With regard to the language of this country, I have found no difficulty to understand any of the Americans I have met with, a few words only excepted. I have seen several from England, that came from a distant part from that in which I resided, that I have had far more trouble to understand. Yet the manner of discourse among the true Back-woods-men is rather uncouth to an English ear. I will attempt to give a specimen of it, in a conversation between two of them, who meet each other on the road; one an Esquire, the other a Judge.
Esq. Well, Judge, how do you do ? I hope you are well.
Judge. Well, Squire, I am tolerably bad. How do you do?
Esq. Well, I am a heap better than I was; but I have been powerfully sick lately.
{293} Judge. But, Squire, you have a powerful chance of plunder on your creature. What are you going to do with it?
Esq. Well, I am going to town with a tolerable chance of plunder, to get it carded at the mill.
Judge. Well, so you have got your wool to be carded; I could not calculate what truck you had got.
Esq. Well, I fancy you have been to town. How goes times there?
Judge. Times are dull; I calculated to sell my creature there, and then when I got home, to turn in and earn some money to get me another.
Esq. Well, as you could not trade away your creature, you must turn in and work as well as you can. I also must turn in, and build a cabin or two, to raise a little cash.