The Grinder Papers — page 266: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE GRINDER PAPERS. 261 my friends, some sarpent has deceived you! This here,” sez he, ‘‘is not Eve engaged in the maternal duties o’ feedin’ her son Abel, but Venus and Bacchus.” Then he sot tu and turned the pictur dun [ riz. Sez I, ‘‘I os the bill here. ‘For Eve giving Abel his sup-_ per, $100.”’ Sez he, ‘‘ My good, kind friends, you are imposed upon.” Miss Thumper wrung her hands. Sez I, ‘‘Gracious! who was they ?—du tell who they was?” Sez he, ‘‘ Heathen deities.” Sez I, ‘‘Miss Thumper, du explain.” Sez she, ‘‘Ladies, come tu my room and I will.” ~ So we went. Sez she, ‘‘It ain’t none o’ yer faults, but the purson that sold it. Bacchus was always tipsy, and Venus warn't one bit better than she should be.” | Then me and Miss Samanthy went intu highstrikes. The minister took it-intu prayerful consideration what he ought tu du with it, and concluded how't the tavern-keeper, be- in depraved a’ready, couldn’t be hurt by it; so he offered tu sell ittu him. He paid ten dollars for it, and it hangs over the bar, they say, tu this day, though o’ course [ hain’t never seen it. And my opinion o auctioneers is, that theyre a degenerated race 0 men, that don’t keer what they say so long as things is sold; for any one that would impose on such a thing as a com- mittee o ladies o’ artistic debility, about tu donate a whe tu ther pastor, wouldn't stop at nuthin’, Eomilicboo “54 tt a “, [: (ele)