LIFE ON THK MISSISSIPPI.

it might be to-morrow or maybe "next day. This would not answer

at all ; so we had to give up the novelty of sailing down the river on

a farm. We had one more arrow in our quiver: a Vicksburg packet,

the * Gold Dust,7 was to leave at 5 P.M. We took passage in her for

Memphis, and gave up the idea of stopping off here and there,

as being impracticable.

She was neat, clean,

and comfortable. We

camped on the boiler

deck, and bought some

cheap literature to kill

time with. The vender

was a venerable Irish-

man with a benevolent

face and a tongue that

worked easily in the

socket, and from him

we learned that he had

lived in St. LfOuis

thirty-four years and

had never been across

the river during that

period. Then he

wandered into a very

flowing lecture, filled

with classic names and

allusions, which was

quite wonderful for

fluency until the fact

became rather apparent

that this was not the

Srsfc tame, nor perhaps the fiftieth, that the speech had been

delivered. He was a good deal of a character, and much better

oompany than the sappy literature he was selling. A random re-

mark, connecting Irishmen and beer, brought this nugget of informa-

tkm out of him. —

'They don't drink it, sir. They can't drink it, sir. Give an

WAITING FOB A TRIP.