"Don't you? Well, it's as well. I smelt that a big fight was coming, and it's come. I'm going to enjoy myself entirely. You've closed up one of my eyes, I should say, from the feel of it, for ever. You've broken the bridge of my nose; what there'll be to pay for the blood upon the carpet--there's a quart gone from me already--is more than I quite care to think. Before I've finished whipping you I reckon I'll be slain." "Come, Mr. Pratt, don't you think this foolish business had better cease? If you require an apology I am willing to tender one in any form you like. What passed between your wife and myself was simply in the nature of a little scientific experiment." "It'll be in the nature of a little scientific experiment what's going to pass between us too. I'm fond of experiments as well as you. Time!" Mr. Pratt fell into position. He struck at Mr. Pownceby. Mr. Pownceby laughed as he warded off the blow. "Come, Mr. Pratt, why will you persist in this absurdity?" "I'm going to whip you, sir." "In that case you really must excuse me for putting on the steam. If a waiter or someone were to come and find me engaged like this, I should never hear the last of it as long as I lived. Here goes!" It went. He had been warding off Mr. Pratt's blows while he was speaking. When he ceased the battle really joined. Mr. Pratt's guards were nowhere. In spite of all that he could do to save himself, his antagonist proceeded to administer severe punishment in thoroughly workmanlike style. The blows rang out upon his head and body. Mr. Pownceby wound up with one under the chin which lifted him off his feet and laid him on his back. He lay where he fell. The blow had knocked him senseless. Mr. Pownceby proceeded to revive him with the remains of the champagne. "This," he murmured, opening his eyes and looking up, "is nice." Mr. Pownceby propped him up upon a chair. "You compelled me to rush the thing; but I hope I haven't hurt you much." "Well," said Mr. Pratt, "you haven't killed me--quite. I never enjoyed whipping a man so much before. Say, stranger, is this the first little fight you've had?" "I've sparred for the amateur championship, and won it twice. I'm going in for it again next week." "You might have mentioned that before the game began." "If the inherent absurdity of your proposal could not deter you, I doubt if any information I might have imparted would have been of much avail." "There's something in that. Time!" Mr. Pratt rose from his chair. He stood on his feet--rather doubtfully. "What do you mean?" asked Mr. Pownceby. "I'm going on whipping you." "Look here, Mr. Pratt, each time you stand up I shall simply knock you down again. Of course you can go on with that sort of thing as long as you like." "That is so; I can. And that's a sort of thing of which one doesn't care to get more than enough."