it, that you would strive to drive a poor man like that beyond
his wits?" Then Mr. Soames and the manager of the bank showed what
inquiry had been made as soon as the cheque came back from the London
bank; how at first they had both thought that Mr. Crawley could of
course explain the matter, and how he had explained it by a statement
which was manifestly untrue. Then there was evidence to prove that
the cheque could not have been paid to him by Mr. Soames, and as this
was given, Mr. Crawley shook his head and again became impatient.
"I erred in that," he exclaimed. "Of course I erred. In my haste
I thought it was so, and in my haste I said so. I am not good at
reckoning money and remembering sums; but I saw that I had been wrong
when my error was shown to me, and I acknowledged at once that I had
been wrong."

Up to this point he had behaved not only with so much spirit, but
with so much reason, that his wife began to hope that the importance
of the occasion had brought back the clearness of his mind, and that
he would, even now, be able to place himself right as the inquiry
went on. Then it was explained that Mr. Crawley had stated that the
cheque had been given to him by Dean Arabin, as soon as it was shown
that it could not have been given to him by Mr. Soames. In reference
to this, Mr. Walker was obliged to explain that application had been
made to the dean, who was abroad, and that the dean had stated that
he had given fifty pounds to his friend. Mr. Walker explained also
that the very notes of which this fifty pounds had consisted had been
traced back to Mr. Crawley, and that they had no connexion with the
cheque or with the money which had been given for the cheque at the
bank.

Mr. Soames stated that he had lost the cheque with a pocket-book; that
he had certainly lost it on the day on which he had called on Mr
Crawley at Hogglestock; and that he missed his pocket-book on his
journey back from Hogglestock to Barchester. At the moment of missing
it he remembered that he had taken the book out from his pocket
in Mr. Crawley's room, and, at that moment, he had not doubted but
that he had left it in Mr. Crawley's house. He had written and
sent to Mr. Crawley to inquire, but had been assured that nothing
had been found. There had been no other property of value in the
pocket-book,--nothing but a few visiting-cards and a memorandum, and
he had therefore stopped the cheque at the London bank, and thought
no more ab