ar notice of it. There was a mark on it. That
werry sovereign was changed by Mr. Catchpole at Butterfield's that night,
and 'ere it is. I 'ad to go in there, as I wanted a sovereign for a lot
of silver, and he giv it to me."

"Can Butterfield swear that Catchpole gave it him?" said Mrs. Furze,
quite calmly.

"Of course he can, marm; that's jist wot I asked him."

"That will do, Jim; you can go," said Mrs. Furze.

Jim looked at her, loitered, played with his cap, and seemed unwilling to
leave.

"I'm comm' up to-morrow mornin', marm, just to 'ave one more look at that
biler." He then walked out.

"I suppose I must prosecute now," said Mr. Furze.

"Prosecute! Nothing of the kind. What is your object? It is to get rid
of him, and let Catharine see what he is. Suppose you prosecute and
break down, where will you be, I should like to know? If you succeed,
you won't be a bit better off than you are now. Discharge him. Everybody
will know why, and will say how kind and forgiving you are, and Catharine
cannot say we have been harsh to him."

Mr. Furze was uneasy. He had a vague feeling that everything was not
quite right; but he said nothing, and mutely assented to his wife's
proposals.

"Then I am to give him notice to-morrow?"

"You cannot keep him after what has happened. You must give him a week's
wages and let him go."

"Who is to take his place?"

"Why do you not try Jim? He is rough, it is true, but he knows the shop.
He can write well enough for that work, and all you want is somebody to
be there when you are out."

Mr. Furze shuddered. That was not all he wanted, but he had hardly
allowed himself, as we have already seen, to confess his weakness.

"It might be as well, perhaps," added Mrs. Furze, "to have Tom up
to-morrow and talk to him here."

"That will be much better."

It was now tea-time, and immediately afterwards Mr. and Mrs. Furze went
to church.

Soon after nine on the following morning, and before Mr. Furze had left,
Jim appeared with another request "to see the missus."

"I'll go downstairs," she said. "He wants to see me about the boiler."

There was nobody but Jim in the kitchen.

"Well, Jim?"

"Well, marm."

"What have you got to say?"

"No, marm, it's wot 'ave you got to say?"

"It is very shocking about Mr. Catchpole, is it not? But, then, we are
not surprised, you know; we have partly suspected something for a long
time, as I have told you."

"'Ave yo