to the wall and leaned there, his big arms hanging
loosely, the tears rolling down his cheeks and disappearing in the gray
beard, his face reddened, his whole form shaking with series after
series of chuckles.

"You hear heem?" he gasped at the wolf-dog. "M'sieu l' Nobody, he will
play with us this afternoon! M'sieu l' Ticklefoot! That is heem, my
Golemar, M'sieu l' Ticklefoot! Oh, ho--M'sieu l' Ticklefoot!"

"What in thunder is the big idea?" Barry Houston had lost his reserve
now. "I want to be a good fellow--but for the love of Mike let me in
on the joke. I can't get it. I don't see anything funny in lying here
with a broken arm and having my feet tickled. Of course, I'm grateful
to you for picking me up and all that sort of thing, but--"

Choking back the laughter, Ba'tiste returned to the foot of the bed and
stood wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Pardon, _mon ami_," came seriously at last. "Old Ba'teese must have
his joke. Listen, Ba'teese tell you something. You see people here
today, _oui_, yes? You see, the petite Medaine? Ah, _oui_!" He
clustered his fingers to his lips and blew a kiss toward the ceiling.
"She is the, what-you-say, fine li'l keed. She is the--_bon bebe_!
You no nev' see her before?"

Barry shook his head. Ba'tiste went on.

"You see M'sieu Thayer? _Oui_? You know heem?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Never saw him before."

"So?" Batiste grinned and wagged a finger, "Ba'teese he like the
truth, yes, _oui_. Ba'teese he don't get the truth, he tickle M'sieu's
feet."

"Now listen! Please--"

"No--no!" The giant waved a hand in dismissal of threat. "Old
Ba'teese, he still joke. Ba'teese say he tell you something. Eet is
this. You see those people? All right. _Bon_--good. You don' know
one. You know the other. Yes? _Oui_? Ba'teese not know why you do
it. Ba'teese not care. Ba'teese is right--in here." He patted his
heart with a big hand. "But you--you not tell the truth. I know. I
tickle your feet."

"You're crazy!"

"So, mebbe. Ba'teese have his trouble. Sometime Ba'teese wish he go
crazy--like you say."

The face suddenly aged. The twinkling light left the eyes. The big
hands knitted, and the man was silent for a long moment. Then, "But
Ba'-teese he know--see?" He pointed to his head, then twisting, ran
his finger down his spine. "When eet is the--what-you-say,
amnesia--the nerve eet no work in the foot. I could tickle, tickle,
tickle,