"
Well, you would have to give these Haligonians a coat of white-wash
that would stick till you leave the town. But that's your affair, and
not mine. I hold the mirror truly, and don't flatter. Now, Halifax is
a sizable place, and covers a good deal of ground, it is most as large
as a piece of chalk, which will give a stranger a very good notion of
it. It is the seat of government, and there are some very important
officers there, judging by their titles. There are a receiver-general,
an accountant-general, an attorney-general, a solicitor-general, a
commissary-general, an assistant commissary-general, the general in
command, the quartermaster-general, the adjutant-general, the
vicar-general, surrogate-general, and postmaster-general. His
Excellency the governor, and his Excellency the admiral. The master of
the Rolls, their lordships the judges, the lord bishop, and the
archbishop, archdeacon, secretary for the Home department, and a host
of great men, with the handle of honourable to their names. Mayors,
colonels, and captains, whether of the regulars or the militia, they
don't count more than fore-cabin passengers. It ain't considered
genteel for them to come abaft the paddle-wheel. Indeed, the
quarter-deck wouldn't accommodate so many. Now, there is the same
marvel about this small town that there was about the scholar's head--
"And still the wonder grew,
How one small head could carry all he knew.
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