hould have questioned the prisoner upon
these points when on the witness stand. Had he denied the desire to
marry again, I would have allowed you to disprove his assertion by
this witness. As it is, I must rule out the evidence offered."

Mr. Munson bit his lip in mortification, when the Recorder pointed out
to him the serious omission made in the examination of the accused,
but of course he was powerless to do anything. Having no other witness
to call, when the jurors had returned to their seats, Mr. Bliss arose
and addressed the jury.

CHAPTER X.

MR. BLISS MAKES HIS SPEECH.

"May it please your Honor and gentlemen of the jury," began Mr. Bliss,
amidst an impressive silence, "in a few hours you will be called upon
to act in a capacity which has been delegated to you by your
fellow-men, but which finally is the province of our heavenly Father
alone. You are to sit in judgment upon a human being, and accordingly
as ye judge him, so shall ye be judged hereafter. I have not the least
doubt of the integrity of your purpose; I fully believe that such
verdict as you shall render will be honestly adopted, after the most
thorough weighing of the evidence which has been presented to you. All
I ask is that you form your final opinion with due recognition of the
fact, that if a mistake is to be made, far better would it be that you
release our client, if he be guilty, than that you should send him to
the hangman, though innocent. I beg of you to remember that great as
is the majesty of the law and the rights of the people, yet more must
you respect the rights of this man, who stands alone, to defend
himself against such an array of witnesses and lawyers, as the wealth
of the whole commonwealth has been able to summon against him. The
very weakness of his position, as compared with the forces against
which he has to contend, should excite your sympathies. If there be
any doubt in your minds, it becomes, not your privilege, but your
sworn duty to accord it to him. For, as his Honor will undoubtedly
explain to you when expounding the law, the prosecution must prove the
charge beyond all doubt. The burden of proof is upon them. They claim
that the deceased came to her death by poison administered by our
client. They must therefore prove that she died of poison, and that
the poison was given by Dr. Medjora. But they must prove even more
than that, for they must show that it was given with intent to destroy
life. Thus, if