the mat while the light from the candle glistened on his wet pink
back.

The Doctor took the candlestick from the duck and turned to me.

"Look here," he said: "you must get those wet clothes off--by
the way, what is your name?"

"Tommy Stubbins," I said.

"Oh, are you the son of Jacob Stubbins, the shoemaker?"

"Yes," I said.

"Excellent bootmaker, your father," said the Doctor. "You see
these?" and he held up his right foot to show me the enormous
boots he was wearing. "Your father made me those boots four years
ago, and I've been wearing them ever since--perfectly wonderful
boots--Well now, look here, Stubbins. You 've got to change
those wet things and quick. Wait a moment till I get some more
candles lit, and then we'll go upstairs and find some dry
clothes. You'll have to wear an old suit of mine till we can get
yours dry again by the kitchen-fire."

So presently when more candles had been lighted round different
parts of the house, we went upstairs; and when we had come into a
bedroom the Doctor opened a big wardrobe and took out two suits
of old clothes. These we put on. Then we carried our wet ones
down to the kitchen and started a fire in the big chimney. The
coat of the Doctor's which I was wearing was so large for me that