the rest of the court, Waterbuck rose, and remained on his feet
until the judge was seated. James rose but slightly; he was already
comfortable, and had no opinion of Bentham, having sat next but one to
him at dinner twice at the Bumley Tomms'. Bumley Tomm was rather a poor
thing, though he had been so successful. James himself had given him his
first brief. He was excited, too, for he had just found out that
Bosinney was not in court.

'Now, what's he mean by that?' he kept on thinking.

The case having been called on, Waterbuck, Q.C., pushing back his papers,
hitched his gown on his shoulder, and, with a semi-circular look around
him, like a man who is going to bat, arose and addressed the Court.

The facts, he said, were not in dispute, and all that his Lordship would
be asked was to interpret the correspondence which had taken place
between his client and the defendant, an architect, with reference to the
decoration of a house. He would, however, submit that this
correspondence could only mean one very plain thing. After briefly
reciting the history of the house at Robin Hill, which he described as a
mansion, and the actual facts of expenditure, he went on as follows:

"My client, Mr. Soames Forsyte, is a gentleman, a man of property, who
would be the last to dispute any legitimate claim that might be made
against him, but he has met with such treatment from his architect in the
matter of this house, over which he has, as your lordship has heard,
already spent some twelve--some twelve thousand pounds, a sum
considerably in advance of the amount he had originally contemplated,
that as a matter of principle--and this I cannot too strongly
emphasize--as a matter of principle, and in the interests of others, he
has felt himself compelled to bring this action. The point put forward
in defence by the architect I will suggest to your lordship is not worthy
of a moment's serious consideration." He then read the correspondence.

His client, "a man of recognised position," was prepared to go into the
box, and to swear that he never did authorize, that it was never in his
mind to authorize, the expenditure of any money beyond the extreme limit
of twelve thousand and fifty pounds, which he had clearly fixed; and not
further to waste the time of the court, he would at once call Mr.
Forsyte.

Soames then went into the box. His whole appearance was striking in its
composure. His face, just supercilious enough, pale