with him old feathers for new; a thing which she acknowledged
had puzzled her not a little, as she thought it strange that any man
should bargain so badly for himself. He produced from his cart a bag of
feathers which he declared were quite new; but after his departure she
found that he had given her such short measure that she had not half
enough to fill her ticking, and most of the feathers were proved, upon
examination, to have belonged to chickens rather than to geese--nearly a
whole cock's tail having been found amongst them.

The farmer pointed into the open door of the house, and showed the
tinman a large wooden clock put up without a case between two windows,
the pendulum and the weights being "exposed and bare." This clock he
had bought for ten dollars of a travelling Yankee, who had set out to
supply the country with machines. It had only kept tolerable time for
about two months, and had ever since been getting faster and faster,
though it was still faithfully wound up every week. The hands were now
going merrily round at the rate of ten miles an hour, and it never
struck less than twelve.

The Yankee tinman, with a candour that excited the admiration of the
whole family, acknowledged that his Statesmen were the greatest rogues
"on the face of the yearth;" and recounted instances of their trickery
that would have startled the belief of any but the inexperienced and
credulous people who were now listening to him. He told, for example,
of sausages being brought to market in an eastern town, that, when
purchased and prepared for frying, were found to be filled with chopped
turnip and shreds of red flannel.

For once, thought the Warners, we have found an honest Yankee.

They sat a long time at table, and though the tinman seemed to talk all
the time he was eating, the quantity of victuals that he caused to
disappear surprised even Mrs Warner, accustomed as she was to the
appetite of Israel. When the Yankee had at last completed his supper,
the farmer invited him to stay all night; but he replied, "It was
moonshiny, and fine cool travelling after a warm day; he preferred
putting on towards Maryland as soon as his creature was rested, and had
a feed."

He then, without more ceremony, led his horse and cart into the
barn-yard, and stopping near the stable door, fed the animal by the
light of the moon, and carried him a bucket of water from the pump.

The girls being reminded by their mother that it was l