t hurt?" "Yes, sir," would be the answer from
Alfred. Warm teas were administered, cold towels were placed on his
head, and hot poultices on other parts of his anatomy. Alfred feebly
acknowledged he was feeling very badly.

The father and mother came and with them the grandmother. When alone,
the father advised Alfred that his body was a solid mass of bruises,
that the flesh had turned black and blue. Alfred heard Lin whisper
something about "mortification hed set in an' the doctor feared blood
pizen."

The family were at dinner--Alfred had been placed upon a diet of squab
broth, none of the flesh, just the broth--Alfred quietly arose and, with
the aid of the big looking glass, (mirrors had not been discovered as
yet, in Brownsville), and a contortion feat such as he had never
attempted previously, he scanned the bruised parts. Lin's worst fears
seemed confirmed; all his person reflected in the looking glass was
black as ink, as he expressed it.

Good Mrs. Wagner, with the doctor's permission, continued applying the
hot poultices. Alfred's misery increased near night when the nurses
advised him to calm himself as the bruised blood was rapidly
disappearing. Alfred urged the good woman on by declaring the poultices
were getting cold, although they had been applied but a moment or so.

Uncle Ned came to sit up. He greatly increased Alfred's nervousness by
his attempts at consolation. He showed Alfred the error of his ways,
assuring him he might have been killed outright and that his foolish
ambitions to become an actor would probably lay him up for weeks, that
it would cost his father a lot of money and possibly leave Alfred with
his health impaired for a year to come.

Alfred, to get relief, implored the uncle to bring in more poultices. He
kept the good uncle so busy his lecture was greatly interrupted.

In answer to the doctor's first question: "How do you feel this
morning?" Alfred replied: "Very weak; I had no sleep last night."

The doctor examined the patient carefully. "Does that hurt?" "No, sir,"
answered the sufferer. "Well, you're coming around all right; the blood
is circulating and the bruises are much better, your flesh is assuming
its natural color."

"Doctor, I think that liniment had something to do with my trouble,
don't you? It nearly burned me up and the turpentine in it smelled so I
could hardly stand it. I told Jack when he was rubbing me it felt like
he was raising blisters."

The doctor i