,
with sundry references to bloodsuckers, cut-throats and Philistines.

Emil Pilz, Aaron, and Abe Potash himself added to the general din in a
three-cornered discussion of the legal points involved. Emil contended
that Aaron could replevin the violin upon the ground of Abe's
misrepresentation at the time of the purchase, and Abe denied it in
Yiddish and English, with emphatic profanity in both languages.

Into this melee Morris hurled himself with a resounding "_Koosh!_"

"Are you all crazy, _oder_ what?" he demanded.

"Well," Abe cried, "where is it?"

Instantly there was a dead silence and all eyes rested on Morris.

"Where's what?" Morris asked.

"The Amati!" Emil Pilz cried; and Morris laughed aloud.

"_Geh weg!_" he said. "You are an expert!"

Pilz shook his head in a bullying fashion.

"Never mind if I am an expert _oder_ not," he said. "Where is that Amati
which I seen it myself at Geigermann's house only last night?"

"It is at Geigermann's house to-day," Morris replied. "Right now it is
there and it would stay there too, young feller, because that fiddle
which you seen it is the one Geigermann paid three thousand dollars for.
You seen the wrong fiddle, that's all."

This statement seemed to rouse Aaron Shellak to hysterical frenzy.

"Liar and thief!" he screamed. "Give me my fiddle."

"One moment, Shellak," Morris said, "before you put on your hat and coat
and go home, which you shouldn't trouble yourself to come back at all. I
want to show you something."

He explored his waistcoat pocket.

"Ain't this the label which was in your fiddle?" he asked, handing Aaron
a slip of paper.

Aaron examined it carefully and nodded.

"That other crazy Indian over there," Morris continued, pointing to the
professor, "look at this label. Ain't it the same which was in the
fiddle?"

Ladislaw Wcelak examined the printed slip and he, too, nodded.

Next, Morris turned to old man Hubai, who stood apart muttering to
himself.

"Some one ask that old greenhorn if it's the same label that was in the
fiddle. I don't know what he's got to do with this business but he may
know, anyhow."

Wcelak interpreted Morris's words and showed the label to the old man,
who replied volubly in Hungarian.

"He says he thinks it is," the professor said, "but he doesn't know for
sure."

"Well, I know it is the same," Morris retorted, "because I took it out
there myself this morning."

Here Morris cleared his throat and as