write."

"You have seen this, I suppose?" said Alfred, pointing to the list of
the lately departed passengers, and desirous of engaging his friend in
another theme.

"Yes, and gone with Winthrop too," said the Colonel. "You would n't
believe how he doubled on me, that man Trover. I thought I had him too.
We were a-travellin' together as thick as thieves, a-tellin' each other
all our bygones in life and our plans for the future, and at last as
good as agreed we 'd go partners in a mill that was for sale, about
three miles from Carthage. But he wanted to see the water-power himself,
and so we left the high-road, and set out to visit it. At our arrival,
as we was gettin' out of the wagon, he sprained his ankle, and had to be
helped into the house.

"'I am afraid,' said he, 'there's more mischief than a sprain here; have
you any skill as a surgeon?'

"'Well,' said I, 'I ain't so bad about a fracture or dislo-cashin,
and, what's better, I 've got a note-book with me full of all manner of
receipts for washes and the like.' It was your Journal, Dr. Layton, that
I spoke of. It was, as you may remember, filled with hints about useful
herbs and odd roots, and so on, and there was all about that case of a
man called Hawke as was poisoned at Jersey,--a wonderful trial that had
a great hold upon me, as your son will tell you another time,--but I
did n't think of _that_ at the moment; but turnin' to the part about
sprains, I began to read him what you said: '"You must generally leech
at first," says he,' I began; '"particularly where there is great pain
with swellin'."'

"'Ah! I thought so,' sighed he; 'only how are we to get leeches in a
place like this, and who is to apply them?'

"'I 'll engage to do both within half an hour.' said I; and I put on my
hat and set out.

"Now, I war n't sorry, you see, for the accident. I thought to myself,
'Here's a crittur goin' to be laid up ten days or a fortnight; I'll have
all the care o' him, and it's strange if he won't let out some of his
secrets between whiles. I 'm curious to know what's a-brought him out
here; he's not travellin' like one afraid of being pursued; he goes
about openly and fearlessly, but he's always on the sharp, like a fellow
that had somethin' on his mind, if one could only come at it. If there's
anythin' one can be sure of, it is that a man with a heavy conscience
will try to relieve himself of the load; he's like a fellow always
changin' the ballast of his bo