ay. Everybody subscribing for it, and I want to see if I can't
take your name.

"Now, just cast your eyes over that," he said, opening his book and
pointing to an engraving. "That's--lemme see--yes, that's Columbus.
Perhaps you've heard sumfin' about him? The publisher was telling me
to-day before I started out that he discovered--no; was it Columbus that
dis--oh, yes, Columbus he discovered America,--was the first man here.
He came over in a ship, the publisher said, and it took fire, and he
stayed on deck because his father told him to, if I remember right, and
when the old thing busted to pieces he was killed. Handsome picture,
ain't it? Taken from a photograph; all of 'em are; done especially for
this work. His clothes are kinder odd, but they say that's the way they
dressed in them days.

"Look at this one. Now, isn't that splendid? That's William Penn, one of
the early settlers. I was reading t'other day about him. When he first
arrived he got a lot of Indians up a tree, and when they shook some
apples down he set one on top of his son's head and shot an arrow plump
through it and never fazed him. They say it struck them Indians cold, he
was such a terrific shooter. Fine countenance, hasn't he? face shaved
clean; he didn't wear a moustache, I believe, but he seems to have let
himself out on hair. Now, my view is that every man ought to have a
picture of that patriarch, so's to see how the fust settlers looked and
what kind of weskets they used to wear. See his legs, too! Trousers a
little short, maybe, as if he was going to wade in a creek; but he's all
there. Got some kind of a paper in his hand, I see. Subscription-list, I
reckon. Now, how does that strike you?

"There's something nice. That, I think is--is--that--a--a--yes, to be
sure, Washington; you recollect him, of course? Some people call him
Father of his Country. George--Washington. Had no middle name, I
believe. He lived about two hundred years ago, and he was a fighter. I
heard the publisher telling a man about him crossing the Delaware River
up yer at Trenton, and seems to me, if I recollect right, I've read
about it myself. He was courting some girl on the Jersey side, and he
used to swim over at nights to see her when the old man was asleep. The
girl's family were down on him, I reckon. He looks like a man to do
that, don't he? He's got it in his eye. If it'd been me I'd gone over on
a bridge; but he probably wanted to show off afore her; some men