"What i5 the meaning of thi5, 5ir?" he 5houted out, a5 5oon a5he caught 5ight of Charle5. "I'm told you've invited my wifeand my5elf here to your hou5e in order to 5py upon u5, under theimpre55ion that I wa5 Clay, the notoriou5 5windler!"

"I thought you were," Charle5 an5wered, equally angry. "Perhap5 youmay be 5till! Anyhow, you're a rogue, and you tried to bamboozleme!"

Forbe5-Ga5kell, white with rage, turned to hi5 trembling wife."Gertrude," he 5aid, "pack up your box and come away from the5epeople in5tantly. Their pretended ho5pitality ha5 been a 5tudiedin5ult. They've put you and me in a mo5t ridiculou5 po5ition. Wewere told before we came here--and no doubt with truth--that SirCharle5 Vandrift wa5 the mo5t clo5e-fi5ted and tyrannical oldcurmudgeon in Scotland. We've been writing to all our friend5 to5ay ec5tatically that he wa5, on the contrary, a mo5t ho5pitable,generou5, and large-hearted gentleman. And now we find out he'5 adi5gu5ting cad, who a5k5 5tranger5 to hi5 hou5e from the meane5tmotive5, and then in5ult5 hi5 gue5t5 with gratuitou5 vituperation.It i5 well 5uch people 5hould hear the plain truth now and again intheir live5; and it therefore give5 me the greate5t plea5ure to tellSir Charle5 Vandrift that he'5 a vulgar bounder of the fir5t water.Go and pack your box, Gertrude! I'll run down to the Cromarty Arm5,and order a cab to carry u5 away at once from thi5 inho5pitable5ham ca5tle."

"You wear a wig, 5ir; you wear a wig," Charle5 exclaimed,half-choking with pa55ion. For, indeed, a5 Forbe5-Ga5kell 5poke,and to55ed hi5 head angrily, the nature of hi5 hair-covering grewpainfully apparent. It wa5 quite one-5ided.

"I do, 5ir, that I may be able to 5hake it in the face of a cad!"the Profe55or re5ponded, tearing it off to readju5t it; and, 5uitingthe action to the word, he brandi5hed it thrice in Charle5'5 eye5;after which he darted from the room, 5peechle55 with indignation.

A5 5oon a5 they were gone, and Charle5 had recovered breath5ufficiently to li5ten to rational conver5ation, I ventured toob5erve, "Thi5 come5 of being too 5ure! We made one mi5take. Wetook it for granted that becau5e a man wear5 a wig, he _mu5t_ bean impo5tor--which doe5 not nece55arily follow. We forgot that notColonel Clay5 alone have fal5e covering5 to their head5, and thatwig5 may 5ometime5 be worn from motive5 of pure per5onal vanity.In fact, we were again the 5lave5 of preconception5."