“It depends on how he behaves himself. If you knock her about, you can’t expect her to stay with you.” “I never done no more to her than what she deserved. I never gave her the ’alf o’ what she ought to ’ave.” “I’ve seen her several times with your marks on her face.” “Yes, an’ I’ll mark ’er again, I will.” “So you have just said.” “Because a man ’its ’is wife when he’s got a drop o’ liquor in ’im, that don’t give ’er the right to go off like this and take a man’s children from ’im, do it?” “I think it does.” “When I find her----” “I hope you will not find her.” He thrust his head forward, and the yellow in the whites of his eyes deepened and spread till his whole face seemed suffused with it. “Look ’ere, man an’ wife is man an’ wife, and don’t you or any one come between ’em, or it’ll be the worse for you.” “I have told you my opinion.” “You think I don’t know the law; the law says his children belongs to a man, not to a woman.” “We needn’t go into that.” “Needn’t we? You think, becos I’m not a torf, I got no rights. I know what the law says. A man owns ’is wife, an’ ’e owns ’is children.” “Do you deny that you drink?” “You’d drink if you ’ad my life; d’you think I like this goin’ about all day with a barrer?” “Do you deny that you’ve often struck your wife?” “What’s it to you or any one else, what I do to ’er in private? Why don’t you come down to my place an’ order me about?” “But I suppose you know your wife can get a separation order if she goes down to the Court?” On his face a grin stole up. “Separation order! Do ’er a lot o’ good, that would! D’you think that’d keep my ’ands off ’er afterwards? She knows what I’d do to ’er if she went against me.” “What _would_ you do?” “She wouldn’t want to arsk for any more separation orders.” “You would be locked up if you molested her afterwards.” “Should I? _She_ wouldn’t be there to speak against me.” “I understand.” “She knows what I’d do to ’er.” “You’ve scared her so that she daren’t go to the Court--she daren’t stay with you; what can she do but leave you?” “I don’t want _’er_, let ’er go; I want the children.” “Do you really mean that you don’t want her?” “I never ’ad a woman keep _me_.” “You know that her earnings have kept you all.” “I tell you I never ’ad a woman keep me.” “Can you support the children?” “If I could get a proper job----” “But can you get a proper job?” “Well, ’oo’s fault is that; it’s not my fault, is it?” “You’ve had plenty of chances.” “‘Oo cares if I ’ave! I’ve always been a good father to my children. I’ve worked for ’em, an’ begged for ’em, an’ stole for ’em; I’m well known to be a good father all about where I live.” “But that won’t keep them off the parish, will it?” “You let the parish alone! If I ’aven’t got money, I’ve got honour; that’s better than all the money. I don’t want no money to tell me what’s right and what isn’t.” “Come, come!”