“And please, sir, how am I to take it?”
“Oh, you’ll find that on the bottle, and mind this: you are not to eat any more cheese for supper, but you may have as much butter as you like, and stale bread.”
“Thank you, sir. Will you go in, sir?”
“Yes, I’ll go up,” said Oldroyd, and then to himself, “What humbugs we doctors are; but we are obliged to be. If I told the girl only to leave off eating cheese she would think she was ill-used, and as likely as not she would get a holiday on purpose to go over to the town and see another man.”
He tapped sharply on the door with the handle of his whip, and in response to the loud “Come in,” entered, to find Alleyne standing amongst his instruments.
“Ah, Oldroyd,” he said, holding out his hand, which the other took, “glad to see you.”
“And I’m glad to see you—looking so much better,” said Oldroyd. “Why, man, your brain has been working in a new direction; your eyes don’t look so dreamy, and the balance is getting right. Come, confess, don’t you feel more energetic than you did?”
“Ten times,” said Alleyne frankly.
“Then you’ll end by being a firm believer in my system—cure without drugs, eh?”
“Indeed I shall,” said Alleyne, smiling.