“Have the goodness, Timms, just to explain the meaning of your terms, which are quite new to me. I will not swear they are not in the Code of Practice, but they are in neither Blackstone nor Kent.” “Horse-shedding, ’Squire Dunscomb, explains itself. In the country, most of the jurors, witnesses, &c., have more or less to do with the horse-sheds, if it’s only to see that their beasts are fed. Well, we keep proper talkers there, and it must be a knotty case, indeed, into which an ingenious hand cannot thrust a doubt or an argument. To be frank with you, I’ve known three pretty difficult suits summed up under a horse-shed in one day; and twice as many opened.” “But how is this done?—do you present your arguments directly, as in court?” “Lord bless you, no. In court, unless the jury happen to be unusually excellent, counsel have to pay some little regard to the testimony and the law; but, in horse-shedding, one has no need of either. A skilful horse-shedder, for instance, will talk a party to pieces, and not say a word about the case. That’s the perfection of the business. It’s against the law, you know, Mr. Dunscomb, to talk of a case before a juror—an indictable offence—but one may make a case of a party’s general character, of his means, his miserly qualities, or his aristocracy; and it will be hard to get hold of the talker for any of them qualities. Aristocracy, of late years, is a capital argument, and will suit almost any state of facts, or any action you can bring. Only persuade the jury that the plaintiff or defendant fancies himself better than they are, and the verdict is certain. I got a thousand dollars in the Springer case, solely on that ground. Aristocracy did it! It is going to do us a great deal of harm in this murder and arson indictment.” “But Mary Monson is no aristocrat—she is a stranger, and unknown. What privileges does she enjoy, to render her obnoxious to the charge of aristocracy?” “More than will do her any good. Her aristocracy does her almost as much harm in old Duke’s as the piece of gold. I always consider a cause as half lost, when there is any aristocracy in it.” “Aristocracy means exclusive political privileges in the hands of a few; and it means nothing else. Now, what exclusive political privileges does this unfortunate young woman enjoy? She is accused of two of the highest crimes known to the laws; is indicted, imprisoned, and will be tried.” “Yes, and by her _peers_,” said Timms, taking out a very respectable-looking box, and helping himself liberally to a pinch of cut tobacco. “It’s wonderful, ’Squire Dunscomb, how much breadth the _peerage_ possesses in this country! I saw a trial, a year or two since, in which one of the highest intellects of the land was one of the parties, and in which a juror asked the judge to explain the meaning of the word ‘bereaved.’ _That_ citizen had his rights referred to his peers, with a vengeance!”