"No need to deave me," said the alderman. "Here 'tis in black and white.
'Jean Hardy (that is one of the thieves), being questioned, confessed
that--humph? Ay, here 'tis. 'And that the girl Manon was the decoy,
and her sweetheart was Georges Vipont, one of the band; and hanged last
month: and that she had been deject ever since, and had openly blamed
the band for his death, saying if they had not been rank cowards, he had
never been taken, and it is his opinion she did but betray them out of
very spite, and--
"His opinion," cried Gerard indignantly; "what signifies the opinion
of a cut-throat, burning to be revenged on her who has delivered him to
justice? And an you go to that, what avails his testimony? Is a thief
never a liar? Is he not aye a liar? and here a motive to lie? Revenge,
why, 'tis the strongest of all the passions. And oh, sir, what madness
to question a detected felon and listen to him lying away an honest
life--as if he were a true man swearing in open day, with his true hand
on the Gospel laid!"
"Young man," said the alderman, "restrain thy heat in presence of
authority! I find by your tone you are a stranger. Know then that in
this land we question all the world. We are not so weak as to hope to
get at the truth by shutting either our left ear or our right."
"And so you would listen to Satan belying the saints!"
"Ta! ta! The law meddles but with men and women, and these cannot
utter a story all lies, let them try ever so.
Pages:
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357