A MONTH AT STRATH MAACOE 221 



keep Tom in the dark, and that without his aid we should not 

 be able to make sure of carrying out Lewes' wishes with regard 

 to the ladies, so, scribbling a pencil note, I sent it off to Tom's 

 dressing room by a footman, and he was quickly with me. Of 

 course, as I could tell him nothing of how the terrible accident 

 had happened, we could only wait in silence for the doctor's 

 advent. On the floor in a roll lay Lewes' blood-stained shoot- 

 ing coat, so Tom, with the intention of putting it out of sight, 

 stooped and lifted it by one of the skirt tails that was sticking 

 up. As he raised it the coat unrolled, and from it the missing 

 portion of Lewes' arm fell with a thud on the floor at our feet. 

 The gruesome sight turned us both nearly sick ; but at that 

 moment we heard footsteps coming towards the room, so, for 

 fear of shocking others, Tom quickly flung the coat over the 

 limb, while we rejoiced exceedingly when we found it was the 

 noise of the doctor, for by great good luck our messenger had 

 met him at the Castle gates as he was returning from his daily 

 rounds. 



Having forbidden Lewes to speak, the doctor made his 

 examination and did his work in silence ; then, taking Tom 

 out of the room, he whispered that there was every reason to 

 anticipate a good recovery, while he also wanted to know how 

 the accident had happened, but on learning we could not even 

 guess, he said, " Well, Mr. Berks, you will hear more presently, 

 for some one must have helped him put the tourniquet on his 

 arm, so no doubt whoever did that helped him here too." We 

 then told him of the severed limb, and remarking that it would 

 never be of any further use to Lewes, the doctor returned to 

 the room to wrap it in a towel, while promising to relieve us of 

 its presence when he departed. Tom had already had wit 

 enough to send word to the ladies to say dinner would be half 

 an hour late, so, leaving the patient with the doctor, who 

 promised to remain till we returned, we explained Lewes' 

 absence and our delay by saying that, as he had come in with 

 a bad shivering fit, we had stayed to see him comfortably in 



