‘No, and better not. Speak up and tell these yurr gents. Swear if you hope you won’t get half-skinned for a liar as you never chucked no rocks at nobody.’

‘I never chucked no rocks only stones,’ Wally said, trembling. ‘Like you said to.’

‘That’ll do!’ his father said ferociously. ‘Get in.’ Wally bolted.

Alleyn said: ‘You’d better watch your step with that boy. Do you thrash him?’

‘Never raise a hand to him, mister. Just a manner of speaking. He don’t understand nothing different. Never had no mother-love, poor kid: I have to pour out sufficient for both and a heavy job it is.’

‘You may find yourself describing it to the welfare officer, one of these days.’

‘Them bastards!’

‘Now, look here, Trehern, you heard what the boy said. “No rocks only stones, like you said to.” Hadn’t you better make the best of that statement and admit he threw stones at Miss Pride and you knew it. Think it out.’

Trehern made a half-turn, knocked his boot against an old tin and kicked it savagely to the far end of the yard. This, apparently, made up his mind for him.

‘If I say he done it in one of his foolish turns meaning no harm and acting the goat – all right – I don’t deny it and I don’t axcuse it. But I do deny and will, and you won’t shift me an inch, he never heaved no rock at Elspeth Cost. I’ll take my Bible oath on it and may I be struck dead if I lie.’

‘How can you be so sure? Miss Pride saw the boy in the lane at about twenty to eight. So did Dr Maine. You weren’t there. Or were you?’

‘I was not. By God I was not, and I’ll lay anyone cold that says different. And how can I be so sure?’ He advanced upon Alleyn and thrust his face towards him. His unshaven jowls glittered with raindrops. ‘I’ll tell you flat how I can be so sure. That boy never told a lie in his life, mister. He’m too simple. Ax anybody. Ax his teacher. Ax parson. Ax his mates. He’m a truth-speaking lad, por little sod, and for better or worse, the truth’s all you’ll ever get out of our Wal.’

Alleyn heard Jenny Williams’s voice: ‘He’s an extraordinarily truthful little boy. He never tells lies – never.’ He looked at Trehern and said: ‘All right. We’ll let it go at that, for the moment. Good evening to you.’

As they walked round the side of the house Trehern shouted after them: ‘What about the female of the speeches? Pride? Pride has to take a fall, don’t she?’

There was a wild scream of laughter from Mrs Trehern and a door banged.