of _small cities_;
and he concluded that Portland was hardly big enough for a man of his
pecuniary heft! In short, he began to feel the importance of his
position in the world of finance, and conceived the idea that it would
be a sheer waste of time and energy to stay in Portland, while with
_his_ capital, he could go to Boston, and spread himself among the
millionaires and hundred thousand dollar men!

"Yes," said B----, "I'll go to Boston; I'd be a fool to stay here any
longer; I'll leave for bigger timber. But what will I do with my money?
How will I invest it? Hadn't I better go and take a look around, before
I conclude to move? My wife don't know I've got this money," he
continued, as he mused over matters one evening, in his sanctum; "I'll
not tell her of it yet, but say I'm just going to Boston to see how
business is there in my line; and my money I'll put in an old cigar box,
and--"

* * * * *

B---- was all ready with his valise and umbrella in his hand. His
"good-bye" and all that, to his wife, was uttered, and for the tenth
time he charged his better half to be careful of the fire, (he occupied
a frame house,) see that the doors were all locked at night, and "be
sure and fasten the cellar doors."

B---- had got out on to the pavement, with no time to spare to reach the
cars in season; yet he halted--ran back--opened the door, and in evident
concern, bawled out to his wife--

"Caddie!"

"Well?" she answered.

"Be sure to fasten the alley gate!"

"Ye-e-e-e-s!" responded the wife, from the interior of the house.

"And whatever you do, _don't forget them cellar doors_, Caddie!"

"Ye-e-e-e-s!" she repeated, and away went B----, lickety split, for the
Boston train.

After a general and miscellaneous survey of modern Athens, B---- found
an opening--a good one--to go into business, as he desired, upon a
liberal scale; but he found vent for the explosion of one very
hallucinating idea--his six hundred dollars, as a cash capital, was a
most infinitesimal _circumstance_, a mere "flea bite;" would do very
well for an amateur in the cake and candy, pea-nut or vegetable
business, but was hardly sufficient to create a sensation among the
monied folks of Milk street, or "bulls" and "bears" on 'change. However,
this realization was more than counter-balanced by another
fact--"confidence" was a largely developed _bump_ on the business head
of Boston, and if a man merely lacked "mea