t
turned out no wonder, 'cause you could only see it from China an'
Maddygasgar. She said she was awful interested, 'n' he was too, 'n' in
the end he was _so_ interested that he found he had n't poured out o'
the salts bottle a _tall_. It was only just a chance as he remembered as
it was salts she wanted, 'n' she said he was _so_ nice about it, went
under the counter to find a cork to fit, 'n' told her all about how they
get gumarabic while he was under there, 'n' she was so deep in the
subjeck that she never noticed, 'n' he stuck a poison label on, 'n' they
both laughed over that fit to kill themselves. My goodness, Mrs. Macy
said, but Mrs. Kitts said as he was a taking young man. In the end he
wrote the name in Latin across the skull 'n' cross-bones, 'n' she only
had to always remember as 'Sally Simplex' meant 'simple salts' from
then on.

"She went on to say as the biggest thing Rufus ever done long about then
was to down their minister in a open conversation one night callin' at
Deacon Grummel's. She told all about it, 'n' seems as there was some
talk afterwards about gettin' up a subscription to send him to college,
only it never come to nothin' 'cause no one wanted to subscribe. Seems
the minister was Luther Law, him as moved to Chicago afterwards 'n' got
burnt up or out--I forget which--in the fire. Seems he was to Deacon
Grummel's one night, 'n' him 'n' Rufus got to discussin' what we all
come from. Mrs. Macy says Mrs. Grummel said she never hear the like. She
'n' her husband was jus' all of a tremble. She said afterwards that if
it 'd of been any other minister than Luther Law, Rufus _would_ have had
him sure. She said it was just like a lecture hall to hear, upon her
honor. The minister begun by startin' out for our all comin' from Adam
'n' Eve, but Rufus come out flat for our bein' from monkeys. Well, Mrs.
Grummel said she 'n' her husband could n't do no more than feel their
hearts beat at _that_. Rufus jus' argued 'n' kep' on arguin' till he
made the minister admit as there was n't nothin' absolute agin' monkeys,
'n' then--if that young man did n't go him one better 'n' say as he
believed in tadpoles himself. Luther Law was flat agin' tadpoles, but
Rufus never let up till he got him to admit that if the Lord could make
a man out of a monkey He could make him out of a tadpole, too. 'N'
_then_, when he'd got him so far, what _do_ you think, Mrs.
Lathrop,--what do you think!--Mrs. Macy said as Mrs. Kitts said a