he said. 'I've mended her watch, and I
always thought she was all right up to this, but the Lord only knows
whether she did it.' He paused, and then, as if there were some vague
connection in his mind between this charge and a general disposition
towards acts of dishonesty, he added: 'She always paid me regular.'

Perhaps the jury scented an underlying distrust in this. At any rate,
one of them said:

'I watched the judge carefully all through, and I saw him frown at her
several times. To my mind he meant us to say guilty.'

The word came with a little shock to the men. They instinctively
realized its terrible gravity as falling from their lips. The tall,
thin tailor put in his word again:

'Anyhow, he said there was no evidence of motive.'

'Except they jewels,' corrected the farmer.

'Ah, but there was nothing came out about them.'

'Phoo! that there was. Didn't you see how her counsel was fighting to
keep it back? You may depend she knew all about them, and could tell
us where they are now if she liked.'

'You seem to have made up your mind,' said another man, who had been
talking aside to a little knot of three; 'but for the life of me I
couldn't make it out one way or the other. What did you think he
meant about that latchkey?'

This was offensive. It was reminding them of their weak point. It
threw the whole room into confusion. Eight or nine of the jury all
began to speak at once, and four or five could find no listeners.

When the hubbub had a little subsided, the foreman said:

'Gentlemen, it's no use talking it over in this way. We must argue it
out one at a time. I propose that we all sit round the table, and the
one that has anything to say stands up and says it properly.'

This suggestion was well received, but it had a fatal effect on three
of the jury, who were wholly unable to attempt anything so much like a
set speech as this course involved.

As soon as all were seated the foreman commenced:

'Gentlemen this is a doubtful case, a very doubtful case. Talk of
reasonable doubts, there's nothing but reasonable doubts, so far as I
can see, from beginning to end. Now, it would have been a great help
to us if the judge had showed us which way he thought we ought to go,
but I must confess I couldn't tell which side he meant to lean. If any
other gentleman thinks otherwise, we shall be glad to hear him.'

But no other gentleman thought otherwise. The man who had thrown out
the suggestion about