State_," one of the most elegant and swift steamers that ever man's
ingenuity put upon the waters, I met a well-known joker from the Quaker
city, on his first trip "down East." After mutually examining and
eulogising the external appearance and internal arrangements of the
"Empire," winding up our investigation, of course, with a _look_ into a
small corner cupboard in the barber's office, where a superb _smile_--as
_is_ a smile--can be usually enjoyed by the _nobbish_ investment of a
York shilling; soon after passing through "Hell Gate"--gliding by the
beautiful villas, chateaux, and almost princely palaces of the business
men of the great city of New York, we were soon out upon the broad, deep
Sound, a glorious place for steam-boating. Soon after, the bells
announced "supper ready"--a general stampede into the spacious cabin
took place, and though the tables strung along forty rods on each side
of the great cabin, not over half the crowd got seats upon this
interesting occasion. I was _about_ with my friend--in _time_, stuck our
legs under the mahogany, and gazed upon the open prospect for a supper
superb enough in all its details to tempt a jolly old friar from his
devotions. We got along very nicely. An old chap who sat above us some
seats, and whose rotund developments gave any ordinary observer reason
to suppose his appetite as unquenchable as the Maelstrom, kept reaching
about, and when tempting vessels were too remote, he'd bawl "right eout"
for them.

"Halloo! I say you, Mister there, just hand along that saas; give us a
chance, will ye, at that; notion on't, what d'ye call that stuff?"

"This?" says one, passing along a dish.

"Pshaw, no, t'other there."

"Oh! ah! yes, _this_," says my facetious friend.

"Well, that ain't it, but no odds; fetch it along!" and down we sent the
biggest dish of meat in our neighborhood.

"Now," says I, "my boy, I'll show you a 'dodge.' We'll see how it
works."

Filling a plate full to the brim, with all and each of the various
_heavy_ courses in our vicinity, I very politely passed it over to my
next neighbor with--

"Please to pass that up, sir?"

"Umph, eh?" says the gentleman, taking hold of the plate very gingerly;
"pass it _up_?"

"Aye, yes, if you please," says I.

By this time he had fairly got the loaded plate in his fists, and began
to look about him where to pass the plate _to_. Nobody in particular
seemed on the watch for a _spare_ plate. The gent looked