"I have been watching his symptoms carefully."

"Very good of you," said the Doctor gruffly. "I've been watching your manoeuvres too."

This was meant for a sarcastic retort, but the Colonel paid no heed, and went on:

"That poor fellow has the bullet still in the wound."

"No, he has not," retorted the Doctor.

"Then there is something else?"

"Tell me something I don't know," said the Doctor gruffly.

"You think there is, then?"

"I know there is," replied the Doctor. "Do you think, sir, I don't understand my profession?"

"Don't be pettish, Morton. I don't wish to interfere; but I am extremely anxious about poor Bracy."

"Can't be more so than I am, sir."

"Tell me what you feel is wrong."

"Bit of iron, I expect, close up to the vertebrae. The abominable missile broke up, and part remained behind."

"Then, in the name of all that's sensible, why don't you extract it?"

"Because, in the name of all that's sensible, I don't want to see the poor fellow die of _teta.n.u.s_--lockjaw, as you call it."

"You dare not extract it?"

"That's it, sir. The piece--a mere sc.r.a.p, I dare say--keeps his nerves in a horrible state of tension, but it is beyond my reach. Are you satisfied now?"

"Perfectly; but can nothing be done?"

"Nothing but leave it to Nature. She may do what I can't."

"Danger?"

"Of being a cripple; not of anything fatal."

"Poor fellow!" said the Colonel sadly.

"Yes, poor fellow!" said the Doctor. "I'm doing all I know, and must be off now, for you keep me very busy."

Roberts had been sitting with the patient that same afternoon, and towards evening the Major dropped in, gla.s.s in eye, and sat talking for a bit, with Bracy fighting hard to keep down his irritability, for the Major was a bad visitor in his way.

"You ought to be up and about, Bracy," he said.

"Yes; I long to be."

"Then why don't you try to brace yourself up--be bracy by nature as well as by name--eh? Ha, ha! Don't you see?"

"Because I am so weak, sir," replied the patient grimly.

"Ah, that's what you think, my dear boy," said the Major, yawning, and shooting his gla.s.s out of his eye. "That's what you think. Now, if you were to pull yourself together and make up your mind to get well you'd soon master that weakness."

"Do you think I'm shamming, then, sir?"

"Well, no, my dear boy," said the Major, stretching the string of his eyegla.s.s as he picked it up, and then giving the latter a polish with his handkerchief before proceeding to stick it into its place; "I don't think you are shamming, but that you are in a weak state, and consequently have become hypochon--what you may call it. If you were to--"

Flick! and a sudden jump of the Major to his feet, as he turned sharply to look down at Bracy.

"Confound you, sir! What do you mean by that?"

"Mean by--mean by what?" stammered Bracy, who lay perfectly motionless, with his arms by his sides.

"Mean by what, sir? Why, by striking at my eyegla.s.s and sending it flying."

"No, Major; no, I a.s.sure you I--"

"Don't prevaricate with me, sir. There's the string broken, and there's the gla.s.s yonder. I--I can forgive a certain amount of irritability in a sick man; but this is impish mischief, sir--the action of a demented boy. How dare you, sir? What the d.i.c.kens do you mean?"

"Major, I a.s.sure you I wouldn't do such a thing," cried Bracy wildly.

"Don't tell me," muttered the Major, striding across to where his gla.s.s lay, and picking it up. "Cracked, sir, cracked."

"Indeed, no, Major; I am sure I am quite--"

"I didn't say you were, sir: but my gla.s.s. The last I have, and not a chance of replacing it. How am I to go on duty? Why, you must be mad, sir. You might have struck me."

The Major's words were so loud and excited that they brought Mrs Gee to the door, to glance in and hurry away, with the result that directly after the Doctor appeared.

"What's the matter?" he cried. "Bracy worse?"

"Worse, sir?" cried the Major, who was now in a towering rage, the broken gla.s.s, a part of which had come out of the frame into his hand, having completely overset his equanimity. "Worse, sir? Look at that."

"Broken your eyegla.s.s?" said the Doctor angrily, "and a good job too.

You can see right enough, for we tested your eyes. Only a piece of confounded puppyism, of which you ought to be ashamed."

"Doctor Morton," cried the Major, puffing out his cheeks, his red face growing mottled in his anger. "How dare you!"

"How dare I, sir?" cried the Doctor, who was quite as angry. "How dare you come here, disturbing my patients, and turning the place into a bear-garden just because you have dropped your idiotic eyegla.s.s and broken it? Do you know I have poor fellows in the next room in a precarious state?"

"What! Dropped my eyegla.s.s, sir? I tell you, this lunatic here struck at me, sir, and knocked the gla.s.s flying."

"What!" cried the Doctor. "Did you do that, Bracy?"

"No, no, Doctor," stammered the young man; "I a.s.sure you I--I--"