"It's as well," said the old man; "it's a question whether I
shall live to the Assizes, so it matters little to me, but I should
wish to spare Alice the shock. And now I will make the thing clear
to you; it has been a long time in the acting, but will not take me
long to tell.
"You didn't know this dead man, McCarthy. He was a devil
incarnate. I tell you that. God keep you out of the clutches of
such a man as he. His grip has been upon me these twenty years, and
he has blasted my life. I'll tell you first how I came to be in his
power.
"It was in the early '60's at the diggings. I was a young chap
then, hot-blooded and reckless, ready to turn my hand at anything;
I got among bad companions, took to drink, had no luck with my
claim, took to the bush, and in a word became what y
