Chapter 5 - Page 2

pay ten dollars fine for poaching. Think of Mr. Pedagog being
fined ten dollars for poaching! Awfully unfortunate!"

"Kindly leave me out of your calculations," returned Mr. Pedagog, with a
flush of indignation.

"Certainly, if you wish it," said the Idiot. "We'll hand Mr. Brief over
to the police, and let _him_ be fined for poaching on somebody else's
preserves--although that's sort of impossible, too, because Mrs. Pedagog
never lets us see preserves of any kind."

"We had brandied peaches last Sunday night," said the landlady,
indignantly.

"Oh yes, so we did," returned the Idiot. "That must have been what the
Bibliomaniac had taken," he added, turning to the genial gentleman who
occasionally imbibed. "You know, we thought he'd been--ah--he'd been
absorbing."

"To what do you refer?" asked the Bibliomaniac, curtly.

"To the brandied peaches," returned the Idiot. "Do not press me further,
please, because we like you, old fellow, and I don't believe anybody
noticed it but ourselves."

"Noticed what? I want to know what you noticed and when you noticed it,"
said the Bibliomaniac, savagely. "I don't want any nonsense, either. I
just want a plain statement of facts. What did you notice?"

"Well, if you must have it," said the Idiot, slowly, "my friend who
imbibes and I were rather pained on Sunday night to observe that
you--that you had evidently taken something rather stronger than cold
water, tea, or Mr. Pedagog's opinions."

"It's a libel, sir!--a gross libel!" retorted the Bibliomaniac. "How did
I show it? That's what I want to know. How--did--I--show--it? Speak up
quick, and loud too. How did I show it?"

"Well, you went up-stairs after tea."

"Yes, sir, I did."

"And my friend who imbibes and I were left down in the front hall, and
while we were talking there you put your head over the banisters and
asked, 'Who's that down there?' Remember that?"

"Yes, sir, I do. And you replied, 'Mr. Auburnose and myself.'"

"Yes. And then you asked, 'Who are the other two?'"

"Well, I did. What of it?"

"Mr. Auburnose and I were there alone. That's what of it. Now I put a
charitable construction on the matter and say it was the peaches, when
you fly off the handle like one of Mrs. Pedagog's coffee-cups."

"Sir!" roared the Bibliomaniac, jumping from his chair. "You are the
greatest idiot I know."

"Sir!" returned the Idiot, "you flatter me."

But the Bibliomaniac was