s prepared to swear that he was not over
in Flat Creek the night of the robbery later than ten o'clock, and while
the statements of the two persons alluded to, whether maliciously
intended or not, could not implicate him at all, he thought perhaps this
lack of veracity in their statements might be of weight in determining
some other points. He therefore suggested--he could only suggest, as he
was not a party to the case in any way--that his student, Mr. Walter
Johnson, be called to testify as to his--Dr. Small's--exact whereabouts
on the night in question. They were together in his office until two,
when he went to the tavern and went to bed.

Squire Hawkins, having adjusted his teeth, his wig, and his glass eye,
thanked Dr. Small for a suggestion so valuable, and thought best to put
John Pearson under arrest before proceeding further. Mr. Pearson was
therefore arrested, and was heard to mutter something about a "passel of
thieves," when the court warned him to be quiet.

Walter Johnson was then called. But before giving his testimony, I must
crave the reader's patience while I go back to some things which
happened nearly a week before and which will serve to make it
intelligible.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 28: This form, _bagonet_, is not in the vocabularies, but it
was spoken as I have written it. The Century Dictionary gives _bagnet_,
and Halliwell and Wright both give _baginet_ with the _g_ soft
apparently, though neither the one nor the other is very explicit in
distinguishing transcriptions from old authors from phonetic spellings
of dialect forms. I fancy that this _bagonet_ is impossible as a
corruption of _bayonet_, and that it points to some other derivation of
that word than the doubtful one from _Bayonne_.]

CHAPTER XXX.

"BROTHER SODOM."

In order to explain Walter Johnson's testimony and his state of mind, I
must carry the reader back nearly a week. The scene was Dr. Small's
office. Bud and Walter Johnson had been having some confidential
conversation that evening, and Bud had got more out of his companion
than that exquisite but weak young man had intended. He looked round in
a frightened way.

"You see," said Walter, "if Small knew I had told you that, I'd get a
bullet some night from somebody. But when you're initiated it'll be all
right. Sometimes I wish I was out of it. But, you know, Small's this
kind of a man. He sees through you. He can look through a door"--and
there he shivered, an