The unsophisticated young ladies, with that swift intuition which is one of lovely woman's salient mental traits, immediately jumped at the conclusion that the projections covered some peculiar conformation of the Yankee anatomy--some incipient, dromedary-like humps, or perchance the horns of which they had heard so much.
This anatomical phenomena was discussed intently for a few minutes, during which I heard one of the girls inquire whether "it would hurt him to cut 'em off ?" and another hazarded the opinion that "it would probably bleed him to death." Then a new idea seized them, and they said to the Sergeant "Make him sing! Make him sing!" This was too much for the Sergeant, who had been intensely amused at the girls' wonderment.

He turned to me, very red in the face, with: "Sergeant: the girls want to hear you sing." I replied that I could not sing a note.

Said he: "Oh, come now.

I know better than that; I never seed or heerd of a Yankee that couldn't sing." I nevertheless assured him that there really were some Yankees that did not have any musical accomplishments, and that I was one of that unfortunate number.

I asked him to get the ladies to sing for me, and to this they acceded quite readily.