Was decidedly
antagonistic to grave deliberation, and the anxious curiosity of the woman
superseding the self imposed role of the diplomatist, our envoy lost the
pompous tone she had first adopted, and a volley of queries and replies was
exchanged so rapidly, and with such appalling shrillness, that we onlookers
ran a great risk of being either deafened, or driven out of our senses. At
the first slackening of the wordy warfare, Dunmore put his questions, and
then Lizzie said -
"Baal there been any white fellow along of here."
"You been sure, Lizzie, ask suppose they been see any big fellow canoe."
Again the same hideous noise now took place, but I will not tire my readers
with too minute a description of a scene with which they must now be pretty
conversant, suffice it to say, that what with the real or pretended
stupidity of the gins, and the imperfect English of our interpreter, we
were more puzzled at the conclusion of the debate than we had been at its
commencement.
"Had they seen a vessel?"
"Oh yes, big fellow, with wings like 'it bird."
"How long ago?"
"Plenty long time ago."
"One moon ago?"
"Yes, one moon ago."
"Sure it was one moon?"
"No, thought it must be one day ago, and plenty smoke sit down along of big
canoe."
Altogether the skein was too tangled for us to attempt to unravel it.
