I rather like the aunts, and think now I shall sell out mi money and real estate, and jine them.

I had rather jine them than the bulls or the bears, i like their morals better.

The Complete Works of Josh Billings — Part 108

The bulls and the bears handle more money, it iz true, and make a grate deal more noize in Wall street, one ov them sticking his horn into a flabby piece ov Erie and tossing it up into the air, and the other ketching it when it cums down, and trampling it under hiz paws.

The Complete Works of Josh Billings — Part 108

This may be phun for the bulls and the bears, but it iz wuss than the cholera morbust for poor Erie.

The Complete Works of Josh Billings — Part 108

Ants never disturb Erie; yu couldn't sell one eny Erie, enny more than you could sell one skrip on the cod-fish banks ov Nufoundland.

Ants are a honest, hard-tugging little people, but whether they marry, and giv in marriage, iz beyond my strength; but if they don't they are no wuzz oph than they are out west (near the city of Chicago), where they marry to-day and apply for an injunkshun to-morrow; and are reddy the next day to fite it out agin on sum other line.

Wedlok out west (near the grate grain mart Chicago) iz one ov them kind ov locks that almost enny boddy kan pick.

The adder iz az spotted az a checker-board, and are very butiful tew admire at a propper distance oph.

They hav a koal blak eye, which revolves on its axis, and shines like a glass bead.

They kan be found in wet places, and are handy tew liv, both down in the water, and up on the top ov the land. They kan slip oph from an old bridge, or a log, into a mill pond, az natral, and az eazy, az a pint ov turpentine, and kno how tew swim, and wave, on the brest ov sum water like the shaddo ov the weeping willo.

They are harmless tew bight, but one adder, would spile all the bathing thare waz in a mill pond for me, when i waz a boy.

The striped snaix is one ov the garden varietys. They inhabit door yards, and stun heaps down at the foot ov the garden, and piles ov old boards, and weedy spots, and grass generally.

They are the domestik snaik, if thare iz enny such thing, and are really az harmless az an old garter, but az full ov fraid tew almost every boddy, az a torpedo.

The fust snaix, we hav enny ackount ov much, waz the devil, surnamed bellyzebubb, who wiggled his way into the Garden of Eden, and without a single trump in hiz hand, beat our two original ansesstors, out ov joy inneffible, and glory halleluyer forever, and gave them in exchange for it sorrow without stint, and wo unutterabel. This was an unkommon poor trade for the human family. All snaiks are sneaks, and steal around on their slippry stummuks, az still, and greazy, az lamp ile.