me--hate me?"

The girl was silent, and the judge understood what her silence meant.

"It's just," he said. "It's just. But I must save Paul!"

A knock came to the door, and the woman whom Dr. White had obtained
told them there was food in the dining-room.

"Thank you," said the judge. "Yes, we must eat, Mary; it seems like
waste of time, but we must. And after we have had some dinner I'll
read through everything again. There must be a way out. Are you well
enough to run upstairs, Mary, and ask how--how--she is?"

There was a strange, yearning look in his eyes as he spoke. He might
have been ashamed, too--there was indeed a change in Judge Bolitho.

"She's no worse," said Mary, coming down a few minutes later. "The
nurse says she is sleeping peacefully. The doctor will be here in a
little while now. He seems a very hard-hearted man, but he admires
Paul greatly, and he's very clever."

During the meal both of them were silent. Each, of them had much food
for thought, and there are times when words are vain.

"To think," said the judge, when they had finished their dinner, "that
I should be here in this way, in my son's house, and that his
mother---- Mary, bring me those papers, will you?"

A little later he was deeply immersed in the early history of the
trial, noting each detail, fastening upon every weakness of the charge
and the difficulties of defence. It seemed to him as though he were
practising at the bar again, and he were preparing his case for the
defence of the prisoner. But this time he had an interest never known
to him before. It was for him to fight for the life of his own son.

Presently he heard the doctor's step on the stairs. He had been in the
sick-room, and when he had finished his visit, Mary had led him to the
room where her father was. Dr. White looked at the judge curiously.
At each house he had called that afternoon there was but one subject of
discussion. No one knew that Judge Bolitho was in Brunford; had they
done so, excitement would have exceeded all bounds; but as it was, the
confession which he had made had set the whole town talking.

"Will you tell me how my wife is?" asked the judge.

"Your wife?" queried the doctor.

"Yes, my wife. Will you tell me how she is?"

The doctor gave a significant glance at Mary, which the judge was not
slow to interpret; but he made no sign. Now that he had made his
confession and told the truth, he was the same proud ma