There is a small town in one of the Eastern States, not far from Boston, whose inhabitants take great pride in excelling every other town in their vicinity. They try every new invention, and if it has any sort of merit it is sure to be assigned to duty in some part of the place. Two portly gentlemen, one a sea-captain and the other a lawyer, both retired from active life, were the prime movers in the experiments and adoptions, and, naturally, in the course of time they failed to agree. Extreme jealousy then prevailed, and a bitter animosity sprang up between them. Unfortunately these two gentlemen lived next door to each other--in fact, so close were their houses that the side walls almost adjoined. One very windy night the lawyer was reading a book in his study when a terrific crash upstairs startled him. Upon investigating he found that an unruly chimney had ruthlessly hurled itself through his roof, doing considerable damage. That in itself was a matter of great annoyance, but when he discovered it was the sea-captain's chimney that was responsible, his wrath knew no bounds. Hastening down to his library, he pulled out his law-books and hunted up similar cases, devising and scheming how he could secure satisfaction from the detestable captain. While thus engaged a note arrived from his enemy that read as follows, "SIR,--If you don't return those bricks _at once_, I will put the matter in the hands of the law." End of Project Gutenberg's Harper's Round Table, January 19, 1897, by Various