Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. Lieutenant Derby.—General Up-to-snuff.—Reciprocating Hospitalities.—Ball at Detroit.—Mess-banquet at London.—An English Officer's Opinion of the American Army.—Martial Wooing.—Antidote for Inebriation. LIEUTENANT DERBY. Alas ! poor Derby. Verily it must be admitted that he was one of the most clever, genial, and amusing spirits of his day. Overflowing with a redundancy of original, pungent wit, and effervescent, spicy humor, and possessing a prurient, constantly teasing, and insatiable penchant for the perpetration of keen, incisive raillery, at the risk even of incurring the displeasure of his best friends, it is not surprising that the memory of this incorrigible humorist should often be revived in the minds of those who entertain a lively appreciation for vivacious burlesque and sparkling bonmots. Many of Derby's droll stories have been told by himself, with inimitable gusto, in Phenixiana and in other publications, but some of his happiest hits are only known to his associates. If the following has ever before appeared in print, I have not seen it: Some years previous to his death, this officer was engaged in improving the navigation of the Mississippi River, with his head-quarters at New Orleans. Shortly after this he visited Nahant for his health, and took lodgings at the principal hotel of that fashionable watering-place, where he encountered a large number of pleasure and health seekers from various parts of the country, all of whom were strangers to him. It was in vain that he searched the register for familiar names—not a single one could he discover among them all. He wandered about over the grounds by himself during the entire day, and, although crowds of people met him at every turn, yet he did not recognize a face. Among the...