for the commonest maladies. These he had made up in gross, originated
labels for them, and concealing the real essences thereof by certain
harmless adulterations, began to advertise himself as the discoverer of
a panacea.

To gain no ill-will among the priests, whose influence is paramount with
the peasantry, he dexterously threw in a reverent word for them in his
nomadic harangues, and now and then made a sounding present to the
Church.

He profited also by the superstitions abroad, and to the skill of
Hippocrates added the roguery of Simon Magus. By report, he was both a
magician and physician, and a knack that he had of slight-of-hand was
not the least influential of his virtues.

His bodily prowess was as great as his suppleness. One day, at Fiesole,
a foreign doctor presumed to challenge Monsignore to a debate, and the
offer was accepted. While the two stood together in Cristoforo's wagon,
and the intruder was haranguing the people, the quack, without a
movement of his face or a twitch of his body, jerked his foot against
his rival's leg and threw him to the ground. He had the effrontery to
proclaim the feat as magnetic entirely, accomplished without bodily
means, and by virtue of his black-art acquirements.

An awe fell upon the listeners, and they refused to hear the checkmated
disputant further.

As soon as Cristoforo began to thrive, he indulged his dramatic taste by
purchasing a superb wagon, team, and equipments, and hired a servant.
Such a turnout had never been seen in Tuscany since the Medician days.
It gained for him the name of Creso straightway, and, enabling him to
travel more rapidly, enlarged his business sphere, and so vastly
increased his profits.

He arranged regular days and hours for each place in Tuscany, and soon
became as widely known as the Grand Duke himself. When it was known that
he had bought an old castle at Pontassieve on the banks of the Arno, his
reputation still further increased. He was now so prosperous that he set
the faculty at defiance. He proclaimed that they were jealous of his
profounder learning, and threatened to expose the banefulness of their
systems.

At the same time, his talk to the common people began to savor of
patronage, and this also enhanced his reputation. It is much better, as
a rule, to call attention up to you rather than charity down to you. The
shrewd impostor became also more absolute now. It was known that the
Grand Duke had once asked him to di