278 THE TIM BUNKER PAPEES. 



sponsibility &quot; of writing for the papers, as Mr. Spooner 

 would say, must regard the truth of history. The fact is, 

 the Hookertown public wouldn t know Seth Twiggs with 

 out his pipe, and I had to introduce Seth s pipe or say 

 nothing about him. 



I like to have forgot Seth on the settee. &quot; I ll bet there 

 is fifty acres in pickles in Hookertown, this year,&quot; he 

 added. 



&quot; Some folks are in great trouble as to how they ll cure 

 em,&quot; I remarked. 



&quot; Du tell !&quot; exclaimed Polly Frink, &quot; I thought every 

 body knew how to salt down cowcumbers.&quot; 



&quot; Not by a jug full,&quot; said I. &quot; It is treated as a great 

 secret at the pickle factories, and stores, and you might as 

 well undertake to get ile out of a Wall Street Petroleum 

 Company, as to get any light on the curing process out 

 of them.&quot; 



&quot; I guess you didn t go to the right place, Esq. Bunker,&quot; 

 said Seth. &quot; For when I went down to the city to market 

 my pickles I went all over the factory.&quot; 



&quot; And Avhat did you see ?&quot; I asked. &quot; Well, I saw a lot 

 of vats, barrels, kegs, jars, and bottles, some of em full 

 and some of em empty.&quot; &quot; Did you ask any questions 

 and did you get civil answers ? &quot; &quot; Sartainly I did, lots 

 on em. And I found out there wa n t any secret about the 

 brine, for it is the same rule my grandmother used to go 

 by, and I guess it is about the same thing every house 

 keeper in Hookertown uses to-day, brine strong enough to 

 bear an egg, and the little pickles to lie in two weeks, and 

 the big ones, three ; that is about the whole of it, with a 

 little variation to suit circumstances.&quot; 



&quot; Jest so,&quot; said Mrs. Jake Frink ; &quot; that is my rule, and 

 I never knew it to fail. I ve got pickles two years old 

 now, and they are jest as good as ever. Ye see, I allers 

 keeps my barrel open at the top, with a round board and 

 a stone to keep the pickles in the brine. For a barrel of 



