“Ask ze Herr Zecretary. I am noddings here. Do you want pills?”
“No. You see, it’s rather a rum funny thing. You know that lizard of mine—you backed him once.”
“And lost my money. I hop’ he is dead, zat lizart.”
“Yes, he’s dead all right, but that ain’t it. I was exercisin’ him yesterday, when the boy brought me a glass of sherry and angostura with a fly in it.”
“Fly? Vot fly?”
“Just a plain fly, and I hadn’t ordered it. But I fished it out and chucked it to my lizard, who took it in one snap.”
“Vell, vell, vot about it? If you veesh to gomplain zat your drink hat som’ flies—”
“I did the complainin’ at the time, thanks. I don’t let a thing of that kind go past me. But what I mean is that the lizard started off round the course like a flash of light. Cut the record all to rags. Did two rounds and a bit, and then he died, you know. But I’ve got another lizard, and I can get another fly and some more sherry. And I’ve got some money just now, and Soames Pryce has got a lizard that he thinks can’t be beaten. So that’s how it is, you see.”
“I see, my young frient. Dope.”