“Oh, no! But you see, I come to call upon you, with you I walk freely about streets. At Kang I thumb my nose and tell him go chase himself. Pao will protect myself and you.”
“But as I understand it, Kang officially ranks Pao.”
“Oh, yes! But that is nothing.”
“It looks like a little something to me.”
“Oh, no! I will ask you for brief moment to glance sidelong at Forbidden City of Peking. There during long devil of a while Eastern Empress officially ranked Western Empress, but I would call your attention to insignificant matter that it was not Western Empress—she whom you dub Empress Dowager—that turned up her toes most opportunely to daisies.”
“Oh, I see! Then it is believed that the Empress Dowager had the Eastern Empress killed?”
“You could not ask that she neglect wholly her fences.”.
“No.... no, I suppose you couldn't ask that.”
“She is great woman. She will not permit that another person put her on the blink. It is so with His Excellency. A dam' big man! We shall see!”... He hesitated, smiling a thought more eagerly than before. They had reached the gate of the inn compound. His quick eye had caught increasing signs of preoccupation in Brachey's manner. Finally, laughing again, he said:
“'There is one other little bagatelle. An utter absurdity! I have made preparation for lecture in English about China. Name of it is 'Pigtail and Chop-stick.' When I read it at college I must say they held sides and shook like jelly bowl. On that occasion it was made plain to me by men of thought that it is peach of a lecture. It's a scream.” His laugh indicated now an apologetic self-consciousness. “It was said that in America my lecture would be knockout, that Chinaman treading with humor the lyceum would make novelty excitement. Indeed, by gentleman of Customs Administration this was handed me....” He fumbled inside his gown, finally producing a frayed bit of ruled paper, evidently torn from a pocket note-book, on which was written in pencil: “Try the J. B. Pond Lyceum Bureau, New York City.”