How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Paragraph)
Quote #4
[Here Simon Wheeler heard his name called from the front yard, and got up to see what was wanted.] And turning to me as he moved away, he said: "Just set where you are, stranger, and rest easy I an't going to be gone a second." But, by your leave, I did not think that a continuation of the history of the enterprising vagabond Jim Smiley would be likely to afford me much information concerning the Rev. Leonidas W. Smiley, and so I started away. (para. 21-22)
Why does the narrator try to sneak out of the bar? In these kinds of situations, we’re used to think of the sophisticated easterner as having all the knowledge and power in comparison to the provincial rube (Wheeler). But, actually, the narrator, who was recently "blockaded" into a corner, is pretty powerless. He realizes that now might be his only chance for escape. He can pretend to be all casual and proper about it, but he’s really just desperate to get away from Wheeler.