Upon one occasion the brothers fell out about something, and Chang knocked Eng down, and then tripped and fell on him, whereupon both clinched and began to beat and gouge each other without mercy.  The bystanders interfered, and tried to separate them, but they could not do it, and so allowed them to fight it out.  In the end both were disabled, and were carried to the hospital on one and the same shutter.

Their ancient habit of going always together had its drawbacks when they reached man’s estate, and entered upon the luxury of courting.  Both fell in love with the same girl.  Each tried to steal clandestine interviews with her, but at the critical moment the other would always turn up.  By and by Eng saw, with distraction, that Chang had won the girl’s affections; and, from that day forth, he had to bear with the agony of being a witness to all their dainty billing and cooing.  But with a magnanimity that did him infinite credit, he succumbed to his fate, and gave countenance and encouragement to a state of things that bade fair to sunder his generous heart-strings.  He sat from seven every evening until two in the morning, listening to the fond foolishness of the two lovers, and to the concussion of hundreds of squandered kisses—­for the privilege of sharing only one of which he would have given his right hand.  But he sat patiently, and waited, and gaped, and yawned, and stretched, and longed for two o’clock to come.  And he took long walks with the lovers on moonlight evenings—­sometimes traversing ten miles, notwithstanding he was usually suffering from rheumatism.  He is an inveterate smoker; but he could not smoke on these occasions, because the young lady was painfully sensitive to the smell of tobacco.  Eng cordially wanted them married, and done with it; but although Chang often asked the momentous question, the young lady could not gather sufficient courage to answer it while Eng was by.  However, on one occasion, after having walked some sixteen miles, and sat up till nearly daylight, Eng dropped asleep, from sheer exhaustion, and then the question was asked and answered.  The lovers were married.  All acquainted with the circumstance applauded the noble brother-in-law.  His unwavering faithfulness was the theme of every tongue.  He had stayed by them all through their long and arduous courtship; and when at last they were married, he lifted his hands above their heads, and said with impressive unction, “Bless ye, my children, I will never desert ye!” and he kept his word.  Fidelity like this is all too rare in this cold world.

By and by Eng fell in love with his sister-in-law’s sister, and married her, and since that day they have all lived together, night and day, in an exceeding sociability which is touching and beautiful to behold, and is a scathing rebuke to our boasted civilization.