fession, their lack of skill in it and the fulness of the graveyards in their neighborhoods. From their profession she had moved to the even more personal matter of their years, and the little use they had made of them. They had tried to turn her gibes lightly aside; but the more they humored her, the more furious she grew, till at last she had foamed at the mouth as she heaped on their devoted heads the choicest flowers of a rich vocabulary.
"She was obscene, gentlemen! I assure you, obscene!" Dr. Sharpe broke in. "I have never come across a more obvious case of acute dementia in the whole course of my professional experience—never! It is, doubtless, the result of drinking. I learn that she has been a confirmed soaker for years."
If they were satisfied, I am sure that Marmaduke and I were. I began to grow assured, indeed, in the face of the confidence of these experts, that we had done the community a service in drawing the attention of its guardians to a dangerous member and withdrawing her from its midst. At any rate, I saw the certificate signed with a serene mind—it is sad to be consigned to a lunatic asylum, but in this case inhumanity was its own reward. After all, she would live many years longer than if she had been left at large;
