point was the hurried and suspicious burial, without any notification of the death to either priest or Lensmand.  Here, the man was the person chiefly responsible, and it was of the utmost importance that the court should come to the right conclusion in that respect.  For it was obvious that if the man were an accomplice, and had therefore undertaken the burial himself, then his servant-girl must have committed a crime before he could be an accomplice in it.

“H’m,” from some one in court.

Axel Stroem felt himself again in danger.  He looked up without meeting a single glance; all eyes were fixed on the advocate speaking.  But far down in the court sat Geissler again, looking highly supercilious, as if bursting with his own superiority, his under-lip thrust forward, his face turned towards the ceiling.  This enormous indifference to the solemnity of the court, and that “H’m,” uttered loudly and without concealment, cheered Axel mightily; he felt himself no longer alone against the world.

And now things took a turn again for the better.  This advocate for the Crown seemed at last to think he had done enough, had achieved all that was possible in the way of directing suspicion and ill-feeling towards the man; and now he stopped.  He did more; he almost, as it were, faced round, and made no demand for a conviction.  He ended by saying, in so many words, that after the testimony of the witnesses in the case, he on his part did not call upon the court to convict the accused.

This was well enough, thought Axel—­the business was practically over.

Then came the turn of the advocate for the defence, a young man who had studied the law, and had now been entrusted with this most satisfactory case.  His tone itself showed the view he took of it; never had a man been more certain of defending an innocent person than he.  Truth to tell, this Fru Heyerdahl had taken the wind out of his sails beforehand, and used several of his own intended arguments that morning; he was annoyed at her having already exploited the “society” theme—­oh, but he could have said some first-rate things about society himself.  He was incensed at the mistaken leniency of the presiding justice in not stopping her speech; it was a defence in itself, a brief prepared beforehand—­and what was there left for him?

He began at the beginning of the life-story of the girl Barbro.  Her people were not well off, albeit industrious and respectable; she had gone out to service at an early age, first of all to the Lensmand’s.  The court had heard that morning what her mistress, Fru Heyerdahl, thought of her—­no one could wish for a finer recommendation.  Barbro had then gone to Bergen.  Here the advocate laid great stress on a most feelingly written testimonial from two young business men in whose employ Barbro had been while at Bergen—­evidently in a position of trust.  Barbro had come back to act as housekeeper for this unmarried man in an outlying district.  And here her trouble began.