,” sez he, “a Peri, if she knew anything, wouldn’t object to a slice of good cheese and some soda crackers.”
So I told him that if he wanted sunthin’ to eat to buy it; but, sez I, “never veneer a selfish thought with the fine gold of romance and tender memories.”
And he said that he didn’t want nothin’ to do with varnish of any kind, he wanted some cheese and crackers. So he bought a few, I guess; I didn’t watch him.
I myself wuz quite took up with lookin’ round the place, sanctified by genius of a certain kind, and I murmured almost onbeknown to myself the words I had hearn Tirzah Ann repeat. She always loved Moore fur better than Thomas J. did. Though Thomas J. thought well enough on him, but Tirzah Ann used to rehearse and sing him by the hour, so in spite of myself I had learnt lots of his poetry by heart.