“Uncle Caesar,” he said calmly, “Run up to my house and ask Miss Lucy to give you a cream pitcher full of fresh milk and half a tumbler of port wine.  And hurry back.  Don’t drive—­run.  I want you to get back sometime this week.”

It occurred to me that Dr. Merriman also felt a distrust as to the speeding powers of the land-pirate’s steeds.  After Uncle Caesar was gone, lumberingly, but swiftly, up the street, the doctor looked me over with great politeness and as much careful calculation until he had decided that I might do.

“It is only a case of insufficient nutrition,” he said.  “In other words, the result of poverty, pride, and starvation.  Mrs. Caswell has many devoted friends who would be glad to aid her, but she will accept nothing except from that old Negro, Uncle Caesar, who was once owned by her family.”

“Mrs. Caswell!” said I, in surprise.  And then I looked at the contract and saw that she had signed it “Azalea Adair Caswell.”

“I thought she was Miss Adair,” I said.

“Married to a drunken, worthless loafer, sir,” said the doctor.  “It is said that he robs her even of the small sums that her old servant contributes toward her support.”

When the milk and wine had been brought the doctor soon revived Azalea Adair.  She sat up and talked of the beauty of the autumn leaves that were then in season, and their height of color.  She referred lightly to her fainting seizure as the outcome of an old palpitation of the heart.  Impy fanned her as she lay on the sofa.  The doctor was due elsewhere, and I followed him to the door.  I told him that it was within my power and intentions to make a reasonable advance of money to Azalea Adair on future contributions to the magazine, and he seemed pleased.

“By the way,” he said, “perhaps you would like to know that you have had royalty for a coachman.  Old Caesar’s grandfather was a king in Congo.  Caesar himself has royal ways, as you may have observed.”

As the doctor was moving off I heard Uncle Caesar’s voice inside:  “Did he get bofe of dem two dollars from you, Mis’ Zalea?”

“Yes, Caesar,” I heard Azalea Adair answer weakly.  And then I went in and concluded business negotiations with our contributor.  I assumed the responsibility of advancing fifty dollars, putting it as a necessary formality in binding our bargain.  And then Uncle Caesar drove me back to the hotel.

Here ends all of the story as far as I can testify as a witness.  The rest must be only bare statements of facts.

At about six o’clock I went out for a stroll.  Uncle Caesar was at his corner.  He threw open the door of his carriage, flourished his duster and began his depressing formula:  “Step right in, suh.  Fifty cents to anywhere in the city—­hack’s puffickly clean, suh—­jus’ got back from a funeral—­”

And then he recognized me.  I think his eyesight was getting bad.  His coat had taken on a few more faded shades of color, the twine strings were more frayed and ragged, the last remaining button—­the button of yellow horn—­was gone.  A motley descendant of kings was Uncle Caesar!