He tore the note into bits and turned toward the door, with his head hung low. He thought that he heard something and looking back he caught Caruthers laughing at him. His head went up; a strange light drove the gentleness out of his eyes. "Ah, you laugh at my weakness. A moment ago I didn't know what to do. Now I know." He sprang at Caruthers and seized him by the collar--he shoved him back and struck him in the mouth--he jerked him to his knees, threw him upon the floor and kicked him. The cries of the wretch brought a crowd to the door. A constable rushed in. "Get away," Lyman commanded. "He belongs to me." "But you don't want to kill him," the officer replied. "Look, you have knocked his teeth out." "So I have. Well, you may have him now." Warren sat in the office, smoking. "Why, what's the matter?" he asked, as Lyman entered. "I'll bet you've got another piece of news to suppress." "No, I haven't--we'll give it two columns. I knocked Brother Caruthers' teeth out and I'm glad of it." "Good!" Warren cried. And then he called the office boy. "Tom, wet down two hundred extra copies for the next edition. Oh, Samuel, you are coming on first rate. What did he do?" "He laughed at my weakness." "Glad of it. Oh, we are prospering. Make a piece of news out of it, and don't think about yourself. Write it in the third. Talk about hard times when things come this way! Why, the world is on a keen jump. Hold on a moment. Here comes Nancy's dad." Old man Pitt came walking carefully into the room, looking about to avoid upsetting anything. He shook hands with Lyman and Warren, looked for a place to spit, did not find it and spat on the floor. "I seen your little rumpus over yonder jest now," said he, "and it was powerful entertainin'. You snatched that feller about like he wa'n't nothin' more than a feather pillow. And I'm glad of it, for if there ever was a scoundrel on the face of the earth he's the man. I drapped in town today to see if there was any news goin' on, an' I bucked up agin it the first off-start. That's what I call keepin' things lively. Mr. Warren, our cousin Jerry was over at the house last night." "The deuce you say!" Warren exclaimed. "Yes, sir, last night; and he apologized for havin' been a leetle slow. He 'lowed that it had been in his mind all along to marry Nancy--" "I'll shoot the top of his head off!" Warren broke in. "No need of that, my son. I told him that we was much obleeged for his deliberation as the feller says, but that he was too late; and Nancy she up and tells him that she never had thought of marryin' him, and that she wouldn't have had him if he had asked her three years ago. And then she 'lowed that she loved you--"