If his death is to be expiated by another, that
must be mine. Yesterday evening, as I was at work in my shop, and
pretty merry, the little hunch-back came to my door half drunk,
and sat down before it. He began to sing, so I invited him to
pass the evening at my house. Accordingly, he accepted of the
invitation, and went with me. We sat down to supper, and I gave
him a plate of fish; but, in eating, a bone stuck in his throat;
and though my wife and I did our utmost to relieve him, he died
in a few minutes. His death affected us extremely; and from fear
of being charged with it, we carried the corpse to the Jewish
doctor's house, and knocked at the door. The maid coming down and
opening it, I desired her to go up forthwith, and ask her master
to come down and give his advice to a sick person that we had
brought along with us; and withal, to encourage him, I charged
her to give him a piece of money, which I put into her hand. When
she was gone up, I carried hunch-back up stairs, laid him upon
the uppermost step, and then my wife and I made the best of our
way home. The doctor, in coming down, kicked the corpse down
stairs, and thereupon he supposed himself to be the author of his
death. Now, this being the case, continued he, release the
doctor, and let me die in his room.
The chief justice, and all the spectators, could not sufficiently
admire the strange emergencies that ensued upon the death of the
little crooked gentleman.
Pages:
434
435
436
437
438
439
440
441
442
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458