Robert and Dorothy seemed to be enjoying the seen as much as I did, and Arvilly wuz tryin' to canvass the Scotchman. The Englishman had already bought the "Twin Crimes," and so she wuz as happy as she ever would be, I spozed.
Well, after that long enchantin' ride through Paradise, at last we reached the place we wuz bound for and put up to the Volcano House, from which a good view of the volcano is seen at night, but nothin' to what it is to stand on its shores. Well, I will pass over all intervenin' incidents, some as the lava duz when it gits started, and draw the curtain on us agin as we stood in front of that awful, majestic, dretful, sublime, unapproachable, devilish, glorious--a thousand times glorious--and not to be forgot till death, sight. Tongue can't utter words to describe it; the pen hain't made, the egg hain't laid to hatch out the soarin' eagle whose feathers could be wrought into a pen fittin' to describe that seen. Why, I have thought when the mash got to burnin' down to the lake it wuz a grand sight; Jonesvillians have driv milds to see it. I have seen upwards of ten acres of the mash burnin' over at one time, and felt awestruck, and so did Sister Bobbett, for we went down together once with our pardners on a buckboard. But, sez I to myself almost instinctively:
"What if Sister Bobbett wuz here? What would she say?"
Imagine a great lake of fire instead of water, waves of burning lava dashing up onto its shores, bustin' way up in the air at times, towerin' pillers of flame, swishin' and swashin', fire and flames, and brimstun for all I know. What--what wuz goin' on way down in the depths below if this wuz the seen outside? So wildly I questioned my heart and Josiah. "Oh, Josiah!" sez I, "what--what a sight! Did I ever expect to witness such a seen? No, oh no," I sez. "What do you spoze is goin' on inside of that great roarin', blazin' monster?" Sez he, "I know what's goin' on inside of me; I know I am jest starvin', faintin' away fur want of food."
"Well," sez I soothin'ly, "when we get back to the Volcano House I will ask for some bread and milk for you."
"Bread and milk!" sez he bitterly. "I want pork and beans, and ham, and biled greens, and chicken pie and Injun puddin'!"