MARK TWAIN

flowers, and the pink oleander, is a might pretty thing.
In other countries you'd know the cottage was worm
eaten and rotten—here you know it is as sound as if
brand new.

Started with basket of lunch to go yachting—turned
back to get soft hats—took a back street to avoid passing
a second time the negro man who is building the fence
and to whom we talked yesterday. What might he think—
though he said nothing. We were not brave enough to
have his secret and depreciatory thoughts about us. Got
the hats and took another back street.

Couldn't get a yacht so returned home with the basket,
and this time boldly passed the negro—arguing inwardly:
"There has been time enough now for him to imagine we
have done the thing we set out to do."

That is it. You are a coward when you even seem to
have backed down from a thing you openly set out to do.

Saw a tree wholly naked of leaves, but with brilliant
red flowers, of a shape that rather more suggested a star
than anything else—the flowers were wide apart so the
tree was a sort of constellation.

Cat-poisoning case, where chickens got some of the
poison (after warning) and one whose cat got some, egged
on the negro woman to bring suit. Magistrate gets half
the fines—decides against the client who is ablest to pay
the fine. That's the dimensions of the country.

One can't imagine where the poor live in these be-
witching cottages.

We said to our driver, referring to a man in front of us,
"Drive ahead of him."

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