real original,
national, patriotic, independent, manly, native American, true-blue,
and altogether heroic style!"

"What is that?"

The Senator looked at the company, and held out his clenched fist:

"Why, from behind a tree, in the woods, like your glorious
forefathers!"

[Illustration: The Barricade.]

CHAPTER XL.

PLEASANT MEDIATIONS ABOUT THE WONDERS OF TOBACCO; AND THREE PLEASANT
ANECDOTES BY AN ITALIAN BRIGAND.

A pull apiece at the brandy-flask restored strength and freshness to
the beleaguered travellers, who now, intrenched behind their
fortifications, awaited any attack which the Italians might choose to
make.

"The _I_talians," said the Senator, "are not a powerful race. By no
means. Feeble in body--no muscle--no brawn. Above all, no real
_pluck_. Buttons, is there a word in their language that expresses
the exact idee of _pluck_?"

"Or _game_?"

"No."

"Or even _spunk_?"

"No."

"I thought not," said the Senator, calmly. "They haven't the _idee_,
and can't have the word. Now it would require a rather considerable
crowd to demolish us at the present time."

"How long will we have to stay here?" asked Mr. Figgs abruptly.

"My dear Sir," said Buttons, with more sprightliness than he had
shown for many days, "be thankful you are here at all. We'll get off
at some time to-day. These fellows are watching us, and the moment
we start they'll fire on us. We would be a good mark for them in the
coach. No, we must wait a while."

Seated upon the turf, they gave themselves up to the pleasing
influence that flows from the pipe. Is there any thing equal to it?
How did the ancients contrive to while away the time without it? Had
they known its effects how they would have cherished it! We should
now be gazing on the ruins of venerable temples, reared by adoring
votaries to the goddess Tabaca. Boys at school would have construed
passages about her. Lempriere, Smith, Anthon, Drissler, and others
would have done honor to her. Classic mythology would have been full
of her presence. Olympian Jove would have been presented to us with
this divinity as his constant attendant, and a nimbus around his
immortal brows of her making. Bacchus would have had a rival, a
superior!

Poets would have told how TABACA went over the world girt in that but
set off the more her splendid radiance. We should have known how much
Bacchus had to do with [Transcriber's Note: Greek Transliteration] ta
bakcheia [/en