On the first warm day of spring, Martha Ballard goes to Pollard’s Tavern for the Court of General Sessions expecting Judge Obadiah Wood to preside, because Joseph North has supposedly been bedridden for ten days. Instead, Martha finds North back on the bench, pale, sweating, and sitting on a cushion. The town has spent those ten days inventing rumors about his illness, never guessing the true source of his suffering. The day is already crowded and unruly because Joshua Burgess has finally been buried that morning in the woods after the thaw made digging possible.

When North calls Martha forward, she performs her usual legal duty as a midwife: reporting that an unmarried woman has named the father of her child. Martha announces that Sally Pierce gave birth to a son on April eighteenth. The room, and North, react with surprise because Sally’s pregnancy had not been publicly known.

As North asks Martha to name the father, Jonathan steps forward before Martha can answer. Jonathan admits that he is the father, pays Sally’s court fee with twenty shillings, and states that he has already posted their intention to marry outside the tavern. His decision prevents North from using the moment to embarrass Martha and turns a scandal into a public assumption of responsibility for Sally and the baby.

After the clerk records the confession and fee, North asks whether Martha has any other business. Martha says no, but she deliberately asks after North’s health and pointedly credits his recovery to treatment from a trained medical professional. North bristles at the insult, but Martha leaves without fear, showing that his power over her has weakened.

As the court breaks up and the crowd gossips, Jonathan catches up with Martha and asks whether she thinks badly of him now that Sam has told her about Jonathan’s role in Burgess’s death. Martha tells Jonathan that she never thought him a bad man and says he should ask Ephraim about Billy Crane, signaling that she understands the history behind such violence and does not condemn him. Later, Martha returns home, where Jonathan brings Sally and their new son, reinforcing the public commitment he has just made.