“No one sayd nawthin’.
“Aleck unwound his comforter, unbottoned his coat, th’owed out his chist an’ cried, ‘Mr. Chairman, hev I the floor?’
“Magill kind o’ mumbled.
“‘Then,’ sais Bolum, ‘Mebbe I can th’ow some light on the hushed voices I see gethered ’round me here to-night. Firstly, I’d like to say that we’d a most excellent meetin’ at Kishikoquillas this evenin’. After we adjourned I thot I’d run up here an’ see how you was makin’ out, fer I hed pecul’ar interest in this getherin’. Th’oo some mistake I was not properly notified that our members was comin’ here, but I learned of it. I wanted to see the Kishikoquillas Liter’ry Society do itself proud to-night at music ez well ez literature. So in my capacity ez correspondin’ seckertary I got up a musical progrim yeste’day an’ forwarded it to the president of the Happy Grove Social Singin’ Club, explainin’ how our organization ’ud entertain his organization to-night with melody, instrumental an’ vocal.’
“Bolum stopped an’ drawed a paper out o’ his pocket.
“‘Will the seckertary please read the progrim?’ he sayd.
“Josiah Weller tuk the paper. He looked at it. Then he piked one eye on the president.
“‘Ye may read the progrim, Mr. Seckertary,’ sais Andrew, wery dignified.
“An’ Josiah read like this, ‘The Kishikoquillas Liter’ry Society will be pleased to render fer the entertainment o’ the Happy Grove Social Singin’ Club the follyin’ selections: bass-horn solo, The Star Spangled Banner, Mr. Andrew Magill.’