“But I say, stranger,” said Big Waller, “wot do ye mean by openin’ up the country? It ain’t a oyster, that ye can open it up with a big knife I guess.”
“There, friend, you are wrong. This country does, indeed, resemble an oyster; and I hope, by the aid of the mighty levers of knowledge and enterprise, to open it up. I mean to take notes and sketches, and, if spared, return to my native land, and publish the result of my observations. I do not, indeed, expect that the public will buy my work; but I shall publish a large edition at my own cost, and present copies to all the influential men in the kingdom.”
The trappers opened their eyes wider than ever at this.
“What! Make a book?” cried Redhand.
“Even so.”
“Will it have pictures?” eagerly asked March, who regarded the artist with rapidly increasing veneration.
“Ay, it will be profusely illustrated.”
“Wot! pictures o’ grisly bears?” inquired Bounce.
“Of course.”
“An’ men?” cried Big Waller.