The counselor's eye-glass glistened and glittered, but his speech was
plain and quiet. He seemed studiously to avoid any approach to
vehemence. He began with a strong statement of the unruliness and
presumption which characterized the servants of the present day; and of
their frequent dishonesty in the present instance. The jury nodded
assent. He was sorry to say that the guilt of the accused was very
plain. The pretext of self-defense he materially weakened, by showing
carefully and clearly that the defendant had only hit upon the
subterfuge as a last resort, when he could find no other. It was more
than strange that the stone thrown by Landolin, which was bloody and
easy distinguishable from others, had so soon been made away with;
while the one said to have been thrown by Vetturi had been found, where
no doubt it had been placed for that very purpose.
At these words Landolin shook his head violently. The counselor paused
for a moment, then continued composedly, that, as only justice should
be done, he would recommend a verdict of guilty of manslaughter, with
mitigating circumstances.
When he had finished, Landolin leaned forward to speak to his lawyer,
who rose and proceeded with persuasive eloquence to set forth the
perfect innocence of the accused. When he depicted Landolin's
uprightness and influence, Landolin cast down his eyes. It made a
strong impression when the lawyer raising his voice cried: "Gentlemen
of jury! The accused was chosen as a juryman for this session of the
court. He should be sitting among you, and not here; and I expect from
your straightforward honesty he will soon be with you, shoulder to
shoulder; for he belongs with you. The one of you that feels himself
exempt from outbursts of anger which, against his will, might result in
an unhappy accident; the one that feels himself free from all natural
faults, let him throw the stone; the stony word, guilty. By the
authority of the accused, I refuse 'mitigating circumstances.' That is
merely disguising the deadly missile. I call for the verdict 'Not
guilty.'"
A murmur ran through the mass of spectators, so that the presiding
judge threatened to clear the court-room if such disturbance were heard
again. In the profound silence that followed he gathered up the pros
and cons, and laid them in the scales before the jury. When he had
finished he asked Landolin if he had anything to say.
Landolin arose and bowed. He moistened his dry lips, and began:
"Your honors! Gentlemen of the jury! I--I am guilty!" Again a murmur
ran through the room; but the judge did not repeat his warning. He was
himself too much astonished at the words; and even Landolin's lawyer
involuntarily threw up his arms in despair. The counselor's eye-glass
sparkled more brightly than before, and his face had a triumphant
expression. When silence was restored, Landolin continued:
"Yes, I am guilty. I deserve punishment, just punishment; but not for
that of which I stand here accused. I deserve punishment because I was
so soft-hearted and compassionate that I did not prosecute the
miserable fellow for his theft.
"Gentlemen of the jury! You twelve men! It is terribly hard that such
men as you should be taken from the harvest-field to sit here through a
long, hot day! And why? Because of a miserable servant-man, whose life
is not worth twelve hours' time, of twelve honorable men like you. I
will not speak of myself, of my having to stand here. I only say I
should not have been so tender-hearted. Through that I have become
guilty of making servants ungovernable. For that, I deserve punishment,
for nothing else. Should I have quietly allowed him to kill me? And is
it likely that I, who forebore so long with him, sought to kill him?
Was I likely to place my wife, and my children, my honor, my house, and
my lands in peril for such a one as he? I will not abuse him; he is
dead." Landolin's voice trembled. He seemed unable to continue. His
counsel whispered to him: "Don't stop there. Say again that you are
guilty." And Landolin cried again: "I am guilty in not having
prosecuted the thief. Of that I am guilty, of nothing more."
Landolin sat down, and covered his face with both hands. He seemed to
be weeping.
The judge handed the foreman of the jury the list of points for their
consideration. They all arose, and Landolin was led to the room set
apart for the accused. On the way out his son pressed his hand; they
could neither speak a word.
"Keeper," asked Peter, "can I go with my father?"
"Certainly."
"But I want to be alone," interrupted Landolin sharply, and the door
closed behind him.
"He would have let Thoma in, but he does not want me," said Peter to
himself; and as other evil thoughts linked themselves to this one, he
grated his teeth.