Squire Thorndyke passed from mouth to mouth.

"There is some talk of his being mixed up with it in some way or
other," one said. "I saw him myself ride in here, about half past
five, and I wondered he was about so early. Some do say as he caught
the two highwaymen single handed; but that don't stand to reason.
Besides, what could he have been doing out at such an hour as that?
He is a good landlord, and they say that Crowswood has been quite
a different place since he came to be master. He is a tight hand
as a magistrate, and cleared out half the village the first two
or three months he was there; but he spent a mint of money on the
place, and the people there say that they could not have a better
master. Ah, here is Squire Chetwynd. He was sure to be here. There
is Sir Charles' gig turning the corner. I expect most of them will
be on the bench; they don't get such a case as this every day."

"It may be there will be nothing for us to hear when the court
opens," another said. "I hear both the fellows have been shot or
knocked about so bad that they cannot be brought up. Of course the
court cannot sit if they aint before it."

"That is not so, Master Jones. I spoke to one of the constables
half an hour ago--he lives next door to me--and he said that
they would be well enough to appear. Neither of them have been
shot, though they have been hurt pretty bad."

All this added to the desire of those around to get into the court,
and there was quite a rush when the doors were opened two minutes
before twelve, and it was at once crammed, the constable having
some difficulty in getting the doors shut, and in persuading those