ned.

"'What can you be about, Martin?' says the Doctor; 'you really mustn't
go on in this way--you're a nuisance to the whole passage.'

"'Please, Sir, I was only mixing up this powder, there isn't any harm in
it;' and the Madman seized nervously on his pestle and mortar, to show
the Doctor the harmlessness of his pursuits, and went off pounding;
click, click, click; he hadn't given six clicks before, puff! up went
the whole into a great blaze, away went the pestle and mortar across the
study, and back we tumbled into the passage. The magpie fluttered down
into the court, swearing, and the Madman danced out, howling, with his
fingers in his mouth. The Doctor caught hold of him, and called to us to
fetch some water. 'There, you silly fellow,' said he, quite pleased
though to find he wasn't much hurt, 'you see you don't know the least
what you're doing with all these things; and now, mind, you must give up
practising chemistry by yourself.' Then he took hold of his arm and
looked at it, and I saw he had to bite his lip, and his eyes twinkled;
but he said, quite grave, 'Here, you see, you've been making all these
foolish marks on yourself, which you can never get out, and you'll be
very sorry for it in a year or two: now come down to the housekeeper's
room, and let us see if you are hurt.' And away went the two, and we all
stayed and had a regular turn-out of the den, till Martin came back with
his hand bandaged and turned us out. However, I'll go and see what he's
after, and tell him to come in after prayers to supper." And away went
Tom to find the boy in question, who dwelt in a little study by himself,
in New Row.

The aforesaid Martin, whom Arthur had taken such a fancy for, was one of
those unfortunates who were at that time of day (and are, I fear, still)
quite out of their places at a public school. If we knew how to use our
boys, Martin would have been seized upon and educated as a natural
philosopher. He had a passion for birds, beasts, and insects, and knew
more of them and their habits than any one in Rugby; except perhaps the
Doctor, who knew everything. He was also an experimental chemist on a
small scale, and had made unto himself an electric machine, from which
it was his greatest pleasure and glory to administer small shocks to any
small boys who were rash enough to venture into his study. And this was
by no means an adventure free from excitement; for, besides the
probability of a snake dropping on to