CHAPTER XIII.
Rivals.
“What was the question fer debate?” asked the School Teacher.
“Resawlved that the Negro is more worthy o’ government support than the Indian,” replied the Miller.
“And the decision?”
“One jedge voted fer the affirmative an’ one fer the negative.”
“And the third?”
“That’s where the trouble come. Ye see, Theophilus Bones was the third jedge, an’ he got up an’ sayd that after hearin’ an’ weighin’ all the argyments o’ the debaters he hed to concide that neither the Negro nor the Indian was worthy.”
“Deadlocked!” cried the pedagogue, bringing his chair down on all four legs with a crash, waving his arms and snapping his fingers. “Deadlocked, sure. What did ye do?”
“See here,” interrupted the Chronic Loafer from his perch on a sugar barrel, “I can’t see that it makes any diff’rence what they done. S’posin’ the Airy View Liter’ry Society is deadlocked. How’s the poor Injun goin’ to suffer any more by it?”
“But did you uns ever see sech dum jedges?” asked the Miller appealingly. “I was on the negative.”