My
belief is when 'e's gone I'm so circumstanced I shall get the whole.
Whether or no, I've gone in for 'elping the captain with all my savings,
and I mean to stick to them."

"And lose everything," said Tyrrwhit.

"Why don't we go and lug the old sinner into prison?" said Evans &
Crooke.

"Certainly that's the game," said Juniper, and there was another loud
acclamation of applause from the entire room.

"Gentlemen, you don't know what you're talking about, you don't indeed,"
said Tyrrwhit.

"I don't believe as we do," said Spicer.

"You can't touch the old gentleman. He owes you nothing, nor have you a
scratch of his pen. How are you to lug an old gentleman to prison when
he's lying there cut up by the doctors almost to nothing? I don't know
that anybody can touch him. The captain perhaps might, if the present
story be false; and the younger son, if the other be true. And then
they'd have to prove it. Mr. Grey says that no one can touch him."

"He's in the swim as bad as any of 'em," said Evans & Crooke.

"Of course he is," said Hart. "But let everybody speak for himself. I've
gone in to 'earn a 'eavy stake honestly."

"That's all right," said Evans & Crooke.

"And I mean to 'ave it or nothing. Now, Mr. Tyrrwhit, you know a piece
of my mind. It's a biggish lot of money."

"We know what your claim is."

"But no man knows what the captain got, and I don't mean 'em to know."

"About fifteen thousand," came in a whisper from some one in the room.

"That's a lie," said Mr. Hart; "so there's no getting out of that. If
the shentleman will mind 'is own concerns I'll mind mine. Nobody
knows,--barring the captain, and he like enough has forgot,--and nobody's
going to know. What's written on these eight bits of paper everybody may
know," and he pulled out of a large case or purse, which he carried in
his breast coat-pocket, a fat sheaf of bills. "There are five thou'
written on each of them, and for five thou' on each of them I means to
stand out. 'It or miss.' If any shentleman chooses to talk to me about
ready money I'll take two thou' off. I like ready money as well as
another."

"We can all say the same as that, Mr. Hart," said Tyrrwhit.

"No doubt. And if you think you can get it, I advise you to stick to it.
If you thought you could get it you would say the same. But I should
like to get that old man's 'ead between my fists. Wouldn't I punch it!
Thief! scoundrel! 'orrid old man! It ain't for myself that