And decidedly, the result was all that he expected, and more.
For Clyde, who up to this time and particularly since the thunderbolt of the letter, had been seeking to face it all with an imperturbable look of patient innocence, now stiffened and then wilted.
A witness!
And here to testify!
God!
Then he, whoever he was, lurking on the lone shore of the lake, had seen the unintended blow, had heard her cries — had seen that he had not sought to aid her!
Had seen him swim to shore and steal away — maybe had watched him in the woods as he changed his clothes.
God!
His hands now gripped the sides of the chair, and his head went back with a jerk as if from a powerful blow, for that meant death — his sure execution.
God!
No hope now!
His head dropped and he looked as though he might lapse into a state of coma.
As to Belknap, Mason’s revelation at first caused him to drop the pencil with which he was making notes, then next to stare in a puzzled and dumbfounded way, since they had no evidence wherewith to forefend against such a smash as this — But as instantly recalling how completely off his guard he must look, recovering.
Could it be that Clyde might have been lying to them, after all — that he had killed her intentionally, and before this unseen witness?
If so it might be necessary for them to withdraw from such a hopeless and unpopular case, after all.
As for Jephson, he was for the moment stunned and flattened.
And through his stern and not easily shakable brain raced such thoughts as — was there really a witness? — has Clyde lied? — then the die was cast, for had he not already admitted to them that he had struck Roberta, and the witness must have seen that?
And so the end of any plea of a change of heart.
Who would believe that, after such testimony as this?
But because of the sheer contentiousness and determination of his nature, he would not permit himself to be completely baffled by this smashing announcement.
Instead he turned, and after surveying the flustered and yet self-chastising Belknap and Clyde, commented:
“I don’t believe it.
He’s lying, I think, or bluffing.
At any rate, we’ll wait and see.
It’s a long time between now and our side of the story.
Look at all those witnesses there.
And we can cross-question them by the week, if we want to — until he’s out of office.
Plenty of time to do a lot of things — find out about this witness in the meantime.
And besides, there’s suicide, or there’s the actual thing that happened.
We can let Clyde swear to what did happen — a cataleptic trance — no courage to do it.
It’s not likely anybody can see that at five hundred feet.”
And he smiled grimly. At almost the same time he added, but not for Clyde’s ears: “We might be able to get him off with twenty years at the worst, don’t you think?” ? Chapter 21
A nd then witnesses, witnesses, witnesses — to the number of one hundred and twenty-seven.
And their testimony, particularly that of the doctors, three guides, the woman who heard Roberta’s last cry, all repeatedly objected to by Jephson and Belknap, for upon such weakness and demonstrable error as they could point out depended the plausibility of Clyde’s daring defense.
And all of this carrying the case well into November, and after Mason had been overwhelmingly elected to the judgeship which he had so craved.
And because of the very vigor and strife of the trial, the general public from coast to coast taking more and more interest.
And obviously, as the days passed and the newspaper writers at the trial saw it, Clyde was guilty.
Yet he, because of the repeated commands of Jephson, facing each witness who assailed him with calm and even daring.
“Your name?”
“Titus Alden.”
“You are the father of Roberta Alden?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Now, Mr. Alden, just tell the jury how and under what circumstances it was that your daughter Roberta happened to go to Lycurgus.”
“Objected to.
Irrelevant, immaterial, incompetent,” snapped Belknap.
“I’ll connect it up,” put in Mason, looking up at the judge, who ruled that Titus might answer subject to a motion to strike out his testimony if not “connected up.”
“She went there to get work,” replied Titus.
“And why did she go there to get work?”
Again objection, and the old man allowed to proceed after the legal formalities had again been complied with.
“Well, the farm we have over there near Biltz hasn’t ever paid so very well, and it’s been necessary for the children to help out and Bobbie being the oldest —”