In offering the man twopence extra for carrying your bicycle on his cab, Aunt Anne was paying him not only more than he deserved, but more than he was legally entitled to demand.
It may appear to be very ridiculous to the unlegal mind, such as yours, my dear Dorothy, but it has been decided by the London magistrates that a bicycle is not luggage.
The result of this decision is that a cabman is not entitled to charge anything extra for carrying a bicycle on his cab, unless he has previously made an arrangement with his fare.
This piece of legal information you might bear in mind and make use of on a future occasion; if, therefore, a cabman ever behaves rudely towards you again when you are paying him extra for carrying your bicycle, just give him his correct fare, and if he is troublesome, take his number and send it to your legal adviser, or, in other words, to
Your affectionate cousin,
Bob Briefless.
[ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.]
MEDICAL.
Marian.—So many different affections are included under the term "nervous disease of the heart," that it is quite impossible to say whether any one case is dangerous or not, without knowing for certain which of the various forms of "nervous heart" the patient suffers from. The commonest of these ailments is that arising from indigestion. It is also the least serious, for it is fairly easy to cure. It is impossible for us to tell what is the cause of your friend's illness without knowing more about her. You should have told us her age, which is a most important point in coming to a conclusion as to what is wrong with a patient. Some forms of "nervous heart" are very serious, but most kinds can be cured.
Majorie.—What you have got is, in all probability, merely a slight attack of chronic catarrh of the throat following upon an acute nasal catarrh. Get a spray and thoroughly spray out your throat three times daily with the following paint—solution of menthol in paroleine, sixty grains to the ounce. Take an astringent lozenge occasionally, and avoid highly spiced food. It is almost certain that your complaint will disappear within a few weeks.