"Good day, sir," said I. He answered me eagerly in native. "Don't you speak any English?" said I. "French," says he. "Well," said I, "I'm sorry, but I can't do anything there." He tried me awhile in the French, and then again in native, which he seemed to think was the best chance. I made out he was after more than passing the time of day with me, but had something to communicate, and I listened the harder. I heard the names of Adams and Case and of Randall - Randall the oftenest - and the word "poison," or something like it, and a native word that he said very often. I went home, repeating it to myself. "What does fussy-ocky mean?" I asked of Uma, for that was as near as I could come to it. "Make dead," said she. "The devil it does!" says I. "Did ever you hear that Case had poison

