ed, but
as he looked at the list of cases before him, he observed with a seeming
satisfaction, that he had now reached the last; he felicitated himself
with the idea that in a few moments he would be at liberty to leave the
premises, and after finding his way to some neighboring restaurant,
partake of his judicial sirloin steak and coffee. He was evidently
fatigued, but he put on a good-humored face as he called out:

"'Timothy Mulrooney.'

"'Here, sir,' said a young Milesian, remarkable for nothing in
particular; 'here I am, sir:' and Timothy Mulrooney stepped forward to
the bar.

"The Judge addressed the prisoner:

"'Timothy,' said he, 'you are charged with disorderly conduct.'

"'Yes sir, he is, and it's me that chairges him wid that same,' spoke up
an old woman, dressed in a heavy, blue cloth cloak, and an antiquated
cap and bonnet.

"_Judge._--Are you the witness?

"_Woman._--Av coorse I am, your honor, and it's me pride that I can
spake against Tim Mulrooney--the dirty tief of the world that he is (to
the prisoner), and I wondher, Tim, that you're not ashamed to howld up
yer head before his honor.

"_Judge._--Madame, state the facts as they occurred.

"_Witness._--Well, place your honor, it was on Friday mornin' or
Saturday mornin', I don't know which; but be that as it may, it doesn't
make anny difference, because it's about what followed that yer honor
wants for to know, when I heard the horn of a fish-cairt in front of my
door; sez I to myself, now Michael has come wid the porgies, and--

"_Judge._--Who is Michael?

"_Witness._--And don't ye know Michael, sure? he is my own child, and a
betther-behaved and more dacent boy nor him never sang at a wake; and he
can rade and write yer honor, as well as annybody, barrin' that whin he
comes to the big words he has to skip them, and guess at what they mane;
but that is not his fault, yer honor, for Michael never had any time to
go to school, still--

"_Judge._--Madame, you shouldn't let your tongue fly off in a tangent in
this way. What we desire to know is relative to the charge preferred by
you against Timothy Mulrooney, here.

"_Witness._--Yes, your worship, I was just comin' to it when ye
interrupted me. (To the prisoner)--Ah, you murdbering tief, it's on
Blackwell's Island that ye ought to be, instead of bein' here to face
his honor in the indacent way that ye'r doing now. (To the Judge)--Well,
your honor, it was on Friday mornin' or Saturday mor