The population of mining districts in Australia is peculiarly a shifting population, so that the most of those who had known Caldigate and his mode of life there were gone.

The old woman who kept Henniker's Hotel at Nobble had certainly heard that they were married; but then she had added that many people there called themselves man and wife from convenience.

A woman would often like a respectable name where there was no parson near at hand to entitle her to it.

Then the parsons would be dilatory and troublesome and expensive, and a good many people were apt to think that they could do very well without ceremonies.

She evidently would have done no good to either side as a witness.