his orders would be executed so literally and summarily
as to dispense with all formal appeal to himself). As soon as Dr.
Riccabocca made that discovery, it occurred to him that all the wisdom
of all the schools that ever existed can't reconcile man or boy to a bad
position--the moment there is a fair opportunity of letting him out of
it. Accordingly, without more ado, he lifted up the creaking board, and
Lenny Fairfield darted forth like a bird from a cage, halted a moment as
if for breath, or in joy; and then, taking at once to his heels, fled,
as a hare to its form, fast to his mother's home.

Dr. Riccabocca dropped the yawning wood into its place, picked up
his handkerchief and restored it to his pocket; and then, with some
curiosity, began to examine the nature of that place of duress which
had caused so much painful emotion to its rescued victim. "Man is a
very irrational animal at best," quoth the sage, soliloquizing, "and is
frightened by strange buggaboos! 'T is but a piece of wood! how little
it really injures! And, after all, the holes are but rests to the legs,
and keep the feet out of the dirt. And this green bank to sit upon,
under the shade of the elm-tree-verily the position must be more
pleasant than otherwise! I've a great mind--" Here the doctor looked
around, and seeing the coast still clear, the oddest notion imaginable
took possession of him; yet, not indeed a notion so odd, considered
philosophically,--for all philosophy is based on practical
experiment,--and Dr. Riccabocca felt an irresistible desire practically
to experience what manner of thing that punishment of the stocks really
was. "I can but try! only for a moment," said he apologetically to his
own expostulating sense of dignity. "I have time to do it, before any
one comes." He lifted up the partition again: but stocks are built
on the true principle of English law, and don't easily allow a man to
criminate himself,--it was hard to get into them without the help of
a friend. However, as we before noticed, obstacles only whetted Dr.
Riccabocca's invention. He looked round, and saw a withered bit of stick
under the tree; this he inserted in the division of the stocks, somewhat
in the manner in which boys place a stick under a sieve for the purpose
of ensnaring sparrows; the fatal wood thus propped, Dr. Riceabocca sat
gravely down on the bank, and thrust his feet through the apertures.

"Nothing in it!" cried he, triumphantly, after a moment