w sunk in a face that was drawn and pinched and
absolutely wax-like in colour. To the Doctor's astonishment,
however, it was the little hunchback who now jumped up and whipped
out his sword.

"Run me through!" he almost screamed, dancing before the other and
threatening him with absurd flourishes--"Run me through?"

"Listen, gentlemen; listen, before blood is spilt! To me it appears
evident that you are both drunk."

"To me that seems an advantage, since it equalises matters."

"But whichever of you survives, he will be unable to forgive himself;
having sinned not only against God, but also against logic."

"How against logic?"

"Permit me to demonstrate. Mrs. Salt, whom (as I well know) you
esteemed, is lost to you; and in her place is left a babe whom--
healthy though he undoubtedly is--you cannot possibly esteem without
taking a great deal for granted, especially as you have not yet set
eyes on him. Now it is evident that, if one of you should kill the
other, a second life of approved worth will be sacrificed for an
infant of purely hypothetical merits. As a man of business I condemn
the transaction. As a Christian I deprecate the shedding of blood.
But if somebody's blood must be shed, let us be reasonable and kill
the baby!"

Captain Barker lowered his point.

"Decidedly the question is more difficult than I imagined."

"At least it cannot be settled before eating," said Dr. Beckerleg, as
the drawer entered with a tray. "You will forgive me that I took the
liberty of ordering breakfast as soon as I looked into this room.
Without asking to see your tongues, I prescribed dried herrings and
home-brewed ale; for myself, a fried sole, a beef-steak reasonably
under-done, a kidney-pie which the drawer commended on his own
motion, with a smoked cheek of pork, perhaps--"

"You wish us to sit still while you devour all this?"

"I am willing to give each side of the argument a fair chance."

"But I find nothing to argue about!" exclaimed Captain Runacles,
pushing his plate from him after a very faint attempt to eat.
"My mind being already made up--"

"And mine," interrupted Captain Barker.

"If I suggest that both of you adopt the child," Dr. Beckerleg begun.

"Still he must be educated; and our notions of education differ.
Moreover, when we differ--as you may have observed--we do so with
some thoroughness."

"Let me propose, then, a system of alternation, by which you could
adopt the boy for six m