man who had been looking
intently out of the window, "whether a veterinary is the same thing as a
veterinarian? I always supposed a veterinarian was a sort of religion,
like a Unitarian. Veteran means old--I thought it was some old form of
religion; or a feller who didn't believe in eatin' meat."

"Lead that nut out!" shouted somebody. "Let's get busy. The question is:
Did this old guy pretend he was a horse doctor when he wasn't? I say he
did."

"Let's take a vote," suggested Bently.

"Vell, let's understand vat we're doin'," admonished the foreman. "Do
you gen'l'muns all understand that we're tryin' to convict this feller
for doctoring a horse without a prescription?"

"You mean a license, don't you?" inquired Bently.

"Sure--a license. All right! Let's get a vote."

The first ballot resulted in seven for acquittal, four for conviction,
and one blank--Bently's.

"I don't know who the fellers are that voted for acquittal!" suddenly
announced a juror with a red face. "But I know this Brown personally,
and he's all right. You can rely on him absolutely. He goes to the same
place as me in the summer--Cottage Point. If any of you gentlemen want a
good quiet place--"

"Any mosquitoes?" inquired an unknown irreverently.

"No more'n anywheres else near New York."

They took another ballot and found that the juryman who knew Brown had
brought over two others to conviction, so that the jury was now evenly
divided, Bently voting irresponsibly for acquittal.

"Look here!" proposed the man in black. "Let's argue this out. Suppose I
put the various propositions and you vote on 'em each separately."

"Shoot ahead!" adjured somebody.

"Now, first, all who think this defendant claimed to be a veterinary say
aye."

"Wait a minute!" interposed the tall man, who was still standing by the
window. "Maybe I am a nut. But I wish someone would explain to me which
is the defender. I thought Mr. Tutt was the defender."

"Oh, my Lord!" groaned a flabby salesman in a pink tie.
"Defend-ant--a-n-t--remember your ant! He's the man we're trying! The
other one is the complainant!"

"The only one that had any complaint was the horse", protested the tall
man. "But I understand now--we're tryin' the defendant. I've never
served on a jury before. Now, what's the question?"

"Did the defendant--ant--claim to be a licensed veterinary--when he
wasn't?"

"Now wait a second," objected the tall man again. "I want to get this
straight. I