After a short devotion to the interests of the magic circle, he resumed the conversation by observing:
`You won't half feel yourself at home in Eden, now?'
`No,' said Mark, `I don't.'
`You miss the imposts of your country. You miss the house dues?' observed Chollop.
`And the houses -- rather,' said Mark.
`No window dues here, sir,' observed Chollop.
`And no windows to put 'em on,' said Mark.
`No stakes, no dungeons, no blocks, no racks, no scaffolds, no thumbscrews, no pikes, no pillories,' said Chollop.
`Nothing but rewolwers and bowie-knives,' returned Mark. `And what are they? Not worth mentioning!'
The man who had met them on the night of their arrival came crawling up at this juncture, and looked in at the door.
`Well, sir,' said Chollop. `How do you git along?'
He had considerable difficulty in getting along at all, and said as much in reply.
`Mr. Co. And me, sir,' observed Chollop, `are disputating a piece. He ought to be slicked up pretty smart to disputate between the Old World and the New, I do expect?'
`Well!' returned the miserable shadow. `So he had.'
`I was merely observing, sir,' said Mark, addressing this new visitor, `that I looked upon the city in which we have the honour to live, as being swampy. What's your sentiments?'
`I opinionate it's moist perhaps, at certain times,' returned the man.
`But not as moist as England, sir?' cried Chollop, with a fierce expression in his face.
`Oh! Not as moist as England; let alone its Institutions,' said the man.
`I should hope there ain't a swamp in all Americay, as don't whip that small island into mush and molasses,' observed Chollop, decisively. `You bought slick, straight, and right away, of Scadder, sir?' to Mark.
He answered in the affirmative. Mr. Chollop winked at the other citizen.
`Scadder is a smart man, sir? He is a rising man? He is a man as will come up'ards, right side up, sir?' Mr. Chollop winked again at the other citizen.
`He should have his right side very high up, if I had my way,' said Mark. `As high up as the top of a good tall gallows, perhaps.'
Mr. Chollop was so delighted at the smartness of his excellent countryman having been too much for the Britisher, and at the Britisher's resenting it, that he could contain himself no longer, and broke forth in a shout of delight. But the strangest exposition of this ruling passion was in the other: the pestilence- stricken, broken, miserable shadow of a man; who derived so much entertainment from the circumstance that he seemed to forget his own ruin in thinking of it, and laughed outright when he said `that Scadder was a smart man, and had draw'd a lot of British capital that way, as sure as sun-up.'