heaven’s sake what have you done? (for I had been dreaming of those angelic politicians the American ladies.) Why that are hen-partridge’s head, to be sure, said he; don’t you see how special wonderful wise it looks, a flutterin about arter its head.  True, said I, rubbing my eyes, and opening them in time to see the last muscular spasms of the decapitated body; true, Mr. Slick, it is a happy illustration of our previous conversation—­A body without A head.

No.  XXX

A Tale of Bunker’s Hill.

Mr. Slick, like all his countrymen whom I have seen, felt that his own existence was involved in that of the Constitution of the United States, and that it was his duty to uphold it upon all occasions.  He affected to consider its government and its institutions as perfect, and if any doubt was suggested as to the stability or character of either, would make the common reply of all Americans, “I guess you don’t understand us,” or else enter into a labored defence.  When left, however, to the free expression of his own thoughts, he would often give utterance to those apprehensions which most men feel in the event of an experiment not yet fairly tried, and which has in many parts evidently disappointed the sanguine hopes of its friends.  But, even on these occasions, when his vigilance seemed to slumber, he would generally cover them, by giving them as the remarks of others, or concealing them in a tale.  It was this habit that gave his discourse rather the appearance of “thinking aloud,” than a connected conversation.

We are a great nation, Squire, he said, that’s sartain; but I’m afeard we didn’t altogether start right.  Its in politics as in racin, every thing depends upon a fair start.  If you are off too quick, you have to pull up and turn back agin, and your beast gets out of wind and is baffled, and if you lose in the start you hant got a fair chance arterwards, and are plaguy apt to be jockied in the course.  When we set up housekeepin, as it were for ourselves, we hated our step mother, Old England, so dreadful bad, we wouldn’t foller any of her ways of managin at all, but made new receipts for ourselves.  Well, we missed it in many things most consumedly, some how or another.  Did you ever see, said he, a congregation split right in two by a quarrel, and one part go off and set up for themselves.  I am sorry to say, said I, that I have seen some melancholy instances of the kind.  Well, they shoot ahead, or drop astern, as the case may be but they soon get on another tack, and leave the old ship clean out of sight.  When folks once take to emigratin in religion in this way, they never know where to bide.  First they try one location, and then they try another; some settle here and some improve there, but they don’t hitch their horses together long.  Some times they complain they have too little water, at other times that they have too much;