ed. And, supposing you
fail to weigh the smoke, what penalty will you pay?" "I will
be content," said Sir Walter, "to lose my head." "You may
chance to lose it on a graver count than this;" answered the
Queen. "If the head shall have done some slight service to
your Majesty and the realm," replied the courteous knight,
"thee will be well content nevertheless."

[Illustration: Weighing smoke.]

"But your Majesty will soon see that I fail not. First,
madam, I place this empty pipe in the scales, and I find
that it weighs exactly 2 ounces. I now fill it with tobacco,
and the weight is increased to 2-1/10th ounce. I must now
ask your Majesty to allow me to smoke the pipe out. I shall
then turn out the ashes, and place them together with the
pipe in the scale once more. The difference between the
weight of the pipe with the unsmoked tobacco, and weight of
the pipe with the ashes, will be the weight of the smoke."
"You are too clever for us, Sir Walter. We shall expect you
to-night at supper, and if the conversation grow dull, you
shall tell our courtiers the story of the pipe."

Many other anecdotes have been told of the adventures of Raleigh with
his pipe. One is that while taking a quiet smoke his servant entered
and becoming alarmed on seeing the smoke coming from his nose threw a
mug of ale in his face.

The same anecdote is also related of others including Tarlton. He
gives an account of it in his Jests 1611. It is told in this manner:

"Tarlton as other gentlemen used, at the first coming up of
tobacco, did take it more for fashion's sake than otherwise,
and being in a roome, sat betweene two men overcome with
wine, and they never seeing the like, wondered at it, and
seeing the vapour come out of Tarlton's nose, cryed out,
'Fire, fire!' and threw a cup of wine in Tarlton's face.
'Make no more stirre,' quoth Tarlton, 'the fire is quenched;
if the sheriffs come, it will turne a fine as the custom
is.' And drinking that againe, 'Fie,' says the other: 'what
a stinke it makes. I am almost poysoned.' 'If it offend,'
quoth Tarlton, 'let's every one take a little of the smell,
and so the savor, will quickly go;' but tobacco whiffes made
them leave him to pay all."

Rich gives the following account of a similar scene:--

"I remember a pretty jest of tobacco whi