Sez he, "There is too much made of their work." Sez he, "There hain't
near so much done as folks think; the most of it is talk, and a-praisin'
each other up."

"Wall," sez I, "men won't never be killed for that in their political
rivalin's, they won't be condemned for praisin' each other up."

"No," sez he, "men know too much."

And then I spoke of that silver woman--how beautiful and noble an
appearance she made, in the spear she ort to be in, a-representin'
Justice.

And Nony said, "She wuz too soft." Sez he, "It is with her as it is with
all other wimmen--men have to stand in front of her with guns to keep
her together, to keep her solid."

That kinder gaulded me, for there wuz some truth in it, for I had seen
the men and the rifles.

But I sprunted up, and sez I--

"They are a-guardin' her to keep men from stealin' her, that is what
they are for. And," sez I, "it would be a good thing for lots of wimmen,
who have got lots of silver, if it hain't in their bodies, if they had a
guard a-walkin' round 'em with rifles to keep off maurauders."

Why, there wuzn't nothin' brung up that he believed in, or that he
didn't act morbid over.