Peace hesitated a moment or two, and then said—
“She can come on the next visiting day. Poor soul, she means well, I believe, but there, when she’s had a drop of drink, she will let her tongue run nineteen to the dozen, she’ll want a deal of looking after—and you know as well as I do, that we’ve got a set of gossiping neighbours. What do you they say about me now?”
“Oh, they are all of them very kind and say they are sorry you’ve got into trouble and hope you’ll get through better than you expect.”
“I never intended to hurt the ‘bobby’;—I swear that. Nothing was further from my thoughts, but you see I was half mad at the time, and driven to it.”
“All I intended to do was to frighten him; but it’s of no use talking about that now; when a man’s in trouble people generally look at the worst side of the case.”
“Cheer up, old man, and don’t give way,” cried the gipsy, in a consolatory tone, “Let us hope the judge will look upon the matter in the right light, and deal mercifully with you. How about your defence?”
“I have seen my lawyer and shall be well defended.”
“Who will you have then?”
“Oh, one of the very best in the whole profession—Mr. Montague Williams.”
“Couldn’t have a better, I should say.”