He brought his fist down with tremendous force as he spoke, striking the table with the pad of flesh underneath his little finger. Dr. O’Grady jumped up.
“Excuse me one moment, gentlemen,” he said. “That young fool, Kerrigan, is getting the tune wrong every time, and if I don’t stop him he’ll never get it right at all.”
He walked across to the window as he spoke and looked out. Then he turned round.
“Don’t let me interfere with your speech, Thady,” he said. “I’m listening all right, and I’m sure Father McCormack and the rest of the committee want to hear every word of it.”
But Gallagher, in spite of this encouragement, did not seem inclined to go on. He sat down and scowled ferociously at Doyle. Dr. O’Grady put his head out of the window and shouted.
“Moriarty,” he called, “Constable Moriarty, come over here for a minute and stop grinning.”
Then he drew in his head and turned round.
“Major,” he said, “you’re a magistrate. I wish to goodness you’d give orders that Moriarty isn’t to grin in that offensive way. It’s a danger to the public peace.”
“I shan’t do anything of the sort,” said the Major. “In the first place I can’t. I’ve no authority over the police. They are Gregg’s business. In the second place——”
He stopped at this point because Dr. O’Grady was not listening to him. He had stretched his head and shoulders out of the window and was talking in a very loud tone to Moriarty.