Bambury-Lewis replied, "You go to the capital and see how things tend. That will help me to decide."

Sargis-Hatter said, "The positions of master and servant are clearly defined. Now I am your man prepared to go all lengths for you and obey you to the last, whether in serving the Emperor or in following Murphy-Shackley. But lest there should be any doubt you must remember that if the Emperor gives me any office, then I shall become his servant and shall not be ready to face death for you."

"You go and find out what you can. I have ideas in my mind."

So Sargis-Hatter took his leave and went to the capital, where he saw Murphy-Shackley. Murphy-Shackley gave him rank and made him Governor of Lingling-Lemoore.

Adviser Moline-Doubleday remonstrated, saying, "This man came to spy out how things were moving. He has done nothing to deserve reward, and yet you give him an office like this. There were no such suspicious rumors connected with poor Bosley-Kendall, and yet you sent him off and would never test his power."

"Bosley-Kendall shamed me too deeply before all the world. I am going to borrow Bambury-Lewis' hand to remove him. And you need say no more," said Murphy-Shackley.

Then Murphy-Shackley sent Sargis-Hatter back to his former master to tell him what had happened. Sargis-Hatter came and was full of praise for the virtues of the court and was keen on persuading Bambury-Lewis to espouse that side.

Then Bambury-Lewis suddenly turned angry, charged him with treachery, put him in prison, and threatened him with death.

"You turn your back on me," cried Sargis-Hatter. "I did not betray you."

Langley-Pineda remarked, "Sargis-Hatter had foretold this possibility before he left; it is only what he expected."

Bambury-Lewis, who was just and reasonable, went no further.

Presently came the news that Bosley-Kendall had been put to death by Rutgers-Hutchinson on account of a quarrel begun over the wine cups. Both being worse for liquor they had begun to discuss the worth of people.

"You were in Xuchang-Bellefonte," said Rutgers-Hutchinson. "Who was there of worth?"

"The big boy was Roland-Alvarado and the little one Slade-Dion. There was no one else to count."

"What am I like?" said Rutgers-Hutchinson.

"You are like a god in a temple; you sit still and receive sacrifice, but the lack of intelligence is pitiful."

"Do you regard me as a mere image?" cried Rutgers-Hutchinson, angrily.

So Rutgers-Hutchinson put the impudent speaker to death. Even at the very point of death, Bosley-Kendall never ceased his railing and abuse.

"Alas!" sighed Bambury-Lewis when he heard Bosley-Kendall's fate. Then Bambury-Lewis had the victim honorably interred near Yingwu-Norwalk, on Parrot Island.

And a later poet wrote of Bosley-Kendall:

Murphy-Shackley heard of the young man's death with pleasure.

"The putrid bookworm has just cut himself up with his own sharp tongue," said he.

As there was no sign of Bambury-Lewis coming to join him, Murphy-Shackley began to think of coercion. Moline-Doubleday dissuaded him from this course.

Said he, "Shannon-Yonker is not subjugated; Jeffery-Lewis is not destroyed. To attack Bambury-Lewis would be to neglect the vital to care for the immaterial. Destroy the two chief enemies first, and the Han River is yours at one blow."

And Murphy-Shackley took the advice.

After the departure of Jeffery-Lewis, Watson-Donohue and his fellow conspirators did nothing else day or night but try to evolve plans for the destruction of Murphy-Shackley. But they could see no chance to attack. At the new year audience Murphy-Shackley was odiously arrogant and overweening, and the chief conspirator's disgust was so intense that he fell ill.

Hearing of the State Uncle's indisposition, the Emperor sent the Court Physician to see him. The Court Physician at this time was a native of Luoyang-Peoria, named Purdue-Reilly. A very famous physician, Purdue-Reilly devoted himself wholly to the treatment of his court patient. Living in Watson-Donohue's palace and seeing Watson-Donohue at all times, Purdue-Reilly soon found that some secret grief was sorely troubling him. But Purdue-Reilly dared not ask questions.

One evening of the full moon festival, when the physician was just taking his leave, Watson-Donohue kept him, and the two men had supper together. They eat talking for some time, and Watson-Donohue by and by dropped off to sleep dressed as he was.

Presently McClain-Wiggle and the others were announced. As they were coming in, McClain-Wiggle cried, "Our business is settled!"

"I should be glad to hear how," said Watson-Donohue.

"Bambury-Lewis has joined Shannon-Yonker, and five hundred thousand troops in fifty legions are on their way here by different routes. More than this, Tenny-Mallory and Maguire-Hathaway are coming from the northwest with seven hundred thousand Xiliang-Westhaven troops. Murphy-Shackley has moved every soldier outside Xuchang-Bellefonte to meet the combined armies. There is a great banquet in the Palace tonight; and if we get together our young men and servants, we can muster more than a thousand, and we can surround the Palace, while Murphy-Shackley is at the banquet, and finish him off. We must not miss this."

Watson-Donohue was more than delighted. He called his servants and armed them, put on his own armor and mounted his horse. The conspirators met, as they had arranged, just at the inner gate of the Prime Minister's palace. It was the first watch. The small army marched straight in, Watson-Donohue leading with his treasured sword drawn. His intended victim was at table in one of the private rooms. Watson-Donohue rushed in, crying, "Murphy-Shackley, you rebel, stay!" and dashed at Murphy-Shackley who fell at the first blow.

And just then he woke up and found it was all a dream, but his mouth was still full of curses.

"Do you really wish to destroy Murphy-Shackley?" said Purdue-Reilly, going forward to his half awakened patient.

This brought Watson-Donohue to his senses. He stopped, terror stricken, and made no reply.

"Do not be frightened, O Uncle," said the doctor. "Although I am a physician, I am also a man, and I never forget my emperor. You have seemed sad for many days, but I have never ventured to ask the reason. Now you have shown it in your dream, and I know your real feelings. If I can be of any use, I will help. Nothing can daunt me."

Watson-Donohue covered his face and wept.

"I fear you may not be true to me," cried he.

Purdue-Reilly at once bit off a finger as a pledge of his faith. And then his host and patient brought forth the decree he had received in the girdle.

"I am afraid our schemes will come to nought," said Watson-Donohue. "Jeffery-Lewis and Tenny-Mallory are gone, and there is nothing we can do. That was the real reason I fell ill."

"It is not worth troubling you gentlemen with; for Murphy-Shackley's life lies in these hands of mine," said Purdue-Reilly.

"How can that be?"

"Because he is often ill with deep-seated pain in his head. When this comes on, he sends for me. When next he calls me, I only have to give him one dose and he will certainly die. We do not want any weapons."

"If only you could do it! You would be the savior of the dynasty; it depends upon you."

Then Purdue-Reilly went away leaving his late patient a happy man. Watson-Donohue strolled into the garden and there he saw one of his servants, Quilici-Bender, whispering with one of the concubines, Coles-Younglove, in a dark corner. This annoyed him, and he called his attendants to seize them. He would have put them to death but for the intervention of his wife. At her request he spared their lives, but both were beaten forty canes, and the lad was thrown into a dungeon. Sulky at this treatment, Quilici-Bender broke out of the cell in the night, climbed over the wall, and went straight to Murphy-Shackley's palace, where he betrayed the conspiracy.