“But canny old Pete is still balking.  He says you can’t have a trial except in the courthouse, which is upstairs, and they’re trying to cheat a poor old Injin.  He’s talking loud by this time, and Judge Ballard says, all right, they must humour the poor child of Nature.  So Myron takes Pete by the wrist in a firm manner—­though Pete’s insisting he ought to have the silver handcuffs on him—­and marches him out the jail door, round to the front marble steps of the new courthouse, up the steps, down the marble hall and into the courtroom, with the judge and Cale Jordan and me marching behind.

“We ain’t the whole procession, either.  Out in front of the jail was about fifteen of Pete’s friends and relatives, male and female, that had been hanging round for two days waiting to attend his coming-out party.  Mebbe that’s why Pete had been so strong for the real courthouse, wanting to give these friends something swell for their trouble.  Anyway, these Injins fall in behind us when we come out and march up into the courtroom, where they set down in great ecstasy.  Every last one of ’em has a sack of peppermint candy and a bag of popcorn or peanuts, and they all begin to eat busily.  The steam heat had been turned on and that hall of justice in three minutes smelt like a cheap orphan asylum on Christmas-morning.

“Then, before they can put up another bluff at giving Pete his trial, with Judge Ballard setting up in his chair with his specs on and looking fierce, who rushes in but this J. Waldo person that is Pete’s lawyer.  He’s seen the procession from across the street and fears some low-down trick is being played on his defenseless client.

“He comes storming down the aisle exclaiming; ’Your Honour, I protest against this grossly irregular proceeding!’ The judge pounds on his desk with his little croquet mallet and Myron Bughalter tells Snyder, out of the corner of his mouth, to shut up.  But he won’t shut up for some minutes.  This is the first case he’d had and he’s probably looked forward to a grand speech to the jury that would make ’em all blubber and acquit Pete without leaving the box, on the grounds of emotional or erratic insanity—­or whatever it is that murderers get let off on when their folks are well fixed.  He sputters quite a lot about this monstrous travesty on justice before they can drill the real facts into his head; and even then he keeps coming back to Pete’s being crazy.

“Then Pete, who hears this view of his case for the first time, begins to glare at his lawyer in a very nasty way and starts to interrupt; so the judge has to knock wood some more to get ’em all quiet.  When they do get still—­with Pete looking blacker than ever at his lawyer—­Cale Jordan says:  ‘Pete, did you do this killing?’ Pete started to say mebbe his brother-in-law did, but caught himself in time and said ‘No!’ at the same time starting for J. Waldo, that had called him crazy.  Myron Bughalter shoves him back in his chair, and Cale Jordan says:  ’Your Honour, you have heard the evidence, which is conclusive.  I now ask that the prisoner at the bar be released.’  Judge Ballard frowns at Pete very stern and says:  ’The motion is granted.  Turn him loose, quick, and get the rest of that smelly bunch out of here and give the place a good airing.  I have to hold court here at ten o’clock.’