"
The bath-house was outside. Quong carried in a couple of pails full of
boiling water; we laid out shaving tackle, an old suit of grey
flannel, a pair of brown shoes, and the necessary under-linen. A blue
bird's-eye tie, I remember, was the last touch. Then Ajax shrugged his
shoulders and said significantly, "You know what this means?"
"Rehabilitation."
"Exactly. It may be fun for us to rig out this poor devil, but we must
do more than feed and clothe him. Have you thought of that?"
I had not, and said so.
"This is an experiment. First and last, we're going to try to raise a
man from the dead. If we get him on to his pins, we'll have to supply
some crutches. Are you prepared to do that?"
"If you are."
"Right! Of course, he may refuse our help. It wouldn't surprise me a
little bit if he did refuse."
When our preparations were complete, we returned to the barn. In a few
words Ajax told the stranger of what had been done.
"After supper," he concluded, "we'll talk things over. Times are
rather good just now, and something can be arranged."
"You're very kind," replied the tramp; "but I think you had better
leave me in the barn.
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