The effect of this was immediate.

A wave of suppressed excitement passed over the crowd; absolute silence followed; and then from beyond the door, and distinctly audible in the stillness, came the sound of a quick step on the uncarpeted floor.

The clock ticked twice, then a hand dealt the door a measured blow.
The moment of silence that followed this ominous signal was only broken when a deputy who had been nodding half asleep in his chair, sprang erect and hurried from the room.

As the swinging baize doors banged at his heels, the crowd seemed to breathe again.
Moxlow was the first to arrive.

The deputy had found him munching a sandwich on the court-house steps.