HOW THEY ANSWER QUESTIONS. 235 
other; from which I inferred that he had answered my 
last question in the affirmative : but, when I said some- 
thing to that effect, he added an ambiguous remark 
that left me as much in the dark as ever: — “They are 
both in the ground: how, therefore, can we tell?” or 
words to that effect. The above gives a very fair idea 
of the cautious manner in which they answered our 
questions. 
Upon one occasion, when we were making home- 
purchases, one of the nomadics (Mr. Edgerton) offered 
a gold eagle and one silver dollar in payment, and it 
was flatly refused, “ Wliy do you refuse it?” he asked. 
“The treaty says that ‘payment shall be made in gold 
and silver.’ I fulfil its conditions by giving you ten 
dollars in gold and one in silver, and you break it by 
insisting on receiving eleven silver dollars. You won’t 
be satisfied until we bring a thousand fillibusters from 
California to see you and teach you what’s right. Tell 
them so.” 
Poor Tatz-nosky, at this period of the action, looked 
remarkably small and confused, 
“Do you not see that I am only the interpreter?” he 
asked, in his imperfect English. “ I only tell you what 
I am told. It is not my fault if the emperor prefers 
being paid in silver.” 
« “Confound your emperoi'’s tastes !” continued Edger- 
ton, as he reluctantly hauled out the silver. “I came 
here on the strength of the treaty, bringing nothing but 
gold with me ; and now I find it won’t pass. What 
kind of a treaty do you call that? Commodore Perry ’ll 
come back here some day and blow you sky-high.” 
