Simon Stubbles was very angry at what had taken place the previous evening. He was troubled, as well, over his financial difficulties, for he knew that if he could not raise the ten thousand dollars he was a ruined man. Even now he was aware that his influence in Rixton was waning, and what would it be if the crash should come? He had dominated the people because of his position and supposed wealth. They had bowed to his slightest will, and had allowed him to rule. But now they were taking matters into their own hands, and had inflicted a most humiliating punishment upon his only son.

Squire Hawkins was in the room with him this morning, and had related in detail what had happened to Ben.

"It is most disgraceful, sir, and you must punish the ringleaders at once," he told him. "That will teach the others a lesson."

"And who are the ringleaders?" Stubbles asked.

"Why, you know, don't you? They are Jake Jukes and Tom Totten; both very dangerous men."

"And who put them up to the job?"

"Did any one?"

"Certainly. It was Jake's hired man; he's the one who did it."

"But he was in the city, so I understand, and didn't get back until the deed was about done."

"H'm," and Stubbles gave a grunt of disgust, "he was the chief mover in the affair, mark my word. I've had my eye on that fellow ever since he came to the place. He's a stirrer up of trouble. I knew it from the first, and did my best to get rid of him, but he defied me and has remained, notwithstanding my orders for him to leave."

"Then it will be necessary to make an example of him, sir," the Squire replied. "Just say the word, and I shall have him brought before me."

At that instant the door-bell rang, and a few seconds later Douglas and Charles Garton were ushered into the room. Both Stubbles and the Squire sprang to their feet when they beheld the very man they had been denouncing. Stubbles was about to launch forth in hot, angry words when his eye rested upon the lawyer. In an instant his manner changed, and, ignoring Douglas, he rushed forward and seized Garton by the hand.

"This is a very pleasant surprise," he cried. "I had no idea that you were in the place. Allow me to introduce my friend, Squire Hawkins."

Though outwardly affable, both Stubbles and the Squire were very uneasy at the arrival of Jake's hired man in company with the ablest lawyer in the city. What does it mean? each asked himself, and anxiously awaited further developments.

"I have come to see you on special business, Mr. Stubbles," the lawyer began, "and as my time is limited, I wish to discuss the matter with you at once."

"Why, certainly," Stubbles returned. "We can be as private here as anywhere, sir. Your—er—companion can wait for you at the store."

"No, I wish him to stay where he is," Garton replied.

"Do you wish Squire Hawkins to remain, too?" Stubbles anxiously enquired.

"That is for you to decide. It is immaterial to me, at present, whether he goes or stay, though I wish to speak to him later."

"He might as well remain, then," Stubbles replied. "We have been bosom friends for years, and I always take him into my confidence. He is a man to be relied upon."

"I shall come to the point at once, Mr. Stubbles," the lawyer began. "You have written to me telling of your financial difficulties, and asking for a loan of ten thousand dollars."

Squire Harkins stared in amazement at these words. His weak lower jaw dropped, and his mouth flew suddenly open. This was certainly a remarkable revelation.

"But before I go further," the lawyer continued, "I would like to know the cause of your unfortunate situation. It is a great surprise, for you have been doing a big business."

"I know it," and Stubbles' eyes dropped. "I would not be in this position to-day but for my family. My daughters, I regret to say, have not been as careful as they might have been, but my son is really the one who has ruined me. He has spent my money lavishly and extravagantly, and though I have reasoned with him many a time, it was to no avail. I know I have been weak, and the money that should have been used in connection with my business has gone to him. There, you have my confession, sir," and the unhappy man mopped his forehead with his handkerchief.

"And ten thousand dollars will tide you over the trouble, do you think?" Garton asked.

"I am sure of it."

"And what about your son? Will any of it go to him?"

"Not a cent. I am done with him as far as money matters are concerned. He must look out for himself after this. I have been taught a severe lesson."

"And suppose I do not get the money for you, what then?"

"I am ruined."

"Can you not get it elsewhere?"

"No, not that amount. I have tried and failed. Six thousand was the best any one would do. I hope you can favour me, sir," and Stubbles turned his eyes beseechingly upon the lawyer's face.

"It all depends upon my young friend here," Garton replied, "and that is the reason why I have asked him to remain in the room."

"It depends upon him!" Stubbles exclaimed in astonishment, as he looked toward Douglas. "I do not understand your meaning, sir."

"You know him, then?"

"Yes, I have met him several times. He is Jake Jukes' hired man, so I understand."

"And he is the man you have been persecuting ever since he came to this place. Why was that?"

"There was no persecution, I assure you," Stubbles hotly defended. "He made himself most obnoxious to people in general, and for the welfare of the community I ordered him to leave the parish."

"In what way did he make himself obnoxious?"

"He insulted my son one night at a quiet dance in the hall at the
Corner, and broke up the gathering."

"And what was your son doing? How did he behave that night? Did you ever think of that?"

As Stubbles did not reply but dropped his eyes to the floor, Douglas turned upon him.

"It was your son, Ben, who made the trouble that night, Mr. Stubbles," he charged. "He acted more like a beast than a human being, and because I interfered and checked him, he started out to have revenge. And how did he do it? In a manly way? Oh, no. He persuaded you to order me from the place, and when I refused to obey, he set men to waylay me at night along the road. He even gave the men liquor to induce them to carry out his evil designs, and then at the trial he blasphemously denied it all. And you," he added, turning to Squire Hawkins, "allowed British justice to be perverted."

"Are you not afraid to make such a charge as that, young man?" the Squire pompously asked. "Do you not already realise the danger you are in from last night's affair? How can you account for that?"

"Yes, that's what I want to know," Stubbles questioned. "Did you not stir up Jake Jukes and others to set upon my son and treat him in a most shameful manner?"

"I knew nothing at all about it," Douglas explained, "until my arrival from the city last night."

"You lie!" and Stubbles stamped furiously upon the floor. "Do you expect me or any one else to believe such a thing as that?"

"Ask Jake and the rest of the men. They know that I had nothing to do with the affair."

"I wouldn't believe what they said if they swore to it on all the Bibles in the world. They are nothing but a pack of curs, and I'll fix them, see if I don't."

"You will do nothing of the kind, Mr. Stubbles," the lawyer quietly remarked. "If you do, not a cent of money do you get from me."

"Keep your money, then," Stubbles retorted. "I'm not going to be brow-beaten by you or any one else, and especially by a farm-hand. I shall get along somehow, but I will have satisfaction for the injury that was committed last night. Ben is my son, and I am going to stand by him no matter what happens."

"Steady, Mr. Stubbles, steady," the lawyer advised. "You must not talk that way. You are not out of deep water yet."

"I will stay in, then, and you can all go to blazes. You want me to back down and say I have been in the fault. But you've got the wrong bull by the horns this time."

"Am I to understand, then, that you will not need the ten thousand dollars from me?" Garton asked.

"No, not under your conditions. You want me to apologise to him," and he nodded toward Douglas. "If I do, you'll let me have the money. Is that it?"

"Mr.—er—Handyman, can speak for himself," Garton replied.

"I am not thinking so much of myself, Mr. Stubbles," Douglas told him, "as of the parish in general. If you agree not to act like a tyrant in the future and not to meddle in Church matters, and stop persecuting every clergyman who comes here unless he bows to your slightest wish, then I am satisfied."

"Do you think I am a fool?" Stubbles flung back. "What impudence! Why, I never heard the like of it before! And I won't allow it! You can go, both of you. I'll attend to my own affairs, sink or swim."

Stubbles rose to his feet, signifying that the discussion was at an end.

"So you don't want the money, then?" Garton asked.

"No, and that's the end of it."

"Very well," and the lawyer rubbed his chin in a thoughtful manner, "that's settled. And you intend to prosecute the men who took part in last night's affair?"

"Yes, to the limit of the law, especially that man there," and Stubbles pointed his finger scornfully at Douglas. "He was at the bottom of the trouble, and he shall suffer for it."

"Well, look here, Mr. Stubbles," and Garton rose suddenly to his feet as he spoke, "I warn you that the moment you do that, I shall have your son arrested for attempted murder."

Had Simon Stubbles received a direct blow in the face, he would not have been more surprised than at these words. His eyes bulged in amazement, and he became as pale as death.

"What, what are you saying?" he gasped. "Surely you must be mistaken.
Ben, my son! attempted murder!"

"Yes, that was what he did. He pushed a woman over Long Wharf in the city, and left her to her fate. And she would have been drowned but for timely assistance."

"Oh, Lord!" and Stubbles buried his face in his hands. "I knew that
Ben was wild, but I had no idea he would do anything like that."

Presently he lifted his eyes to the lawyer's face.

"Are you sure it was Ben?" he asked. "There may have been a mistake.
Perhaps it was some one else."

"No, there has been no mistake. It was your son who did it; we have good proof of that."

"And who was the woman? Much depends upon who she is. It may be a case of black-mail."

"It was a girl from your own place, a neighbour of yours, Jean Benton."

With a gurgled groan of abandoned hope, Stubbles sank back and remained huddled in his chair, a pitiable object of misery. The man who had acted the tyrant for years, who hardly knew the meaning of mercy, and had crushed all who opposed him, was now being paid back tenfold. As he had sown, so was he reaping.

"We must go now," the lawyer reminded him, after a few seconds of silence. "But remember, Mr. Stubbles, the instant you lay a charge against Mr. Handyman here, or any of the men who took part in last night's affair, you will know what to expect. And as for you, Mr. Hawkins," and he turned to the Squire, "I shall deal with you later for wilfully perverting justice. You acted with cowardice and partiality at the trial, and you must put up with the consequences."

"Don't do anything, for God's sake!" Hawkins cried, now smitten with a terrible fear. "I will do what you say, but don't take action, I beseech you. It will ruin my business."

This was just what Garton wanted, and an amused twinkle danced in his eyes. He hesitated, however, for a few seconds as if lost in deep thought.

"Very well, then, Mr. Hawkins," he at length replied, "if you are willing to make a public acknowledgment of your wrong decision, I will take no notice this time. As you know from my record, I am not easily turned aside when I once make up my mind. However, I will make an exception this time, if you obey me at once."

"I will, sir, I certainly will. What shall I do?"

"Write out a plain confession of your wrong decision at the trial and post it on the door of your store, or in some other public place, where all can see it. That is what I demand."

"I shall do it at once, sir," came the low response. It was quite evident that the Squire was feeling keenly his humiliation, but there was nothing else for him to do, as he had a great fear and respect for the lawyer standing before him.

"I am glad you are acting like a sensible man," Garton told him. "It will save you a great deal of trouble. I must hurry away now, as it is getting late."

"Wait a minute, sir," Stubbles ordered, as he lifted his haggard face. "I have heard your instructions to the Squire, now what do you want me to do?"

"Why, I thought you didn't want anything more to do with me," the lawyer exclaimed in surprise.

"Oh, that was before I heard what Ben did at Long Wharf. I have changed my mind in the last few minutes, and see things in a different light. He can look out for himself and fight his own battles after this. It's no use for me to cut off my nose to spite my face. My wife and I will be worse than beggars, and my daughters will be thrown upon the world helpless, if I fail in business. Extravagance has brought me to this, and I have been taught a scorching lesson. I need that money, sir, so go ahead and tell me what I must do. It will mean humiliation in either case, so I might as well make the best of a nasty job."

Had Douglas been animated merely by the spirit of revenge, he would have been more than satisfied at the outcome of this interview. But it was only justice he wanted, and the assurance that Simon Stubbles and Squire Hawkins would behave themselves in the future. He felt sure that they would after this severe lesson.

"Suppose we let the matter end," he suggested to the lawyer, when Stubbles had acknowledged his defeat. "If these men are willing to conduct themselves properly in the future, why not give them another chance? I am satisfied if you are."

"Just as you say," the lawyer indifferently replied, as he glanced at his watch. "It's up to you."

"Well, let it rest at that, then. I don't wish to carry the matter any further. Give Mr. Stubbles the money, and save him from failure."

At these words Stubbles sprang to his feet, while a new light of hope gleamed in his eyes.

"And you won't humiliate me?" he asked. "You won't demand a public confession?"

"Not if you agree to our wishes, and I think you understand now what they are."

"I do, I surely do, and I shall see that they are fulfilled," he cried.

"Let us shake on it, then," and Douglas reached out his hand.

Stubbles seized it, and as he did so tears came into his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. It was the spirit of forgiveness that had moved him and caused his emotion.

"That is good," and Garton smiled approvingly. "I hope I shall never be called to this parish on such a business again."

"You never will," Stubbles emphatically replied. "But come and visit me again, sir, and bring Mr. Handyman with you. I don't think you will find anything amiss then, eh, Hawkins?"

"Sure, sure," the Squire fervently replied, as he held out his hand to bid Garton and Douglas good-bye. "I think that things will be different in Rixton after this."