Carlton hesitated. "Are you not aware
that he uses wine too freely?"

Doctor Hillhouse was taken by surprise at this intimation.

"No, I am not aware of anything of the kind," he replied, almost
indignantly. "He is not a teetotaller, of course, any more than you or
I. Socially and at dinner he takes his glass of wine, as we do. But to
say that he uses liquor too freely is, I am sure, a mistake."

"Some men, as you know, doctor, cannot use wine without a steady
increase of the appetite until it finally gets the mastery, and I am
afraid Doctor Kline is one of them."

"I am greatly astonished to hear you say this," replied Dr. Hillhouse,
"and I cannot but hold you mistaken."

"Have you ever met him at a public dinner, at the club or at a private
entertainment where there was plenty of wine?"

"Oh yes."

"And observed no unusual exhilaration?"

Dr. Hillhouse became reflective. Now that his attention was called to
the matter, some doubts began to intrude themselves.

"We cannot always judge the common life by what we see on convivial
occasions," he made answer. "One may take wine freely with his friends
and be as abstemious as an anchorite during business-or
profession-hours."

"Not at all probable," replied Mr. Carlton, "and not good in my
observation. The appetite that leads a man into drinking more when
among friends than his brain will carry steadily is not likely to sleep
when he is alone. Any over-stimulation, as you know, doctor, leaves in
the depressed state that follows a craving for renewed exhilaration. I
am very sure that on the morning after one of the occasions to which I
have referred Doctor Kline finds himself in no condition for the work
of a delicate surgical operation until he has steadied his relaxed
nerves with more than a single glass."

He paused for a moment, and then said, with strong emphasis:

"The hand, Doctor Hillhouse, that cuts down into her dear flesh must be
steadied by healthy nerves, and not by wine or brandy. No, sir; I will
not hear to it. I will not have Doctor Kline. In your hands, and yours
alone, I trust my wife in this great extremity."

"That is for you to decide," returned Dr. Hillhouse. "I felt it to be
only right to give you an opportunity to avail of Doctor Kline's
acknowledged skill. I am sure you can do so safely."

But Mr. Carlton was very emphatic in his rejection of Dr. Kline.

"I may be a little peculiar," he said, "but do you know I never trust
any imp