“Well!” exclaimed Miss Sally. “How do you ever suppose anybody would put out a fire with a thing like that?” The Colonel turned the affair over and over. “I didn't study that up,” he admitted, “but I guess if I take time I can find out how the thing works. They squirt out of this here tube somehow.” He turned up the end of the tube and squinted into it. Again Eliph' Hewlitt was about to speak, but the attorney caught his eye and winked, and the little book agent held his tongue. “Well, land's sakes!” exclaimed Miss Sally, “What am I goin' to do with four fire-extinguishers, I'd like to know?” She asked the question as if the Colonel had got her into this thing of the ownership of the fire-extinguishers, and she looked to him to take the responsibility. He was quite willing to accept it. “I've got to think that over,” he said. “A feller can't decide right off hand what to do with four fire-extinguishers. It looks to me as if they was worth a lot more than the young feller owed you, Miss Sally. They ain't no doubt about Miss Sally havin' a right to 'em, is there, Mister Toole?” “Not a bit of doubt!” exclaimed Toole cheerfully. “She has every right in the world. You've got a witness that they came out of that box, and she can sell, give, donate, assign, or bequeath them, for better or for worse.” “Then that's all right,” said the Colonel, “an' I guess that's all we need you for.” “Except to settle the witness fees with this gentleman,” said Toole, turning to Eliph', who was still eager to say a word or two. “But mebby, if I have a word or two with him, I can fix it up without making any expense for you.” He drew Eliph' to one side. “What's the cost of that book you're selling?” he asked. “Well, I'll take one. I don't take one for a bribe, but because I can see you're not the sort of man that would sell a book that wasn't worth the money. I want that book. And just you keep still about those fire-extinguishers. Between you and me, those are first-class nickel-plated lung-testers, and not fire-extinguishers. But that doesn't matter. There's just about as heavy a call for fire-extinguishers in Kilo as there is for lung-testers. Can you keep still about it?” “I can,” said Eliph' Hewlitt, “and you'll never regret having bought a copy of Jarby's Encyclopedia of Knowledge and Compendium of Literature, Science and Art. It is a book that should be in every man's hand, and in every home. If you owned a copy now, you would know is value to man, woman, or child. I was going to try to sell one to Miss Briggs when you came, and if you could help me to----” The attorney smiled. This was the sort of game he enjoyed. “Don't tell about the lung-testers,” he whispered, and turned to Miss Sally. “Miss Briggs,” he said, “will you let this gentleman have a few minutes of your time? I want him to show you a book he has. It is a book that should be in every home. If you will give him a few minutes.”