As the doctor and his wife started down the walk they heard a voice say, "Ma, don't you ever send for that smart-aleck doctor agin. I won't _have_ him." The doctor shook with laughter as he untied the horse. "They won't need to send for me 'agin.' I like to get hold of a fine case of hysterics once in a while--it makes things lively." "The treatment you prescribed was certainly heroic enough," said Mary. They had driven about a mile, when, in passing a house a young man signaled the doctor to stop. "Mother has been bleeding at the nose a good deal," he said, coming down to the gate. "I wish you would stop and see her. She'll be glad to see you, too, Mrs. Blank." They were met at the door by a little old woman in a rather short dress and in rather large ear-rings. Her husband, two grown daughters and three children sat and stood in the room. "So you've been bleeding at the nose, Mrs. Haig?" said the doctor, looking at his patient who now sat down. "Yes, sir, and it's a-gittin' me down. I've been in bed part of the day." "It's been bleedin' off and on for two days and nights," said the husband. "Did you try pretty hard to stop it?" "Yes, sir, I tried everything I ever heerd tell of, and everything the neighbors wanted me to try, but it didn't do no good." "Open the door and sit here where I can have a good light to examine your nose by," the doctor said to the patient. She brought her chair and the young man opened the door. As he did so there was a mad rush between the old man and his two daughters for the door opposite. "Shet that door, quick!" the old man shouted, and it was instantly done. Mary looked around with frightened eyes. Had some wild beast escaped from a passing menagerie and was it coming in to devour the household? There was a swirl of ashes and sparks from the big fireplace. "This is the blamedest house that ever was built," said Mr. Haig. "Who built it?" queried the doctor. "I built it myself and like a derned fool went an' put the fireplace right between these two outside doors, so if you open one an' the other happens to be open the fire and ashes just flies." The doctor took an instrument from his pocket and proceeded with his examination. "But there's a house back here on the hill about a mile that beats this," said the old man. "That is a queer-looking house," said Mary. "It has no front door at all." "No side door, neither. When a feller wants to get in _that_ house there's just one of three ways: he has to go around and through the kitchen, or through a winder, or down the chimney." "If he was little enough he might go through the cat-hole," suggested the young man, at which they all laughed. "And what may that be?" asked the mystified Mary. "It's a square hole cut in the bottom of the door for the cat to go in and out at. The man that owns the place said he believed in having things handy."