Dinner at the Bronckhorsts’ was an infliction few men cared to undergo.  Bronckhorst took a pleasure in saying things that made his wife wince.  When their little boy came in at dessert Bronckhorst used to give him half a glass of wine, and, naturally enough, the poor little mite got first riotous, next miserable, and was removed screaming.  Bronckhorst asked if that was the way Teddy usually behaved, and whether Mrs. Bronckhorst could not spare some of her time ’to teach the little beggar decency’.  Mrs. Bronckhorst, who loved the boy more than her own life, tried not to cry—­her spirit seemed to have been broken by her marriage.  Lastly, Bronckhorst used to say, ’There!  That’ll do, that’ll do.  For God’s sake try to behave like a rational woman.  Go into the drawing-room.’  Mrs. Bronckhorst would go, trying to carry it all off with a smile; and the guest of the evening would feel angry and uncomfortable.

After three years of this cheerful life—­for Mrs. Bronckhorst had no women-friends to talk to—­the station was startled by the news that Bronckhorst had instituted proceedings on the criminal count, against a man called Biel, who certainly had been rather attentive to Mrs. Bronckhorst whenever she had appeared in public.  The utter want of reserve with which Bronckhorst treated his own dishonour helped us to know that the evidence against Biel would be entirely circumstantial and native.  There were no letters; but Bronckhorst said openly that he would rack Heaven and Earth until he saw Biel superintending the manufacture of carpets in the Central Jail.  Mrs. Bronckhorst kept entirely to her house, and let charitable folks say what they pleased.  Opinions were divided.  Some two-thirds of the station jumped at once to the conclusion that Biel was guilty; but a dozen men who knew and liked him held by him.  Biel was furious and surprised.  He denied the whole thing, and vowed that he would thrash Bronckhorst within an inch of his life.  No jury, we knew, would convict a man on the criminal count on native evidence in a land where you can buy a murder-charge, including the corpse, all complete for fifty-four rupees; but Biel did not care to scrape through by the benefit of a doubt.  He wanted the whole thing cleared; but, as he said one night, ’He can prove anything with servants’ evidence, and I’ve only my bare word.’  This was almost a month before the case came on; and beyond agreeing with Biel, we could do little.  All that we could be sure of was that the native evidence would be bad enough to blast Biel’s character for the rest of his service; for when a native begins perjury he perjures himself thoroughly.  He does not boggle over details.

Some genius at the end of the table whereat the affair was being talked over, said, ’Look here!  I don’t believe lawyers are any good.  Get a man to wire to Strickland, and beg him to come down and pull us through.’