so he just shuts me up, saying I may be ignorant, but
that ain't no excuse for being untruthful.

Well, his talk made me small and mean as a starved cat, but that was
nothing to the emotions at the other end of me when he got me on one of
them horses. I wanted to walk. Walk! The most shameful things he knew
was walking and telling lies. If I walked he'd have nothing more to do
with me. I rode till we got to the ferry.

You know in books how there's a line of stars acrost the page to show
the author's grief. I got 'em bad by the time we rode into Invicta City.
Draw the line right thar:

* * * * *

We're having supper at the Palladium, and I'm pretty nigh scared. The
goblets is all full of pink and white serviettes, folded up into fancy
designs, which come undone if you touched. There's a menu to say what's
coming, in French so you don't know what you're eating, and durned if I
can find out whether to tackle an a la mode with fingers or a spoon.
Bull says it's only French for puckeroo, a sort of four-legged burrowing
bird which inhabits silver mines, but if I don't like that, the lady
will fetch me a _foe par_. Well, I orders one, and by the lady's face I
see I done wrong, even before she complains to the manager. I'm surely
miserable to think I've insulted a lady.

The manager's suspicious of me, but Bull talks French so rapid that even
froggy can't keep up, although he smiles and shrugs, and gives us
sang-fraws to drink.

This sort of cocktail I had, was the first liquor I'd tasted. It's
powerful as a harbor tug, dropping me out of the conversation, while
the restaurant turns slowly round with a list to starboard, and Bull
deals for a basket in the front window full of decorated eggs. Says
they're vintage eggs, all verd-antique and bookay. For years the
millionaires of Invicta has shrunk from the expense. My job when we
leaves is to carry the basket, 'cause Bull's toting a second-handed
saddle.

Bull lets me have cocktails to keep me from getting confused on the
night of my day boo. I know I behaves with 'strordinary dignity, and
wants more cocktails.

I dunno why Bull has to introduce me to the gentleman who keeps the
peanut store down street--seeing I'd dealt there before. Anyway, I'm
introduced to Affable Jones, and I'm the Markis of Worms--the same being
a nom de plume. We proceeds to the opery-house, climbs in through a
little hind window, and finds a dressing-room. Affable