Elnathan gave a hem—one that might have been equally taken for that
kind of noise which cowards are said to make in order to awaken their
dormant courage, or for a natural effort to clear the throat; if for
the latter it was successful; for, turning his face to the veteran
German, he said:

“Very true, Major Hartmann, very true, sir; a prudent man will always
strive to make his remedies agreeable to the eyes, though they may not
altogether suit the stomach. It is no small part of our art, sir,”
and he now spoke with the confidence of a man who understood his
subject, “to reconcile the patient to what is for his own good, though
at the same time it may be unpalatable.”

“Sartain! Dr. Todd is right,” said Remarkable, “and has Scripter for
what he says. The Bible tells us how things may be sweet to the
mouth, and bitter to the inwards.”

“True, true,” interrupted the Judge, a little impatiently; “but here
is a youth who needs no deception to lure him to his own benefit. I
see, by his eye, that he fears nothing more than delay.”

The stranger had, without assistance, bared his own shoulder, when the
slight perforation produced by the pas sage of the buckshot was
plainly visible. The intense cold of the evening had stopped the
bleeding, and Dr. Todd, casting a furtive glance at the wound, thought
it by no means so formidable an affair as he had anticipated. Thus
encouraged, he approached his patient, and made some indication of an
intention to trace the route that had been taken by the lead.