Buttle

• bottle → S the Man Servant is charged with cleaning out the empty bottles in HCE's tavern

• buttle: to serve or act as a buttler

• battle: Mutt is suggesting that his deafness was caused by the loud noise of warfare (note connection to battle motif in previous question, similarity to the phrase How met?, that is, How did you meet with this injury? .. but reminiscent of 'How met?' in the medieval context of 'How went / goes the meeting / battle with your foe?' + helmet ?)