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Show was spared the ailment. People vomited, were covered with red sores, and had terrible fever and thirst. Then they dropped dead where they stood." "Wait, Gast, don't go! Do you know what caused this sickness?" "The doctors said the rats had caused it." The florid cheeks of Master Hermann turned pale. "The rats caused such a terrible disease?" "So the doctors said." The stranger's words came out so slowly that it seemed he was reluctant to tell what he had seen. "Only a week before the illness broke out in Magdeburg, the rats started to die. First one dead rat was found, then a dozen, and then hundreds of dead rats reeked in the streets. Seven or eight days later, the people got sick." "Ecch," Master Hermann grunted, brushing imaginary rats from his cloak. Then his eyes widened in horror as he looked at the floor near his feet and saw - a dead rat! I was certain that the dead rat was the one the stranger had drowned in Master Hermann's cup, but I held my tongue. It wasn't often that I had the chance to get the best of Master Hermann, and it did my soul good to see him shiver and quake over the dead rat. If my conscience pricked me just a little bit, I quieted it by remembering the beatings I got from Master Hermann nearly every day. While Master Hermann's attention was on the rat, I emptied his horn cup and wiped it clean with the rag. It wouldn't do for him to learn that I'd let anyone use his cup. |