I had heard of Yankee clock pedlars, tin pedlars, and
bible pedlars, especially of him who sold Polyglot Bibles
(ALL IN ENGLISH) to the amount of sixteen thousand pounds.
The house of every substantial farmer had three substantial
ornaments, a wooden clock, a tin reflector, and a Polyglot
Bible. How is it that an American can sell his wares, at
whatever price he pleases, where a Blue Nose would fail
to make a sale at all? I will enquire of the Clockmaker
the secret of his success. What a pity it is, Mr. SLICK,
(for such was his name,) what a pity it is, said I, that
you, who are so successful in teaching these people the
value of CLOCKS, could not also teach them the value of
TIME. I guess, said he, they have got that ring to grow
on their horns yet, which every four year old has in our
country. We reckon hours and minutes to be dollars and
cents. They do nothing in these parts, but eat, drink,
smoke, sleep, ride about, lounge at taverns, make speeches
at temperance meetings, and talk about "House of Assembly."
If a man don't hoe his corn, and he don't get a crop, he
says it is all owing to the Bank; and if he runs into
debt and is sued, why says the lawyers are a curse to
the country. They are a most idle set of folks, I tell
you. But how is it, said I, that you manage to sell such
an immense number of clocks, (which certainly cannot be
called necessary articles,) among a people with whom
there seems to be so great a scarcity of money.

Mr. Slick paused, as if considering the propriety of
answering the question, and looking me in the face, said,