'An' you are the mother of a thief, I am a thief's brother; Frank is a
convict, an' we must grin an' gammon we like it.'

'We must be discreet, we must be cunning, if we wish to prove we are no
thieves and no kin to thieves.'

'Right you are, mother--always right.' The young man spread his rough,
brown hand caressingly upon the small hand upon his knee. 'My fist always
moves before my head, but I know your way is best, an' I don't mean to
forget it.'

'Ephraim Shine seemed to be tryin' to do his best for Frank at the
trial,' said Mrs. Haddon. 'I think he's a well-meanin' man, if he is a
bit near an' peculiar in his ways. He always says it was his duty he did,
an' that's true. We know Frank's not guilty, because--because we're fond
of him'--here the little widow wiped her eyes, and her voice trembled--'
an' know him better than others, but the case was black against him.
Frank came straight up from below and into the searcher's shed, an' Shine
found the gold in his crib bag, which was rolled up, an' forced under the
handle of his billy.'

'Where it'd been for half the shift, the billy hanging in a dark drive
where any man below might 'a 'got at it.'

'They found gold in a little box-place made in the heel of one of his
workin' boots.'

'A boot that was always left in the boiler-house when he was off work.

'He had sold coarse water-worn gold to a Jew at Yarraman.'