groaned again at the remembrance, and moaned out:

"The whole population of London was there, and half of it on top of me
before I could wink. I thought they would strip the clothes off me,
and they nearly did it."

"And have you been here alone ever since? Have you had nothing to eat
or drink since you got back?"

"Oh," said Jem, "we had too much attention in the morning, and too
little as the day went on. We were expecting you home, and so took the
liberty of coming up here and waiting for you, thinking you might be
good enough to send out for some one who would dress our wounds; but
luckily that's not needed now."

"Why is it not needed?" I asked. "I'll send at once.

"Oh, no," moaned Paddy, "there was one good friend that did not forget
us."

"Well," said Jem, "he seemed mighty afeerd of coming in. I suppose he
thought it was on his advice that we went where we did, and he was
afeerd we thought badly of him for it; but of course we had no blame
to put on the poor little man."

"In Heaven's name, who are you talking of?" said I.

"Doctor Chord," answered Jem. "He put his head inside the door and
inquired for us, and inquired specially where you were; but that, of
course, we couldn't tell him. He was very much put out to find us
mis-handled, and he sent us some tankards of beer, which are now
empty, and we're waiting for him because he promised to come back and
attend to our injuries."

"Then you didn't see Doctor Chord in the gardens?"

"In what gardens?" asked Bottles.

"You didn't see him among that mob that set on you?"

"No fear," said Jem, "wherever there is a scrimmage Doctor Chord will
keep away from it."

"Indeed and in that you're wrong," said I. "Doctor Chord has been the
instigator of everything that has happened, and he stood in the
background and helped to set them on."

Paddy sat up with wild alarm in his eyes.

"Sure, master," says he, "how could you see through so thick a wall as
that?"

"I did not see through the wall at all; I was in the house. When you
went through the back door, I went through the front gate, and what I
am telling you is true. Doctor Chord is the cause of the whole
commotion. That's why he was afraid to come in the room. He thought
perhaps you had seen him, and, finding you had not, he'll be back here
again when everything is over. Doctor Chord is a traitor, and you may
take my word for that."

Paddy rose slowly to his feet, every red hair in his head bristl