When he came back he passed by his chair; he stood beside the table, resting his fingers lightly on the typewriter frame. “Life is dear to me,” he said, with a slight break in his voice. “I will make this one concession. More I will not do. Tillotson’s trial is half over; the verdict is certain; there are powerful influences at work to insure the denial of an appeal and to hasten his execution. If you can keep me here until after his execution I will then--to save my life, for my wife’s sake, for my children’s sake--keep silence. And may God forgive me for a compromiser and a coward!” he added with a groan. “But if, before that, I can make my escape; if, before that, I can in any way communicate with the outside world, I will denounce you, at any cost to myself.” The Judge would have spoken, but Jeff held up his hand. “Wait! I have listened to you--listen now to me. You have forgotten that there are two sides to every bargain. You sit directly between me and Mac, your hands are upon the table, your feet are beneath the table, the typewriter is at my hand. Do not move! If Mac stirs but an inch, if you dare raise a finger, until you have agreed to my proposition, by the God that made me, I will crush your skull like an egg!” “Had ye wrung his neck off-hand, as I urgit upon ye frae the first----” The words came bitterly from Mac, sitting rigid in his corner--“this wadna have chancit.” His tones conveyed a singular mixture of melancholy and triumph; the thickening of his Scotch burr betrayed his agitation. “Be guidit by me noo at the last, Judge, and tak the daft body’s terms. In my opeenion the project of smashin’ your head wi’ the machine is enteerly pract’ecable, and I think Mr. Bransford will e’en do it. Why should he no? A dead man has naught to fear. My gude word is, mak treaty wi’ him and save your----” “Neck. For this time,” hinted Jeff delicately. The Judge did not shrink, he did not pale; but neither did he move. “And your presentiment that you would see me hanged? You have abandoned that, it seems?” “Not at all, not at all,” said Jeff, cheerily. “You are going to do just what I propose. You’d rather take the chance of having your neck broken legally than the certainty that I’ll break it now.” “With that thing? Humph! You couldn’t hurt me much with that. I think I could get up and away before you could hit me with it. And Mac would certainly shoot you before you could hit me a second time.”