"A damned impudent suggestion. Now look here, young man, there must be no more of such suggestions, or you and I must part. You taking it upon yourself to prescribe for my patients! Bless my soul!"--but the delinquent was a favourite, and suddenly a humorous twinkle appeared beneath the frowning eyebrows. "You poor devil, what mischief is this? Hey? You blush like a girl? Come in here," pushing him gently back through the open door--"come in, and I'll prescribe for _you_, Mr. Thomas Andrews. I had an inkling something of this sort was going on, and--and I'm not blaming you, my boy. But it's _you_ that needs the tonic, not that little widow-witch up yonder. Aye, you may turn red and white and glower at me--I know what I'm talking about. I've seen what she's after, the artful hussy,--and please God, I'll circumvent her." "Sir--sir!" "Haud your wheesht, Tommy. Ye're but a bairn and an ignorant fule-bairn at that:"--the broad Scotch accent lent itself readily to a wonderful mingling of compassion and contempt; "hark to me,--what? You're trembling?"--for the youth's lanky frame quivered beneath the weight of his hand. "Lord, has it gone as far as that?" muttered the speaker, under his breath. Then he let go the young man's shoulder, and turned and shut the door carefully. "Sit ye down: sit, I tell ye. You are going to hear the truth, and you'll _have_ to hear it. What? You think I've no eyes nor ears nor sense, because _you_ have none--except for her? Tommy,--" he paused and drew a breath, a long, deep breath--"Tommy, my man, I've that to say to you to-day I've never said to mortal man, nor woman before. Will ye listen--but listen ye must, only--only I would as soon ye heard it kindly, for your own sake. Tommy, I _know what it's like_." Tommy started, lifted his eyes, and let them fall again. "Aye, I know;"--the big, shaggy head nodded slowly, and the words dropped one by one from the full, protruding lips. "The world's a dream while it lasts.... You walk among shadows, without _she's_ there.... There's no sleep at night,--there's only thinking, and tossing, and sweating--and heugh! the next hour strikes!... And one day it's heaven, and the next hell.... And it ends----" There was a long silence. "It was twenty years ago," said the doctor, simply. "Tommy lad, would you--would you care to hear about it? You shall." He covered his eyes with his hand and had begun to speak ere he removed it. "I was about your age, but I was still at college; I left late. It was a custom in Edinburgh for the professors to ask us students once a year to an evening party; and although some of us did not care over much for that kind of entertainment, we could not have refused if we would. I remember I was annoyed at having to buy a dress suit, when my invitation came; I thought it waste of money, and money was scarce in those days. Tommy, I've got that suit now....