I didn’t know whether to ask him to lay off his things or not, not a-seein’ anything only the dress he had on, and not knowin’ what the state of his clothes wuz.
And after a minute’s reflection on it, I dassent venter.
So I simply sot him a chair and asked him to set.
He bowed dretful polite, and thanked me, and sot.
Then there wuz a slight pause ensued and follered on. I wuz some embarrassed, not knowin’ what subject to introduce.
Deacon Bobbett had lost his best heifer that day, and most all Jonesville wuz a-lookin’ for it, but I didn’t know whether it would interest him or not.
And Sally Garvin had a young babe. A paper of catnip even then reposed on the kitchen table a-waitin’ until her husband come back to send it, but I didn’t know whether that subject would be proper to branch out on to a man.
So I sot demute for as much as half a minute.
And before I could collect myself together and break out in conversation, he sez in that deep, soft, musical voice of hisen—
“Madam, I have come on a strange errand.”