The Wrong Man — page 38: what you’re looking at

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

40 THE WRONG MAN. believe. I suppose you are willing to come down a little from the price you asked when I last saw you?” ae Sedley’s face instantly sobered, and he gravely shook hia eu “T named the very lowest figure I could possibly take.” “Well, Square, that, trifle shan’t spile the bargain. If the land suits me, I'll give you the price named.” “ You've had a good view of it, several times, and have ex- t pressed yourself well pleased, so that I am hopeful that the bargain Will now be struck between us. You take charge of ~our brother’s kcel-boat, 1 believe ?” “Yes; I’ve nivigated the Ohio and Mississippi so often, that there ain’t many bends or bars in them but what I understand, so that my brother is hardly willing to trust his keel-boa\ to any one but me.” “You are considered about the best pilot we have in U ese parts, I believe ?” “And I make bold to say there are none better, though it’s myself that says it, who shouldn’t say it. I’ve navigated them rivers summat over twenty years, and it would be strange if L didn’t know something of them by this time,” replied Over- ton, “ There are some things, of which, I suppose, you never can be correctly informed ?” “What's them ?” “The Mississippi snags and sawyers, that occasionally posch, a hole through the bottom of the boats passing over em.’ “There you’re right, Square ; there’s no knowing about them . snags. . To-day you may have a good lJanding-place, and to- morrow the whole bottom may be covered up with them cussed snags. More’n once I've had the boat ’m on snagged so quick that it dropped to the bottom, and I had to swim for life, with- out stopping to see whether I was dressed or not, But a saw- yer is the worst.” “T was not aware of that.” “ Yes, a Mississippi sawyer is the worst by alongsight. You sce, a tree comes floating down; one end gets stuck in the bot tom, and the other p’ints upward, to punch the boats coming | along. I remember one night we tied to,at Natchez-underthe hill, and unfastened a little afore daylight, and swung out inte =~ the stream. We'd gone about,a mile, when Iwentdown inthe — cabin to take a nap. Id just flung myself on a hammock, and had got my eyelids to feeling rather heavy, when whérr, ehlip, | , bang—up come the bottom of the boat, with ana rush of muddy water, and I scrambled out of the cabin in a hurry, the water follering me up like a race-horse. I made a — out into the yaller river, and after swimming a few ro —_~ was seen was that cussed sawyer liflms ~ gees me <i nan kre pao te = Sicomicbooks:com