56 THE STAR-SPANGLED VEST. 



his arm on one side, the retriever flew up and seized him 

 fast by the smart waistcoat, the greater portion of the 

 constellations on which no longer remained fixed, but 

 commenced to be revolving stars, at length going out by 

 shooting towards the earth. It seemed that all this ex 

 perimentally-inclined gentleman's friends rejoiced in the 

 scene, and in the midst of a roar of good-humoured 

 laughter he vanished, in possession of only the back of a 

 waistcoat, amidst the crowd. 



Time for a fresh start having arrived, and having paid 

 the insolent baggage-master ten dollars for the transit of 

 my dogs so short a distance, and without which he had in 

 solently refused to take them, I helped them into another 

 robbery car, and, leaving George to travel with them, I 

 seated myself in one of those detestable long carriages 

 on a short seat at the end, with my face at a window. 

 I had not been in that seat long when I heard moans of 

 pain immediately behind me from a man seated by the 

 side of a woman. Later in the night the man asked me 

 to exchange seats with him, and to let him and his wife 

 sit on my seat while I took theirs, for that he had lately 

 lost his leg considerably above the knee, and was not 

 only in great pain, but so unaccustomed to move on one 

 leg, that unless he was quite close to the door, he feared 

 he should not reach it in time to get out at his place of 

 destination. On hearing this, I directly acquiesced, only 

 stipulating that if I gave up my seat to them they would 

 assure his wife's seat by the other window to me, the 

 train was so filthily hot, and disagreeable from the beastly 

 ejections of tobacco. To this they thankfully consented. 

 Seeing that the man was not only heavy, but much ex 

 hausted, I then got up and assisted his wife to move him 

 into rny place. On turning to take the seat behind my 



