e girls
and then at her mother; but Mrs. Shand was older and less timid than her
married daughter. Mrs. Rewble when a girl herself had never been sent
away, and was now a pattern of female discretion.

'And she,' continued Dick, 'as soon as she had begun to finger the
scrip, thought of nothing but gold. She did not care much for marriage
just then, because she fancied the stuff wouldn't belong to herself. She
became largely concerned in the "Old Stick-in-the-Mud." That was
Crinkett's concern, and there were times at which I thought she would
marry him. Then Caldigate got rid of her altogether. That was before I
went away.'

'He never married her?' asked the doctor.

'He certainly hadn't married her when I left Nobble in June '73.'

'You can swear to that, Dick?'

'Certainly I can. I was with him every day. But there wasn't anyone
round there who didn't know how it was. Crinkett himself knew it.'

'Crinkett is one of the gang against him.'

'And there was a man named Adamson. Adamson knew.'

'He's another of the conspirators,' said the doctor.

'They won't dare to say before me,' declared Dick, stoutly, 'that Mrs.
Smith and John Caldigate had become man and wife before June '73. And
they hated one another so much then that it is impossible they should
have come together since. I can swear they were not married up to June
'73.'

'You'll have to swear it,' said the doctor, 'and that with as little
delay as possible.'

All this took place towards the end of August, about five weeks after
the trial, and a day or two subsequent to the interview between Bagwax
and the Attorney-General. Bagwax was now vehemently prosecuting his
inquiries as to that other idea which had struck him, and was at this
very moment glowing with the anticipation of success, and at the same
time broken-hearted with the conviction that he never would see the
pleasant things of New South Wales.

On the next morning, under the auspices of his father, Dick Shand wrote
the following letter to Mr. Seely, the attorney.

'POLLINGTON, _30th August_, 187-.

Sir,--I think it right to tell you that I reached my father's house
in this town late yesterday evening. I have come direct from one of
the South Sea Islands _via_ Honolulu and San Francisco, and have not
yet been in England forty-eight hours. I am an old friend of Mr.
John Caldigate, and went with him from England to the gold diggings
in New South Wales. My name