Little Big Man Page #5

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she wanted to be rescued.

That was the end

of my religion period.

I ain't sung a hymn

in 104 years.

After starving awhile,

I took up with a swindler.

Name of

Allardyce T. Meriweather.

After Mrs. Pendrake,

his honesty was

downright refreshing.

At no cost to you,

it is my mission

to pass on to you

Dead Man's Potion...

Meriweather was one of the

smartest men I ever knowed.

But he tended

to lose parts of himself.

When I joined him,

his left hand and his left ear

were already gone.

...might be able

to see a miracle,

one I have witnessed

many times before.

The power of this

elixir has been proven

to reverse men's ills...

It'll cure your sores and...

During my years with

Meriweather,

he lost an eye as a result

of a fifth ace

dropping out of his sleeve

in a poker game.

It didn't faze him, though.

Deception was his life's blood,

even if it caused him

to get whittled down

kind of gradual-like.

Thank you.

You're improving, Jack.

You just can't seem to get rid

of that streak of honesty

in you.

The one that ruined you was

that damned Indian, old Tepee.

You mean Old Lodge Skins.

He gave you a vision

of moral order in the universe,

and there isn't any.

Those stars twinkle

in a void, there, boy,

and the two-legged creature

schemes and dreams beneath them,

all in vain.

All in vain, Jack.

You hear anything?

Listen to me!

Two-legged creature

will believe anything,

and the more preposterous,

the better.

Whales speak French

at the bottom of the sea.

The horses of Arabia

have silver wings.

Pygmies mate with elephants

in darkest Africa.

I have sold

all those propositions.

Or maybe we're all fools,

and none of it matters.

Ah.

You stay

with Allardyce Meriweather,

and you'll wear silk.

But I don't know as

I want to wear silk.

My dear boy, what else

can a man of parts wear

than silk?

Tar and feathers,

I reckon!

All right.

Sit right there.

Don't make no moves

unless you want a little

daylight in your liver.

What, may I ask, brings you out

into the wilds

at this hour, sir?

- Is them the ones?

- That's them.

I see'd this young 'un

somewhere before.

I never been in this country.

You look mighty familiar, bub.

Oh! Sir!

What's you got in there?

Lye?

Well, sir, now you can hardly

expect me

to reveal its constituents.

Sir, please, you're... you know

you're-you're wasting

precious medicine.

Seven folks are half dead

because of this

precious medicine.

What's in it?

Why, nothing harmful,

I assure you.

What?!

Mostly water.

Whiskey, a little pepper,

oil of cloves, um, um...

...ginger root...

Whew!

Ugh, what's that?

What's what?

Oh, that.

It's a dozen snake heads

to give it strength.

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