14 THE CAUSE AND THE CAUSER,

part of the subject yet. In order to do so they
must ascertain what the foreign bodies attached
to the proboscis were, and where they came from.

“Try to use simple language for the benefit of our
unlearned ears,” expostulated Sir Helix (that was
the sitting magistrate’s family name). ‘“ What do
you mean here by a foreign body, for instance,
doctor? I own to not knowing myself, and I
doubt if my bumble-bee brothers are better in-
formed on the point than I am.”

The bumbles protested they were not.

“And if by attached you mean stuck fast,”
continued Sir Helix, “why not say so?” The
sitting magistrate was getting impatient.

“Excuse me, gentlemen,” replied Dr. Harwig,
with a wriggle of fun; “we should get on very
badly in the world without professional terms, I
assure you! By a ‘foreign body’ I mean a lump
of something or other which does not naturally
belong to the person or place where at is found.
But that takes a long time to say, you observe,
and if it came to be repeated would both confuse
and delay what one had to explain.”