atulate himself on so unpropitious a rencontre. The stranger's
dress and unceremonious greeting were not more suspicious than the
abruptness of his appearance: for Bertram felt convinced that he must
have way-laid him. Assuming however as much composure as he could, he
demanded in a loud tone,

"Why did you not answer me when I shouted just now? You must have heard
me.

"Heard you?" said the other, in a low but remarkably firm and deep
voice,--"Heard you? Yes, I heard you well enough: but who in his senses
goes shouting at night-time up and down a bye-road on a smuggler's
coast, as if he meant to waken all the dogs and men in the country."

"Who? why any man that has a good conscience: what difference can the
night make?"

"Aye, that _has_! But take my word for it, friend, a man that comes
ashore from Jackson's brig may as well go quietly along and say as
little as possible about his conscience. In this country they don't
mind much what a man _says_: many a gay fellow to my knowledge has
continued to give the very best character of himself all the way up the
ladder of the new drop, and yet after all has been nonsuited by Jack
Ketch when he got to the top of it for wanting so little a matter as
another witness or so to back his own evidence."

"Well, but, I suppose, something must be _proved_ against a man,--some
overt act against the laws, before he can be suspected in any country:
till that is done, the presumption is that he is a respectable man: and
every judge will act on that presumption."

"Yes, in books perhaps: but when a running-fire of cross-examinations
opens from under some great wig, and one's blood gets up, and one
doesn't well remember all that one has said before,--I know not how it
is, but things are apt to take a different turn."

"Well, my rule is to steer wide of all temptation to do ill; and then a
man will carry his ship through in any waters."

"Will he? Why, may be so; and may be not. There are such things as sunk
rocks: and it's not so easy to steer wide of _them_: constables for
instance, justices of peace, lawyers, juries."

"But how came you to know that I was put on shore from Jackson's brig?"

"Why, to tell you a secret, it was I that lay at the bottom of the
boat, whilst your learned self were writing notes in a pocketbook.--But
hush! what's that?"

He stopped suddenly; looked cautiously round; and then went on:

"It was nothing, I believe. We may go on; but we must talk lowe