The guilty man watched her for some time, and saw that she was putting her boy to bed.
He then “flipped his fingers,” as he termed it, and gave a sort of subdued whistle, to attract the attention of Mrs. Dyson, as he had frequently done before at different places.
He had not long to wait, the assumption being that she was aware of the presence of her tormentor.
Anyway, Mrs. Dyson left the bedroom, went down stairs, and entered the closet.
Peace got down off the wall and gained the yard.
He then went towards the passage of the house.
According to his own statement, the only object he had in paying a visit to the house was to induce Mrs. Dyson to withdraw the warrant which had been taken out against him. Whether this was the real purport of his visit has never been clearly established—we have only his bare word for it, but that is not very reliable testimony. He said “he was tired of being hunted about, and not being able to go and come as he liked.”
Mrs. Dyson, according to his account, became very noisy and defiant, and made use of fearful language against him.
Peace became angry, and taking his revolver from his pocket, he held it up in her face, and said:
“Now you be careful what you are saying to me. You know me of old, and know what I can do.