"You cannot help it, Miss Elisabet'," said the naturalist.
"They fight for _nozing_ -- they fight for _nozing_. I never asked
one, but I have been oblige to fight a good many. The students
make themselves into clubs; and the way is, when two students
of different clubs, get in a quarrel, their presidents must
fight it out; -- so they meet people in duels that they have
never spoken to, nor seen. I will give you an instance. -- One
of these fellows -- a great fighter -- he had fought perhaps
forty times, -- he was bragging about it; 'he had fought such
one and such one,' he said; -- 'perhaps he ought to have fought
Herder, in order to say that he was the best man with the
sword of all the German students, -- perhaps he ought to have
met Herder, but he didn't care about it!' And a young fellow
that heard him, that was by, he took it up; 'Sir,' said he,
'Herder is my friend -- you must fight him -- come to my room
to-morrow morning at seven o'clock -- he will meet you;' --
'very well,' they agree upon the matter togezer. The next
morning he come bouncing into my room at a quarter after seven
-- 'Herder! Herder! come on! -- Lessing is waiting to fight you
in my room.' -- 'What is the matter?' -- 'O, Lessing said so and
so, and I told him you would fight him at seven, and it is a
quarter past' -- 'Well, you tell him I didn't know of this, I
am not keeping him waiting; I will come directly.' -- I was not
up. So I got myself dressed, and in ten minutes I was there. A
duel is finished when they have given twelve blows" --

"Twelve on each side, Mr. Herder?"

"Yes -- when they have both of them given twelve blows apiece.
Before we begun, Lessing and me, I whispered to somebody who
stood there, that I would not touch him unless he touched me;
and then I would give it to him in the ribs. I received ten
blows on my arm, which is covered wiz a long glove; the
eleven, he cut my waistcoat -- I had one blow left, and I gave
it to him in the ribs so long --"

Mr. Herder's words were filled out by the position of his fore
fingers, which at this juncture were held some seven or eight
inches apart.

"O Mr. Herder! -- did you kill him!" exclaimed Rose.

"Not at all -- I did not kill him -- he was very good friend of
mine, -- he was not angry wiz me. He said, 'when I get well,
Herder, you come to breakfast wiz me in my room;' and I said,
'yes!'"

"Is that kind of thing permitted in the Universities, Mr.
Herder?" said Elizabeth.