said he.

"On the contrary," I answered, "you never hit it at all!"

"Never hit it! I must have hit it!"

"I am confident you didn't."

"Where's the dart, then?"

"Here," said I, holding up a bleeding forefinger, from which the tail
end of the fluff with which the dart was winged was protruding.

I never saw a man so abjectly sorry for anything in my life. He used
language of self-reproach which would have been extravagant if he had
shot off one of my limbs. Our positions were absurdly reversed; and it
was he who sat collapsed in a chair, while it was I, with the dart
still in my finger, who leaned over him and laughed the matter off. Mrs.
Cullingworth had run for hot water, and presently with a tweezers we
got the intruder out. There was very little pain (more to-day than
yesterday), but if ever you are called upon to identify my body you may
look for a star at the end of my right forefinger.

When the surgery was completed (Cullingworth writhing and groaning all
the time) my eyes happened to catch the medal which I had dropped, lying
upon the carpet. I lifted it up and looked at it, eager to find some
topic which would be more agreeable. Printed upon it was--"Presented to
James Cullingworth for gallantry in saving life. Jan. 1879."

"Hullo, Cullingworth," said I. "You never told me about this!"

He was off in an instant in his most extravagant style.

"What! the medal? Haven't you got one? I thought every one had. You
prefer to be select, I suppose. It was a little boy. You've no idea the
trouble I had to get him in."

"Get him out, you mean."

"My dear chap, you don't understand! Any one could get a child out.
It's getting one in that's the bother. One deserves a medal for it. Then
there are the witnesses, four shillings a day I had to pay them, and
a quart of beer in the evenings. You see you can't pick up a child and
carry it to the edge of a pier and throw it in. You'd have all sorts of
complications with the parents. You must be patient and wait until you
get a legitimate chance. I caught a quinsy walking up and down Avonmouth
pier before I saw my opportunity. He was rather a stolid fat boy, and he
was sitting on the very edge, fishing. I got the sole of my foot on to
the small of his back, and shot him an incredible distance. I had some
little difficulty in getting him out, for his fishing line got twice
round my legs, but it all ended well, and the witnesses were as staunch
as possible. The boy ca