to suffer from their
obstinacy, and we works on their feelings about their wives and
children; and then, says I:

"'I call it downright ridiculous, when there's a hot breakfast on
twelve tables waiting for us, as three men should keep the rest
from tucking in, just acause they won't give an innocent lad the
benefit of the doubt.'

"Well, that finished them. The thought of the hot breakfast made
the other chaps so ravenous as I believe they would have pitched
into Stokes and the other two, if they hadn't have given in. So
they comes round, and we sends out to say that we had agreed on the
vardict. It were the best game I ever seed in my life."

"Well, Jacob, I am sure I am heartily grateful to you, and I shall
not forget your kindness; though what made you so sure of my
innocence, while all the others doubted it, I don't know."

"Lor', Reuben!" the smith said, "There ain't nothing to thank me
about. I didn't know nowght as to whether you was innocent or
guilty; and it was a good job for me as I had made up my mind about
that there vardict, afore I went into court; for I should never
have made head or tail of all that talk, and the fellows with white
hair on the top of their heads as kept bobbing up and down, and
asking all sorts of questions, was enough to turn an honest man's
head. The question was settled when Miss Kate Ellison--that's the
little un, you know--came in here. Says she:

"'Jacob, you are on this jury, I hear.'

"'Yes, miss,' says I.

"'Well, I hope you are going to find Reuben Whitney innocent,' says
she.

"'I don't know nothing about it,' says I. 'Folks seem to think as
he did it.'

"Then she went at me, and told me that she was sure you was
innocent; and the squire he was sure, and he would be moighty put
out if you was found guilty. So I told her natural that, the
squire's being a good landlord, I wouldn't disoblige him on no
account; and she might look upon it as good as settled that you
should be found innocent. So she tells me not to say a word to
anyone, and I ain't, not even to the ould woman; but in course, I
don't consider as she meant you."

Reuben could not help laughing as he learned that he had been
acquitted, not from any belief in his innocence on the part of the
jury, but by the intervention on his behalf of the girl who had,
before, fought his battles. Shaking hands with Jacob, he went on to
the schoolmaster's.

As he was sitting there chatting with Mr. and Mrs. Shrewsb