to your own hands after entrusting them to
your solicitor, you must also take the consequences.' Here Mr. Perker
drew himself up with conscious dignity, and brushed some stray grains of
snuff from his shirt frill.

'And what do they want him to prove?' asked Mr. Pickwick, after two or
three minutes' silence.

'That you sent him up to the plaintiff 's to make some offer of a
compromise, I suppose,' replied Perker. 'It don't matter much, though; I
don't think many counsel could get a great deal out of HIM.'

'I don't think they could,' said Mr. Pickwick, smiling, despite his
vexation, at the idea of Sam's appearance as a witness. 'What course do
we pursue?'

'We have only one to adopt, my dear Sir,' replied Perker; 'cross-examine
the witnesses; trust to Snubbin's eloquence; throw dust in the eyes of
the judge; throw ourselves on the jury.'

'And suppose the verdict is against me?' said Mr. Pickwick.

Mr. Perker smiled, took a very long pinch of snuff, stirred the fire,
shrugged his shoulders, and remained expressively silent.

'You mean that in that case I must pay the damages?' said Mr. Pickwick,
who had watched this telegraphic answer with considerable sternness.

Perker gave the fire another very unnecessary poke, and said, 'I am
afraid so.'

'Then I beg to announce to you my unalterable determination to pay no
damages whatever,' said Mr. Pickwick, most emphatically. 'None, Perker.
Not a pound, not a penny of my money, shall find its way into the
pockets of Dodson and Fogg. That is my deliberate and irrevocable
determination.' Mr. Pickwick gave a heavy blow on the table before him,
in confirmation of the irrevocability of his intention.

'Very well, my dear Sir, very well,' said Perker. 'You know best, of
course.'

'Of course,' replied Mr. Pickwick hastily. 'Where does Serjeant Snubbin
live?' 'In Lincoln's Inn Old Square,' replied Perker.

'I should like to see him,' said Mr. Pickwick.

'See Serjeant Snubbin, my dear Sir!' rejoined Perker, in utter
amazement. 'Pooh, pooh, my dear Sir, impossible. See Serjeant Snubbin!
Bless you, my dear Sir, such a thing was never heard of, without a
consultation fee being previously paid, and a consultation fixed. It
couldn't be done, my dear Sir; it couldn't be done.'

Mr. Pickwick, however, had made up his mind not only that it could be
done, but that it should be done; and the consequence was, that within
ten minutes after he had received the assurance that the thi