The person who had been butted gasped, coughed, and groaned, being doubled up like a jack-knife.
“You should caution your driver to start more carefully,” observed the freshman. “Such fellows become very careless if you do not keep them well in hand.”
“Confound you!” gasped the one who had been butted. “You’ll have to settle for that!”
“Just make out your bill,” said Jack, “and I’ll pay it on the spot. I never like to have standing accounts.”
“You’re pretty flip, but you’ll get over it before morning.”
“That will be sudden—even more sudden than what has lately happened. I do not appreciate suddenness—really I do not. As you can see, I am quite flustered.”
“Well, you are the coolest flustered person I ever saw!”
“Can you see me?” inquired Jack. “Dear! dear! what excellent eyes you must have! I can hardly see a thing. Now, if I wished to hit you on the nose, it’s very likely that I might hit you somewhere else—about there, for instance.”
Jack’s fist flew out, and, whether he could see or not, he planted it fairly on the eye of the man opposite, who was Ben Halliday. Ben uttered a howl, and struck back, but Ready dodged, and the person in whose lap he was sitting at that moment was struck by Halliday.
“Dut the whickens—I mean what the dickens are you doing?” squawked this individual.