d went out into the fog; having to go into the
City, he took the underground railway from Sloane Square station.

In his corner of the first-class compartment filled with City men the
smothered sobbing still haunted him, so he opened the Times with the
rich crackle that drowns all lesser sounds, and, barricaded behind it,
set himself steadily to con the news.

He read that a Recorder had charged a grand jury on the previous
day with a more than usually long list of offences. He read of three
murders, five manslaughters, seven arsons, and as many as eleven
rapes--a surprisingly high number--in addition to many less conspicuous
crimes, to be tried during a coming Sessions; and from one piece of news
he went on to another, keeping the paper well before his face.

And still, inseparable from his reading, was the memory of Irene's
tear-stained face, and the sounds from her broken heart.

The day was a busy one, including, in addition to the ordinary affairs
of his practice, a visit to his brokers, Messrs. Grin and Grinning, to
give them instructions to sell his shares in the New Colliery Co., Ltd.,
whose business he suspected, rather than knew, was stagnating (this
enterprise afterwards slowly declined, and was ultimately sold for a
song to an American syndicate); and a long conference at Waterbuck,
Q.C.'s chambers, attended by Boulter, by Fiske, the junior counsel, and
Waterbuck, Q.C., himself.

The case of Forsyte v. Bosinney was expected to be reached on the
morrow, before Mr. Justice Bentham.

Mr. Justice Bentham, a man of common-sense rather than too great legal
knowledge, was considered to be about the best man they could have to
try the action. He was a 'strong' Judge.

Waterbuck, Q.C., in pleasing conjunction with an almost rude neglect of
Boulter and Fiske paid to Soames a good deal of attention, by instinct
or the sounder evidence of rumour, feeling him to be a man of property.

He held with remarkable consistency to the opinion he had already
expressed in writing, that the issue would depend to a great extent on
the evidence given at the trial, and in a few well directed remarks he
advised Soames not to be too careful in giving that evidence. "A little
bluffness, Mr. Forsyte," he said, "a little bluffness," and after he had
spoken he laughed firmly, closed his lips tight, and scratched his head
just below where he had pushed his wig back, for all the world like
the gentleman-farmer for whom he loved to be