ompanied the words, and I turned slowly, favoured him with
a look of as well-managed stupidity and inquiry as I could muster,
drew from my pocket a little ear-tube, and, adjusting it to my right
ear, said, 'Hey?'

Again the fellow made known his want, and then, apparently convinced
that I had not been a listener, he resumed, somewhat hurriedly, I
thought:

'As I was saying, I met a guard and asked him where to go to get a
bill exchanged; he mentioned one or two places a long way off, and
then, happening to think of the arrangement made for the accommodation
of foreigners, he courteously directed me to one of the agents quite
near at hand.' He allowed a big puff of smoke to escape his lips very
slowly, and added, as if it were the final word, 'Those agencies for
home and foreign exchange are a great convenience to travellers.'

'What air they?' demanded my rustic. 'Never heerd on 'em.'

'Really! Why, the administration has arranged a system of agencies
which are supplied with a certain sum in small bank-notes, greenbacks,
which they are authorized to exchange for foreign currency; and, for
the convenience of Midway Plaisance, one of these agents is
established in Midway, near the Turkish Village. One may know him by a
small blue badge with a silver stamp in the form of a half-dollar
souvenir upon his coat.'

'Oh!'

'He proved very affable--the guard assured me I would find him so; and
as the other agencies were so far away, I took advantage of his good
nature, and instead of exchanging ten dollars, I got him to put a
hundred-dollar bill into fifty crisp new two-dollar bills, fresh, like
all this exchange money from the Government treasury--a part, in
fact, of that great output of two-dollar greenbacks issued by the
Government at the same time as the souvenir coins, as you no doubt
remember.'

No, the rustic did not remember, but neither did he doubt. He was full
of exclamations of wonder and admiration at the workings of so
wonderful and generous a Government; and then came the climax. Would
Mr. Smug direct him to this affable agent upon Midway? etc.

'As I was saying at first, I don't lug much money around with me to
sech places as this here, but what little I've got ain't quite divided
up enough to be handy; I don't mind gettin' a fifty into new
Gover'ment greenbacks myself. My wife 'n' me are countin' on stayin'
on here a consid'able of a spell, maybe, an' small change is
handiest.'

'It's positively nece