and huckster who had been among the men to rescue James from his fall and the first to note James's unusual nature. Gummer takes the young boy under his wing, training him to mimic pain and suffering. Once James has perfected his screams, they set out to tour the country fair circuit in England, peddling a quack nostrum touted as capable of warding off pain. It is at one of these acts that James catches the attention of a gentleman by the name of Canning, a collector of freaks and patron of artists. James understands Canning's overtures and willingly acquiesces to being kidnapped away from Gummer, who is beaten up by men in the employ of Canning. James finds himself being housed on a vast country estate, where he is largely left to his own devices. At night he wanders the seemingly endless corridors of Canning's manor house, encountering a librarian, a painter, and a pair of Siamese twins. Thanks to the librarian he is given access to a near-inexhaustible supply of anatomy books, from the painter the ability to finetune drawing (a skill he had picked up in his earlier childhood), and from the twins his first experience of sexual intercourse. Canning is revealed to be a member of the Royal Society and an enthusiast of science. He takes James to London where the boy is subjected to experimentation in front of an audience of Canning's peers, who are all wowed by James's indifference to stabbings. Meanwhile, the Siamese twins die as a result of an awry attempt to surgically separate them; James is the only one unmoved by the blood-splattered carnage that accompanies the event. Gummer reappears and kidnaps James at gunpoint. This is shortly after James has discovered that Canning is a hermaphrodite. The reunited duo return to Bristol, where Gummer immediately embarks on a drinking spree to celebrate the boy's return. Any hopes of a return to the days of Gummer's successful quackery are put to an immediate end, however, when James allows for the two of them to be pressganged into the royal navy. On board the ship James develops a reputation for efficiency and fearlessness. These qualities enable him to become assistant to naval surgeon Robert Munro. James discreetly engineers Munro's ouster by enabling his drinking. James is appointed Munro's replacement and distinguishes himself in action against the French during the battle for Minorca.