“‘What’s that?’ sais Steve.
“Well, I didn’t know, for I never heerd the word afore; but it don’t do to say you don’t know, it lowers you in the eyes of other folks. If you don’t know What another man knows he is shocked at your ignorance. But if he don’t know what you do, he can find an excuse in a minute. Never say you don’t know.
“‘So,’ sais I, ‘they jabber so everlastin’ fast, it ain’t no easy matter to say what they mean; but it sounds like “good bye,” you’d better turn round and make ‘em a bow, for they are very polite people, is the French.’
“So Steve turns and takes off his hat, and makes them a low bow, and they larfs wus than ever, and calls out again, “La Fossy Your,” “La Fossy Your.” He was kinder ryled, was the Elder. His honey had begun to farment, and smell vinegery. ‘May be, next Christmas,’ sais he, ‘you won’t larf so loud, when you find the mare is dead. Goodish and the old mare are jist alike, they are all tongue them critters. I rather think it’s me,’ sais he, ‘has the right to larf, for I’ve got the best of this bargain, and no mistake. This is as smart a little hoss as ever I see. I know where I can put him off to great advantage. I shall make a good day’s work of this. It is about as good a hoss trade as I ever made. The French don’t know nothin’ about hosses; they are a simple people, their priests keep ‘em in ignorance on purpose, and they don’t know nothin’.’
“He cracked and bragged considerable, and as we progressed we came to Montagon Bridge. The moment pony sot foot on it, he stopped short, pricked up the latter eends of his ears, snorted, squeeled and refused to budge an inch. The Elder got mad. He first coaxed and patted, and soft sawdered him, and then whipt and spurred, and thrashed him like any thing. Pony got mad too, for hosses has tempers as well as Elders; so he turned to, and kicked right straight up on eend, like Old Scratch, and kept on without stoppin’ till he sent the Elder right slap over his head slantendicularly, on the broad of his back into the river, and he floated down thro’ the bridge and scrambled out at t’other side.
“Creation! how he looked. He was so mad, he was ready to bile over; and as it was he smoked in the sun, like a tea-kettle. His clothes stuck close down to him, as a cat’s fur does to her skin, when she’s out in the rain, and every step he took his boots went squish, squash, like an old woman churnin’ butter; and his wet trowsers chafed with a noise like a wet flappin’ sail. He was a shew, and when he got up to his hoss, and held on to his mane, and first lifted up one leg and then the other to let the water run out of his boots. I couldn’t hold in no longer, but laid back and larfed till I thought on my soul I’d fall off into the river too.
“‘Elder,’ says I, ‘I thought when a man jined your sect, ‘he could never “fall off agin,” but I see you ain’t no safer than other folks arter all.’
“‘Come,’ says he, ‘let me be, that’s a good soul, it’s bad enough, without being larfed at, that’s a fact. I can’t account for this caper, no how.’
“‘It’s very strange too, ain’t it! What on airth got into the hoss to make him act so ugly. Can you tell, Mr. Slick?’
“‘Why,’ sais I, ‘he don’t know English yet, that’s all. He waited for them beautiful French oaths that Goodish used. Stop the fust Frenchman you meet and give him a shillin’ to teach you to swear, and he’ll go like a lamb.’