days of my life, invisible. That was misery enough, now to have such a
looking thing as you tagging after me like another shadow all the rest of
my day is an intolerable prospect. You have my opinion my lord, make the
most of it."

"My lad, there was never so pleased a conscience in this world as I was
when you made me visible. It gives me an inconceivable advantage. Now I
can look you straight in the eye, and call you names, and leer at you,
jeer at you, sneer at you; and you know what eloquence there is in
visible gesture and expression, more especially when the effect is
heightened by audible speech. I shall always address you henceforth in
your o-w-n s-n-i-v-e-l-i-n-g d-r-a-w-l--baby!"

I let fly with the coal-hod. No result. My lord said:

"Come, come! Remember the flag of truce!"

"Ah, I forgot that. I will try to be civil; and you try it, too, for a
novelty. The idea of a civil conscience! It is a good joke; an
excellent joke. All the consciences I have ever heard of were nagging,
badgering, fault-finding, execrable savages! Yes; and always in a sweat
about some poor little insignificant trifle or other--destruction catch
the lot of them, I say! I would trade mine for the smallpox and seven
kinds of consumption, and be glad of the chance. Now tell me, why is it
that a conscience can't haul a man over the coals once, for an offense,
and then let him alone? Why is it that it wants to keep on pegging at
him, day and night and night and day, week in and week out, forever and
ever, about the same old thing? There is no sense in that, and no reason
in it. I think a conscience that will act like that is meaner than the
very dirt itself."