t how about time to come?"

'Rene shook his head, and then he blew his nose. You don't know how odd
a man looks blowing his nose when you are sitting directly above him.

'"I've thought that too," said Jerry. He rumbled so deep I could
scarcely catch. "It don't make much odds to me, because I'm old. But
you're young, Mosheur--you're young," and he put his hand on Rene's
knee, and Rene covered it with his hand. I didn't know they were such
friends.

'"Thank you, _mon ami_," said Rene. "I am much oblige. Let us return to
our trumpet-making. But I forget"--he stood up--"it appears that you
receive this afternoon!"

'You can't see into Gamm's Lane from the oak, but the gate opened, and
fat little Doctor Break stumped in, mopping his head, and half-a-dozen
of our people followed him, very drunk.

'You ought to have seen Rene bow; he does it beautifully.

'"A word with you, Laennec," said Dr. Break. "Jerry has been practising
some devilry or other on these poor wretches, and they've asked me to be
arbiter."

'"Whatever that means, I reckon it's safer than asking you to be
doctor," said Jerry, and Tom Dunch, one of our carters, laughed.

'"That ain't right feeling of you, Tom," Jerry said, "seeing how clever
Dr. Break put away your thorn in the flesh last winter." Tom's wife had
died at Christmas, though Dr. Break bled her twice a week. He danced
with rage.

'"This is all beside the mark," he said. "These good people are willing
to testify that you've been impudently prying into God's secrets by
means of some papistical contrivance which this person"--he pointed to
poor Rene--"has furnished you with. Why, here are the things
themselves!" Rene was holding a trumpet in his hand.

'Then all the men talked at once. They said old Gaffer Macklin was dying
from stitches in his side where Jerry had put the trumpet--they called
it the devil's ear-piece; and they said it left round red witchmarks on
people's skins, and dried up their lights, and made 'em spit blood, and
threw 'em into sweats. Terrible things they said. You never heard such a
noise. I took advantage of it to cough.

'Rene and Jerry were standing with their backs to the pigsty. Jerry
fumbled in his big flap pockets and fished up a pair of pistols. You
ought to have seen the men give back when he cocked his. He passed one
to Rene.

'"Wait! Wait!" said Rene. "I will explain to the doctor if he permits."
He waved a trumpet at him, and the men at the gate shout