ttle farce was becoming
very irksome to him; it took up too much of his always valuable time,
and he intended to forego it in future. Quong Lee, thought he, was a
tiresome old goat who badly needed his whiskers trimmed and his horns
sawed off; and he, Ah Moy, was the man for the job.

"'I am indeed fortunate,' said Quong Lee, ignoring Ah Moy's concluding
remark, 'tremendously lucky, in fact, for I think I have in my
laboratory just what you desire. Yes, I am sure of it. I will get it
without further delay.' He took down a lighted lantern from the wall,
and lifting a trap door at the end of the room, plunged into the
darkness. From the opening nasty, suffocating smells arose, and Ah Moy
was driven out to the shop, where he impatiently awaited his learned
friend. That worthy soon reappeared, and paying no attention whatever to
the odors, beckoned Ah Moy into the room. Ah Moy approached gingerly.

"'My beloved child,' said Quong Lee, exhibiting the regulation tiny
phial of romance containing a few drops of a white liquid, 'here is a
poison ten-fold more subtle and deadly than that ejected from the fangs
of the cruel serpent of the plain. The merest scratch from a weapon
dipped in it will effect instant death. The victim curls up as a tender
leaf in the midday sun. Yet it may be taken into the stomach with
impunity. Strange, is it not? The minute quantity that you see here is
all that I possess, and I shall feel honored if you will accept it.
But,' he added, clutching Ah Moy by the wrist, 'should trouble come,
remember that I--Quong Lee----'

"'Trust me for that, venerable Uncle of the Moon; your name shall not be
breathed in the matter, whatever happens. Ah Moy is not the man to bring
misfortune upon the lifelong friend of his father,' and the fiendish
chuckle which accompanied this remark filled the merchant-chemist with
alarm.

"'A million thanks, O Illustrious,' continued Ah Moy, pocketing the
phial. 'I shall never forget your generosity. In good time I shall
repay. Ah Moy will not prove ungrateful. Pardon this brief visit, O
revered wearer of the crimson blouse. We meet again to-night. Bathed in
the glow of thy approving smile, I leave thee. We meet again to-night,
to-night. For the present, farewell. And I say, old 'un, you were dead
wrong about that last game. You get a little dippy toward morning, don't
you? Most old folks do. Ta, ta.' He glided out, slamming the door behind
him.

"Quong Lee followed his guest