YOU and ME make a trade?' sez I; 'I'll exchange ye that roan
mare, that's worth two hundred, for this hoss and fifty dollars.' With
that he drew himself up, and sez he: 'Mr. Borem,' sez he, 'I share my
fr'en's opinion about hoss tradin', and I promised my mother I'd never
swap hosses. You ought to know me by this time.'"

"That's so!" said Mrs. Bigsby; "I'm wonderin' ye dared to ax him."

Dan'l passed his hand over his mouth, and continued: "'I dunno but
you're right, Lummox,' sez I; 'per'aps it's jest as well as thar wasn't
TWO in the Bank in that bizness.' But the more I looked at the hoss
the more I hankered arter him. 'Look here,' sez I, 'I tell ye what
I'll do! I'll LEND you my hoss and you'll LEND me yourn. I'll draw up
a paper to that effect, and provide that in case o' accidents, ef I
don't return you your hoss, I'll agree to pay you a hundred and fifty
dollars. You'll give me the same kind o' paper about my hoss--with the
proviso that you pay me two hundred for him!' 'Excuse me, Mr. Borem,'
sez he, 'but that difference of fifty makes a hoss trade accordin' to
my mind. It's agin' my principles to make such an agreement.'"

"An' he was right, Dan'l," said Mrs. Bigsby approvingly.

But Dan'l wiped his mouth again, leaving, however, a singular smile on
it. "Well, ez I wanted that hoss, I jest thought and thought! I knew I
could get two hundred and fifty for him easy, and that Lummox didn't
know anythin' of his valoo, and I finally agreed to make the swap even.
'What do you call him?' sez I. 'Pegasus,' sez he,--'the poet's hoss,
on account o' his golden mane,' sez he. That made me laff, for I never
knew a poet ez could afford to hev a hoss,--much less one like that!
But I said: 'I'll borry Pegasus o' you on those terms.' The next day I
took the hoss to Jonesville; Lummox was right: he wasn't FAST, but,
jest as I expected, he made a sensation! Folks crowded round him
whenever I stopped; wimmin followed him and children cried for him. I
could hev sold him for three hundred without leavin' town! 'So ye call
him Pegasus,' sez Doc Smith, grinnin'; 'I didn't known ye was subject
to the divine afflatus, Dan'l.' 'I don' offen hev it,' sez I, 'but
when I do I find a little straight gin does me good.' 'So did Byron,'
sez he, chucklin'. But even if I had called him 'Beelzebub' the hull
town would hev bin jest as crazy over him. Well, as it was comin' on
to rain I started jest after sundown for home. But i