“Keep back, now,” he said, “keep back out of that. Do you want me to draw my baton to you?”
“Well, gentlemen,” said Mr. Billing, “I was mistaken and I own up. There is one live man in Ballymoy anyway. We haven’t got a medical gentleman on our side of the Atlantic equal to Dr. Lucius O’Grady. He has run this show in a way that has surprised me considerable. He has erected a statue that will be an ornament to this town, and it’s a pleasure to me to pay for it.”
“Hear, hear,” shouted Doyle.
The crowd, which had been booing a minute before, cheered heartily.
“He’s fetched down the representative of the Lord-Lieutenant of this country to unveil the statue!”
“I’m not,” said Lord Alfred feebly. “I wish I could get you to understand that I’m not his representative.”
His protest was lost in a fresh burst of cheers.
“He has provided a charming grand-niece,” said Mr. Billing, “a grand-niece that any man, living or dead, might be proud of—-”
“Get out,” said Mary Ellen softly.
“For General John Regan,” said Mr. Billing amidst tumultuous cheers, “and when I tell you that no such General ever existed in Bolivia or anywhere else, you’ll be in a position to appreciate your doctor.”