Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 11.pdf/335

This page needs to be proofread.
306
The Green Bag.

At this moment the solicitor for the pros ecution entered the court, bringing with him, upon a tray, a watch, two money-bags, a jewel-case, a pocketbook, and a bottle of the same manufacture as the stopper, and having a cork in it; some other articles there were in it, not material to my story. The tray was placed on the table in sight of the prisoner and the witness; and from that moment not a doubt remained in the mind of any man of the guilt of the prisoner. A few words will bring my tale to its close. The house where the murder had been com mitted was between nine and ten miles dis tant. The solicitor, as soon as the crossexamination of the housekeeper had dis covered the existence of the 'closet, and its situation, had set off on horseback, with two sheriff's officers, and, after pulling down part of the wall of the house, had detected

this important place of concealment. Their search was well rewarded : the whole of the property belonging to Mr. Thomson was found there, amounting, in value, to some thousand pounds; and to leave no room for doubt, a bottle was discovered, which the medical men instantly pronounced to contain the very identical poison which had caused the death of the unfortunate Thom son. The result was too obvious to need explanation. The case presents the, perhaps, unparal leled instance of a man accused of murder, the evidence against whom was so slight as to induce the judge and jury to concur in a verdict of acquittal; but who, persisting in calling a witness to prove his innocence, was, upon the testimony of that very wit ness, eonvieted and exeeuted.