"'Boiled beans!'
"'Boiled beans, my lord.'
"'Is he mad?'
"'He is very wise, my lord.'
"'Thou mockest.'
"'My lord, if boiled eggs can be hatched, sure boiled beans will grow!'
"'Dismissed with costs!'
"The tree that bends with every wind that blows will seldom stand upright."
A round of applause greeted the clever tale, of which the speaker's gestures had told even more than his words. But the merriment of the company only began there, for forthwith a babel of tongues was occupied in the discussion of all the points of the case, in imagining every impossible or humorous alternative, and laughter resounded on every side, as the glasses were quickly refilled with an innocent drink.