Good-bye, Te-to-tum." It was not a respectful farewell, but there is a freemasonry of friendliness apart from words.

Dennis had a kindly heart toward his fellow-creatures everywhere, and I never knew his fellow-creatures fail to find it out.
"Good-bye," said Ah-Fo, lingeringly.
"Good-bye again.

I say, old mandarin," added the incorrigible Dennis, leaning confidentially over the balcony, "got on pretty well below there?
Or did O'Brien keep the tail of his eye too tight on ye?
Did ye manage to coax a greatcoat of a hall-table or any other trifle of the kind up those sleeves of yours ?" This time Ah-Fo looked genuinely bewildered, but he gazed at Dennis as if he would have given anything to understand him.
"Uppee sleevee--you know ?" said Dennis, illustrating his meaning by signs.

("Chinese is a mighty easy language, Willie, I find, when you're used to it.") A grin of intelligence spread from ear to ear on Ah-Fo's countenance.
"Eyah!" said he, and with one jerk he produced our three letters, fan-fashion, in his right hand, and then they vanished as quickly, and he clapped his empty palms and cried, "Ha, ha! Ha, ha!" "It's clever, there's no denying," said Alister, "but it's an uncanny kind of cleverness." Something uncannier was to come.

Ah-Fo had stood irresolute for a minute or two, then he appeared to make up his mind, and coming close under the balcony he smiled at Dennis and said, "You lookee here." Then feeling rapidly in the inner part of his dress he brought out a common needle, which he held up to us, then pricked his finger to show that it was sharp, and held it up again, crying, "You see ?" "I see," said Dennis.