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Chapter LXIII
The professional gentleman who had given Kit the consolatory piece of
information relative to the settlement of his trifle of business at the
Old Bailey, and the probability of its being very soon disposed of,
turned out to be quite correct in his prognostications. In eight days'
time, the sessions commenced. In one day afterwards, the Grand jury
found a True Bill against Christopher Nubbles for felony; and in two
days from that finding, the aforesaid Christopher Nubbles was called
upon to plead Guilty or Not Guilty to an Indictment for that he the
said Christopher did feloniously abstract and steal from the dwelling-
house and office of one Sampson Brass, gentleman, one Bank Note for
Five Pounds issued by the Governor and Company of the Bank of
England; in contravention of the Statutes in that case made and
provided, and against the peace of our Sovereign Lord the King, his
crown and dignity.
To this indictment, Christopher Nubbles, in a low and trembling voice,
pleaded Not Guilty; and here, let those who are in the habit of forming
hasty judgments from appearances, and who would have had
Christopher, if innocent, speak out very strong and loud, observe, that
confinement and anxiety will subdue the stoutest hearts; and that to
one who has been close shut up, though it be only for ten or eleven
days, seeing but stone walls and a very few stony faces, the sudden
entrance into a great hall filled with life, is a rather disconcerting and
startling circumstance. To this, it must be added, that life in a wig is
to a large class of people much more terrifying and impressive than
life with its own head of hair; and if, in addition to these
considerations, there be taken into account Kit's natural emotion on
seeing the two Mr Garlands and the little Notary looking on with pale
and anxious faces, it will perhaps seem matter of no very great wonder
that he should have been rather out of sorts, and unable to make
himself quite at home.
Although he had never seen either of the Mr Garlands, or Mr
Witherden, since the time of his arrest, he had been given to
understand that they had employed counsel for him. Therefore, when
one of the gentlemen in wigs got up and said 'I am for the prisoner, my
Lord,' Kit made him a bow; and when another gentleman in a wig got
up and said 'And I'm against him, my Lord,' Kit trembled very much,
and bowed to him too. And didn't he hope in his own heart that his
gentleman was a match for the other gentleman, and would make him
ashamed of himself in no time!
The gentleman who was against him had to speak first, and being in
dreadfully good spirits (for he had, in the last trial, very nearly
procured the acquittal of a young gentleman who had had the
misfortune to murder his father) he spoke up, you may be sure; telling
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