As the jury at this moment was struggling manfully to protect his hassock from the depredations of Cash, who was anxious to investigate its interior, it was not much use addressing him; so Fisher subsided, and wished the hole of Percy's wash-stand had been at least so much easier in diameter as to allow him room to sigh. "Fire away," said the judge, "we shall be all night at this." "Well, you see," continued Percy, "it's this way. I've got a brother, you know, called Wally, a seedy Classic chap, and up to no end of low tricks." "We know him," echoed the court generally. "Not got such a rummy-shaped waist as his brother, though," whispered Cottle. "All right, young Cottle, I'll take it out of you, you'll see." "What'll you take! I keep mine outside," replied Cottle. "Order in the court. Forge away, Wheatfield." "I should like to know how I'm to forge away, with these two asses fooling about down here? Why can't you raise them to the bench to keep them quiet? Oh yes--well, you see, this kid, being new, and green, and about as high old an idiot as they make them--did you fellows see him on first-night? I say! oh my--" "Look here, Wheatfield," said the judge, sternly, "if you aren't done in three minutes, I'll call the next witness." "_He_ wouldn't know anything about it, bless you," said Percy. "You see, it was like this--this kid thought I was Wally--what do you think of that?" "Cheek. Jolly rough on Wally," remarked Cash. The witness looked at the interrupter, and tried to make out whether his remark was a compliment or the reverse. He decided that, as he had only three minutes left, he had better defer thinking the question out till afterwards. "So, of course, he began to swagger about his big brother--" "No, you asked me--" began the prisoner. "Shut up," cried Percy, sternly, "how am I to get done in three minutes if--" "Only two left now," said Ramshaw. "Go on, Ram, I've not been a minute yet." "Yes, you have--sixty-five seconds," said Ramshaw, who held his watch in his hand. "I never did believe in those Waterbury turnips, they always stop when you--oh yes!--swaggered about his big brother and all those fellows over there, and blabbed out there'd been a regular plant among 'em to rig the Elections, and he and a lot of 'em had been out canvassing and bagged a lot of our kids and locked them out, and if it hadn't been for that, Brinkman would have pulled off the treasurership, and if it hadn't been for me getting wind of it, and going and fetching them out and bringing them into Hall in the nick of time, Ranger would have got the secretaryship, and our side would have been jolly well out of it, and I mean to say it's a howling swindle--and--hope--there'll--be--a--jolly-- good--row kicked--up--and--you--needn't--say--I--let--out--about it-- because--Wally--asked--me--to--keep--it--mum--and I--said--" "Time's up," said Ramshaw. "No side?"