W. Pett Ridge

“ Nothing clever in listening to an old woman and in acting on the information which she gave. There was too much undeserved praise for these detectives; they were only ordinary men, and without the narks they could do nothing. Painful to see a clear-headed, well-spoken gentleman like the judge opposite led into the popular error of assuming that the detectives of real life were like the detectives of books. ”

“ With a good character, a man could go anywhere and do anything. To-night at Westgate he would urge this to Caroline in extenuation of his slip. It would be easy in repeating to her the judge's remarks to insinuate a compliment, so that her eyes should lighten and sparkle with the delight that she had always—bless her!—shown when something had happened to his credit. ”

“ William Finnis, going up the narrow stairs to the pulpit with his face set and very serious, said in answer to young Mellish's questions that he had known Alfred Bateson nearly all his life; they had stayed away from the same Board School together. And had he always been a respectable law-abiding man, so far as Mr. Finnis's knowledge went? Always. Finnis looked hard at the sword over the judge's head as he made this reply. And was it a fact that he had been working for some considerable time in the employ of Mr. Finnis? ”