The justice and the truth o' the question carries
The due o' the verdict with it.
—Henry VIII. V. 1.
At Michael's call, at his sudden rush for the protection of his beloved, general confusion prevailed such as had never before been witnessed in the sober halls of Westminster.
Gorgeously-clad gentlemen of high degree, ladies in silks and brocades, elbowed and pushed one another, climbing on their chairs, in order to have a clear view of the small group on the floor of the hall at the foot of the judge's bench—Michael kneeling on one knee, Rose Marie half prostrate1 on the ground, Papa Legros with large coloured handkerchief mopping his streaming forehead.
These were times when men gave freer rein2 to their emotions than they do now; they were not ashamed of them, and modern civilisation3 had not yet begun to propagate its false doctrine4 that only what is ugly and sordid5 is real, and what is fine and noble—and therefore mayhap a trifle unbridled and primitive—is false and must be suppressed.
That public feeling had—with characteristic irresponsibility—veered round to the accused and to these two witnesses was undoubted. The poignancy6 of the situation had told on every one's nerves. It had been a moving and[434] palpitating drama, vivid, real and pulsating7 with love, the noble passion that makes the whole world kin8.
The same men and women who awhile ago had clamoured for the traitor9's head, who had heaped opprobrium10, invectives and curses upon him, were now quite prepared to demand his acquittal, with as little logic11 in their sympathy as they had shown in their unreasoning vituperations. The same primeval vices12 of bigotry13 and intolerance that had presided at the trials of Stailey and Coleman and sent them to the gallows14, sat here in judgment15, too, equally intolerant of contradiction, equally bigoted16 and peremptory17.
In the midst of this unprecedented18 turmoil19 which had turned stately Westminster Hall into an arena20 filled with wildly-excited spectators, the ushers21' loud calls for silence were absolutely drowned. Nor could the Attorney-General and the Lord Chief Justice make themselves heard by the jury, even though his lordship did his best to admonish22 these twelve honourable23 gentlemen not to allow their sentiment to run away with their conscience.
"Justice, good Masters, justice above all! Remember these people are all Papists. They will help one another through thick and thin. What is a papal dispensation, good Masters? It can be bought and bartered24. 'Tis a true witness we want, an honourable witness to prove the truth of what may be but a fabulous25 concoction26, devised to cheat the gallows of a traitor."
"Nay27, then odd's fish!" here interposed a loud voice from out the crowd; "since it must be, it shall be, and here, my Lord Justice, is a witness to your hand whose honourability I'll challenge you to doubt."
The tones rang clear and loud; they were those of a man accustomed to be heard in large or small assemblies,[435] of a man who knew how to make his presence felt and his word obeyed.
Instantly the waves of murmurs28, of cries, of excited whispers were stilled. Eyes so long fixed29 on the moving spectacle at the foot of the bench were turned in the direction of the speaker.
It was my Lord of Rochester, standing30 beside the king. He waited a moment, then taking the judge's silence for assent31, and obviously encouraged by a nod from His Majesty32 himself, he made his way to the witness bar.
"My Lord of Rochester," protested the Attorney-General sternly, "by what right do you come forward at this hour?"
"By the right that every man hath in England, to bear testimony33 for or against a man or woman accused of crime," replied my Lord of Rochester. "I stand here as a witness on behalf of the prisoner, and called by the other witness—Rose Marie Legros—to corroborate34 what she already hath said."
"Do you swear?"
"I'll swear to tell all the truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God."
"Every word which I must utter will be in his favour, sir, seeing that on the nineteenth day of April, I too, in company with Mister Rupert Kestyon, then styled my Lord of Stowmaries and Rivaulx, and with Sir John Ayloffe, were present at the Church of St. Gervais where Mistress Rose Marie Legros did plight36 her troth to the accused. We witnessed their departure from the church to the house of Master Legros, tailor-in-chief to His Majesty the King of France, where great festivities were then the order of the[436] day. The accused and Mistress Rose Marie Legros did start for St. Denis on that selfsame afternoon in the presence of a vast number of spectators, from whom I had detailed37 account of the event. We—that is Mister Rupert Kestyon, Sir John Ayloffe and myself—did make for St. Denis less than an hour after the accused and the lady had left the tailor's house. We arrived at the inn of the 'Three Archangels' at ten of the clock and there found the accused all alone, and we did stay with him, and supped with him until far into the night. This do I swear on my most solemn oath, and, therefore, any one who says that the accused was in Paris on the evening of that nineteenth day of April is a liar38 and a perjurer—so help me God!"
My Lord of Rochester's lengthy39 speech was listened to in silent attention. Michael, kneeling beside Rose Marie, scarcely heeded40 it. What happened to him now or hereafter mattered so little, now that he knew that she loved him with that strength which moveth mountains.
But to the vast company assembled here, all that my Lord of Rochester said mattered a great deal, for it was a confirmation41 of inward convictions. It gave sympathy free rein, having crowned it with justification42.
Even Sir William Jones felt that the prosecution43 had completely broken down beneath the weight of my Lord of Rochester's evidence. He meant to demand further corroboration45, seeing that Sir John Ayloffe was in court; but it would be an uphill fight now, against what was too obvious justice to be wilfully46 set aside.
But he did ask my Lord of Rochester why he had delayed in coming forward until well-nigh it had been too late.
"I was ready to come forward at any time," was Rochester's simple reply; "had the prisoner called me, I[437] would have told the truth at once. But among gentlemen, sir, there is an unspoken compact, guessed at by those who understand one another as gentlemen should. That the accused did not desire mine evidence I readily saw. Only when a noble lady came forward in sublime47 sacrifice and I feared that this—great as it was—might prove purposeless, then did I feel in honour bound to corroborate her testimony and to prove her true, whilst placing at her feet the expression of my most humble48 respect."
To have doubted my Lord of Rochester's testimony had been madness in the face of public feeling as well as of justice. No one would ever attempt to suggest that his lordship was either a Papist or biassed49 in favour of Roman Catholicism. Moreover, Sir John Ayloffe, also an unimpeachably50 honourable gentleman, was there to add his word to that of his friend. Sir William Jones having called him, asked him but a few questions.
What could Cousin John do, but swear to the truth? Believe me that had he found the slightest loophole whereby he could even now arrange a happy marriage between his fair cousin and any earl of Stowmaries who happened to be bearing the title at the time, he would have done it, and earned that ￡12,000 which now certainly seemed hopelessly beyond his grasp.
But he could find no loophole, nor could he attempt to deny the truth of what Lord Rochester had said.
By the time Sir John Ayloffe had given what evidence was asked of him, the spectators were loudly clamouring for the verdict.
"Not guilty! Not guilty!" came in excited shouts from the furthermost corners of the great hall.
Of a truth had the informers been recalled they could not have escaped with their lives, and as a measure of pre[438]caution the Lord Chief Justice, before he began his summing up, did, we know, order the removal of Pye and Oates through a back door and unbeknown to the crowd. Oates' villainies did, unfortunately, rise triumphant51 from out the ashes of this his first signal defeat in his campaign of perjuries52. As for Pye, he passed through that back door out of ken44. I believe that his name doth occur on several of the lists of witnesses brought up against the unfortunate Papists during the whole feverish53 period of the Popish plots, so we may assume that he continued his career of informer with some benefit to himself.
But in Westminster Hall to-day the verdict was a foregone conclusion. Even whilst the Lord Chief Justice summed up—as he did, we are told, most eloquently54 and entirely55 in favour of the accused—he was frequently interrupted by cries of: "Not guilty! Not guilty! The verdict!"
When the verdict was pronounced, with absolute unanimity56 by the jury in whose hands lay the life that had been so nobly fought for, it was received with acclamation.
Men and women cheered to the echoes, whilst many voices shouted: "God save Your Majesty!" There was a general rush for the centre of the Hall, there where that small group of three still stood isolated57. The musketeers had grave difficulty in keeping any order.
In the midst of all this turmoil no one noticed that from the dark corner beneath the mullioned window there rose the figure of a young man dressed in rough clothes of sad-coloured cloth, whose pale face was almost distorted by lines of passionate58 anger.
He drew a mask over his face and made his way through the excited crowd. Under cover of the confusion, the rushing to and fro, the cheering for the acquitted59 and the king, he quietly passed out of sight.
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1
prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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rein
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| n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治 | |
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3
civilisation
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| n.文明，文化，开化，教化 | |
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doctrine
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| n.教义；主义；学说 | |
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5
sordid
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| adj.肮脏的，不干净的，卑鄙的，暗淡的 | |
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6
poignancy
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| n.辛酸事，尖锐 | |
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7
pulsating
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| adj.搏动的，脉冲的v.有节奏地舒张及收缩( pulsate的现在分词 )；跳动；脉动；受（激情）震动 | |
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8
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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9
traitor
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| n.叛徒，卖国贼 | |
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10
opprobrium
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| n.耻辱，责难 | |
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11
logic
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| n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性 | |
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12
vices
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| 缺陷( vice的名词复数 )； 恶习； 不道德行为； 台钳 | |
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13
bigotry
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| n.偏见，偏执，持偏见的行为[态度]等 | |
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14
gallows
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| n.绞刑架，绞台 | |
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15
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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16
bigoted
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| adj.固执己见的，心胸狭窄的 | |
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17
peremptory
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| adj.紧急的，专横的，断然的 | |
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18
unprecedented
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| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
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19
turmoil
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| n.骚乱，混乱，动乱 | |
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20
arena
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| n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台 | |
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21
ushers
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| n.引座员( usher的名词复数 )；招待员；门房；助理教员v.引，领，陪同( usher的第三人称单数 ) | |
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22
admonish
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| v.训戒；警告；劝告 | |
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23
honourable
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| adj.可敬的；荣誉的，光荣的 | |
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24
bartered
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| v.作物物交换，以货换货( barter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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25
fabulous
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| adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的 | |
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26
concoction
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| n.调配(物)；谎言 | |
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27
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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28
murmurs
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| n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕 | |
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29
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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30
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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31
assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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32
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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33
testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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34
corroborate
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| v.支持，证实，确定 | |
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35
sneered
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| 讥笑，冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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36
plight
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| n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定 | |
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37
detailed
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| adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的 | |
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38
liar
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| n.说谎的人 | |
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39
lengthy
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| adj.漫长的，冗长的 | |
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40
heeded
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| v.听某人的劝告，听从( heed的过去式和过去分词 )；变平，使（某物）变平( flatten的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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41
confirmation
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| n.证实，确认，批准 | |
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42
justification
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| n.正当的理由；辩解的理由 | |
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43
prosecution
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| n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营 | |
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44
ken
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| n.视野，知识领域 | |
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45
corroboration
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| n.进一步的证实，进一步的证据 | |
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46
wilfully
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| adv.任性固执地；蓄意地 | |
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47
sublime
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| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
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48
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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49
biassed
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| （统计试验中）结果偏倚的，有偏的 | |
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50
unimpeachably
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| adv.无可怀疑地，可靠地；无可指责地 | |
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51
triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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52
perjuries
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| n.假誓，伪证，伪证罪( perjury的名词复数 ) | |
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53
feverish
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| adj.发烧的，狂热的，兴奋的 | |
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54
eloquently
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| adv. 雄辩地(有口才地, 富于表情地) | |
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55
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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56
unanimity
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| n.全体一致，一致同意 | |
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57
isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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58
passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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59
acquitted
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| 宣判…无罪( acquit的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（自己）作出某种表现 | |
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