"No, sir; but from a babby, sir, his poor mother have brought that there boy up to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. And it's a curious thing, Mr. Hawkins--a very curious thing, sir--that arter all his poor mother's care and James's desire to speak the truth, they've gone and charged that there boy with perjury! 'At all times,' says his mother, 'James, speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth;' and this is what it's come to--would anybody believe it, sir? _Could_ anybody believe it? It's enough to make anybody disbelieve in Christianity. And what's more, sir, that there boy was so eager at all times to tell the whole truth that, to make quite sure he told it all, he'd go a little beyond on the other side, sir--he would, indeed." When he heard my fee was a hundred guineas to appear at the police court, I heard no more of truthful James. * * * * * In dealing with a case where there is really no substantial defence, it is sometimes necessary to throw a little ridicule over the proceedings, taking care, first, to see what is the humour of the jury. I remember trying this with great success, and reducing a verdict which might have been considerable to a comparatively trifling amount. [In illustration of this Mr. Cecil A. Coward has given an incident that occurred in an action for slander tried at the Guildhall many years ago, in which Mr. Hawkins, Q.C., was for the defendant, and Mr. Joseph Brown, Q.C., for the plaintiff. The slander consisted in the defendant pointing his thumb over his shoulder and asking another man, "Do you know him? That's Joe Smith." Mr. Joseph Brown, Q.C., had to rely upon his innuendo--"meaning thereby Joe Smith was a rogue"--and was very eloquent as to slander unspoken but expressed by signs and tone. After an exhausting speech he sat down and buried his head in his bandana, as his habit was. Hawkins got up, and turned Mr. Joseph Brown's speech to ridicule in two or three sentences. "Gentlemen," he almost whispered, after a very small whistle which nobody could hear but those close around, at the same time pointing his thumb over his shoulder at his opponent, "do you know him--do you know Joe Brown?" There was a roar of laughter. Joe looked up, saw nothing, and retired again into his bandana. Again the performance was gone through. "Do you know Joe Brown, the best fellow in the world?" Brown looked up again, and was just in time to hear the jury say they had heard quite enough of the case. No slander--verdict for the defendant. It was one of the best pieces of acting I ever saw him do.] CHAPTER XXXI. APPOINTED A JUDGE--MY FIRST TRIAL FOR MURDER, No sooner was the Tichborne case finished than I was once more in the full run of work.