"Yes, he used to come on Saturdays, till he was made a Forester. The Foresters meet every Saturday evening." "Mondays then, or Tuesdays? We haven't exhausted the week yet, Miss Cox." "No, sir. Mondays he was a Rechabite and went to tent. Tuesdays he would be an Ancient Druid--" "Gently! On Mondays, you say, he was a Rechabite and went to tent. What is a Rechabite? And what does he do in a tent?" _Plaintiff_ (dissolving in tears): "Ah, sir, if I only knew!" Here the Judge interposed. A Rechabite, he believed, went to a tent, or habitation, for the purpose (among others) of abstaining from alcoholic drinks. _Plaintiff_ (briskly): "But, my lord, you wouldn't call that proper courting!" Defendant's counsel had taken this opportunity to resume his seat. But counsel for the plaintiff now arose, with a smile, to re-examine. "Did Mr. Pretyman walk out with you on Thursday evenings?" "Oh no, sir. On Thursday evenings Mr. Pretyman was an Oddfellow." "I think we have only to account for Fridays," said his lordship, after consulting his notes. "On Fridays, my lord, Mr. Pretyman was an Ancient Buffalo." "An Ancient Buffalo?" "Yes, my lord (sobbing). I don't know what it means, but that was the last straw." "The first question for the jury to determine," said his lordship, a little later, "is whether an affianced young woman, as such, has a right to expect from her betrothed such attentions as may reasonably be taken as earnest of his desire to fulfil his contract within a reasonable time. In the present instance, the fact that the contract was made does not stand in doubt; it is not disputed. Now arises a second question. Can a man who is on weekdays a Freemason, a Rechabite, an Oddfellow, a Forester, an Ancient Druid, and an Ancient Buffalo, and on Sundays (as I gather) a Yarmouth Bloater--" "Plymouth Brother, my lord," plaintiff's counsel corrected. "I beg your pardon--a Plymouth Brother. I say, can a man who after his betrothal voluntarily preoccupies himself with these multifarious functions be held--I will not say to have disqualified himself for that willing exchange of confidence which is the surest guarantee of lasting happiness between man and wife--but to have raised such obstacles to the fulfilment of the original contract as reasonably warrant the accusation of _mala fides?_" Well, the jury held that he could; for without troubling to leave the box they gave their verdict for the plaintiff, and assessed the damages at one hundred pounds. Towards the close of the case we all felt ashamed of Pretyman. His defence had been weak; it struck us as almost derisory; and Mr. Hansombody agreed with me in a whisper that under similar circumstances he or I could have made a better fight for it. The fellow had shown no sport. We blushed for our town.