these words arose, and walked towards the table indicated by the
negro's finger; going on the very top of his toes, drawing up his legs,
extending his arms, and swelling out his back and shoulders, in a manner
so ludicrous as, under other circumstances, would have been highly
diverting. The poor fellow seemed endeavouring to collect his whole
weight, so that no portion of it should touch the floor; which, in spite
of his energetic efforts to prevent it, groaned beneath his ponderous
limbs as they moved towards the desired spot. Unfortunately, between his
overanxiety to acquit himself well in his important mission, and his
fear of dropping the delicate phial he was bringing so overcarefully, he
grasped the slight neck so tightly in his huge hand that it shivered to
atoms, and the precious liquid was expended on the carpet.

At the sight of this unfortunate mischance the Chourineur remained in
mute astonishment, one of his huge legs in the air, his toes nervously
contracted, and looking with a stupefied air alternately from the
doctor to the fragments of the bottle, and from that to the morsel his
thumb and finger were yet tightly holding.

"Awkward devil!" exclaimed the negro, impatiently.

"Yes, that I am!" responded the Chourineur, as though grateful for the
sound of a voice to break the frightful bewilderment of his ideas.

"Ah!" cried the AEsculapius, observing the table attentively, "happily
you took the wrong phial,--I wanted the other one."

"What, that little one with the red stuff?" inquired the unlucky
sick-nurse, in a low and humble tone.

"Of course I mean that; why, there is no other left."

The Chourineur, turning quickly around upon his heels, after his old
military fashion, crushed the fragments of glass which lay on the carpet
beneath his feet. More delicate ones might have suffered severely from
the circumstance, but the _ex-debardeur_ had a pair of natural sandals,
hard as the hoofs of a horse.

"Have a care!" cried the physician. "You will hurt yourself!"

To this caution the Chourineur paid no attention, but seemed wholly
absorbed in so discharging his new mission as should effectually destroy
all recollection of his late clumsiness. It was really beautiful to
behold the scrupulous delicacy and lightness of touch with which,
spreading out his two first fingers, he seized the fragile crystal;
avoiding all use of the unlucky thumb whose undue pressure, he rightly
conceived, had brought about