long with a story of a marriage by
a parson and you've forgotten his name, at a place you can't remember
where it was, and a date that's slipped your memory. You must have a
story to tell, and it must hold water. Now, can you tell such a story?
Have you got any proofs at all?"

Peggy shifted about uneasily.

"Can I see Mick?" she said.

"No, you can not. You must out with it here and now. Listen to me,
Peggy," he went on, sinking his voice suddenly and looking hard at her.
"I've got to know all about this. It's no use keeping anything back.
Were you ever married to William Grant?"

Peggy dropped her voice too.

"Yis. I was married twenty-five years ago at a place called Pike's pub,
out in the Never-never country."

"Who read the service, parson or priest?"

"Neither. A mish'nary. Mish'nary to the blacks."

"Is he alive?"

"No, he died out there. He was sick then, wid the Queensland fever."

"What was his name?"

"Mr. Nettleship."

"Was the marriage ever registered?"

"Sorra one of me knows. He giv us each a bit of paper--our marriage
lines. 'Twas written in pencil. He had no ink in the place, and he had
no books wid him. He tore the sheet of paper and give us each half, wid
the writing on it; his horses got stole and he had to camp there. He
stayed round wid Pike and the blacks till he died."

"And where is the certificate? Have you lost it?"

"I sint mine down to Mick to keep for me--jist a bit of paper written in
pencil it was--and it got lost some ways; but I have a copy of it I med
at the time."

"Where is the copy now?"

"At Mick's place."

"You must tell Mick to bring it in. Now where is this place, Pike's?"

"Out this side of the opal-fields. It's wild and rough now, but what it
was then--well 'twas more like a black's camp nor a white man's place at
all."

Blake thought the story had gone far enough. He did not believe a word
of it. "Look here, Peggy," he said, "You have given the place, the date,
the name of the parson, and everything. Now you know that if you are
telling a lie it will be easily found out. They will soon find out if
there was such a missionary, and if he was up there at the time, and
if Mr. Grant was up there; and if you are caught out in a lie it may go
hard with you. Have you any witnesses?"

"Martin Doyle was there, Black Martin's son."

"What! Martin Doyle that's out at the nine-mile?"

"Yis. He was up driving the buggy and horses for Grant. He can swear to
t