"Are my friends unjust that they will not listen to an injured man, whose injuries may be their own to-morrow?" said the innkeeper. "This is reasonable also; let us hear Sing," cried several voices. At that moment, Nicholas, who feared lest the artful bonzes should get the better of the dispute, came forward, and said, "Why should the worthy Sing waste words? surely he has been sufficiently injured; the measure of his grief is full, for he will leave no descendant to fulfil the necessary offices at his tomb." "The words of the honorable youth are wise," said the fickle crowd; and Nicholas continued, "That there has been robbery, there can be no doubt, my friends; for, notwithstanding the god promised to cure the daughter of this worthy man, she has passed to the yellow stream, and, therefore, he is unworthy of his quality of godship, and should be punished; therefore, in justice to the worthy Sing, let this temple be pulled down, and the stupid idol pay the penalty in his own person." To which the priest endeavored to reply, but the people would not listen to him, and acting upon the suggestion of Nicholas, threw a cord round the god's neck, pulled him to the ground, and belabored him with sticks and hammers. During the proceeding the priests, who were too wise to lose their tempers, addressed a knot of lookers-on, vehemently threatening them with terrible misfortunes, but at the same time declaring, that if Sing would come to some agreement, the god, who was of a short temper, would do what was reasonable on his part and prevent future evils. This had the desired effect upon all but Sing and some of his friends, who continued to belabor the idol till the converts to the bonze's opinion drove them away, when, becoming broken into antagonistic parties, they threw aside their weapons and fought each other with their fists, till a body of yah-yu, or city police, entered upon the ground, and seizing Sing, the principal bonze, and the two boys, as the chief rioters, hurried them off to the police tribunal. As for the mob, no sooner had the prisoners been removed, than mortified at the profanity into which they had been hurried, they gathered together the fragments of the deity, stuck them together as well as possible, washed him, and fell at his feet, exclaiming, "In truth we have been a little too hasty, but then your godship has been a little too slow in performing your promises, and thus brought the beating upon yourself. But still it is a good saying, that 'what has been done can't be undone.' Let us, therefore, think no more of this matter, and if you will forget what has passed we will repair thy temple and gild you over again."