Why do Heck Tate, Link Deas, and others come to the Finches’ house? What do they discuss with Atticus? What do they hope to avoid?

At the beginning of chapter 15, Heck Tate and a few of Atticus's friends stop over to his house to discuss a possible of change of venue for the Tom Robinson trial and to warn him about troublemakers, who may attempt to harm Tom Robinson. Sheriff Tate goes on to express his concerns regarding the Old Sarum bunch, a group of rowdy farmers known to cause trouble. Tate and the other men are aware that there are citizens who vehemently disagree with Atticus defending Tom Robinson and might try to cause trouble the night before the trial. Despite their anxiety about the Old Sarum bunch or any other disgruntled citizen, Atticus dismisses their concerns and says that he doubts anyone will get drunk on a Sunday night and cause trouble. Link Deas then asks Atticus why he even touched the case in the first place. Overall, Atticus's friends visit his home in order to express their concerns about the possibility that someone might cause trouble and harm Tom Robinson. That night, Atticus travels to the Maycomb jailhouse as a precaution and ends up preventing the Old Sarum bunch from lynching Tom before the trial.


In advance of his trial, Tom Robinson is going to be transferred to Maycomb County Jail. This could mean trouble, and lots of it. As Tom will soon be on his way, that gives only a brief window of opportunity for a lynch mob to form and dispense the timeworn Southern brand of summary justice. This is why Sheriff Heck Tate and some other men have come over to the Finch residence. They're warning Atticus of the possible danger of a lynching and that there are already rumors that the Cunninghams are involved. The situation could get ugly pretty quickly, so it's important to be prepared for what's likely to happen.
Watching from the window of the house, Scout and Jem instantly sense that something's not right. Although at first, they think—wrongly—that the men talking to Atticus are ganging up on him. But Atticus and the other men start to laugh and the little meeting breaks up, then they both realize that Atticus was in no real danger. That will come later outside the jailhouse.

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