was rumoured in the village that Abonyi was visiting a
friend, a land-owner in the neighboring county, with whom he was
constantly engaged in hunting. This might and might not be true.

At any rate it seemed to Panna atrocious that it was even possible.

When one evening the gardener, who was no longer in Abonyi's service,
came to see the widow, she poured out her heart, which was brimming
with bitterness, to the kind, faithful fellow.

"Isn't it enough to enrage a dove, that Pista has been mouldering in
the ground six weeks and his murderer still goes about at liberty,
perhaps enjoys himself in hunting?"

The gardener tried to soothe the infuriated woman, and said all sorts
of things about the laws, forms, etc.

"Laws? Forms?" Panna excitedly broke in, "where were these laws and
forms when our Marczi, my brother, was executed a few hours after his
offence? And he had not killed any one, only dealt a harsh officer a
blow."

"That was in the army, Panna, that was in war; it is an entirely
different matter."

"Indeed? And is it also a different matter that, a few years ago, the
vine-dresser's Bandi was hung three days after he set fire to his
master's barn?"

"Of course it is different, at that time we were under martial law."

"So once it was war and once it was martial law--that's all nonsense,
and I'll tell you what it is: our Marczi and the vine-dresser's Bandi
were peasants, and Herr von Abonyi is a gentleman."

The gardener made no reply, perhaps because he secretly shared Panna's
belief; but her father, who had been sitting at the table, cutting
tobacco with a huge knife and taking no part in the conversation,
suddenly struck its point so violently into the table that it stuck
fast, vibrating and buzzing, and exclaimed:

"Panna, Panna, I told you so then! The best way would have been to
split the dog's skull with the hoe that very day."

Meanwhile the affair pursued its regular course, which neither the
impatience of those concerned hastens nor their submission delays, and
one morning the gardener came to Panna's hut with the news that he had
received the summons to appear as witness at the trial, which was to
take place in four days. This was nearly three months after the
murder, and it was already late in November.

Panna knew that the witnesses were reimbursed for the expense incurred
for the carriages in which they drove to the city, and begged the
gardener to take her with him to the cour