" and the circumstances surrounding it. He pointed out
that there could have been no motive of revenge behind the act, for the
evidence had shown, even the testimony of the defendant himself had
shown, that the relations between Chase and his bondman were friendly.
Isom Chase had been kind to him; he had reposed his entire trust in him,
and had gone away to serve his country as a juryman, leaving everything
in his hands.

"And he returned from that duty, gentlemen," said he, "to meet death at
the treacherous hands of the man whom he had trusted, there upon his own
threshold.

"When Isom Chase was found there by his neighbor, Sol Greening,
gentlemen, this bag of money was clasped to his lifeless breast. Where
did it come from? What was Isom Chase doing with it there at that hour
of the night? This defendant has testified that he does not know. Did
Isom Chase carry it with him when he entered the house? Not likely.

"You have heard the testimony of the bankers of this city to the effect
that he carried no deposit with any of them. Isom Chase had returned to
his home that fatal night from serving on a jury in this court-house.
That duty held him there until past ten o'clock, as the records show.
Where did that bag of gold come from? What was it doing there? This
defendant has sworn that he never saw it before, that he knows nothing
at all about it. Yet he admits that 'words' passed between him and Isom
Chase that night.

"What those words were he has locked up in the secret darkness of his
guilty breast. He has refused to tell you what they were, refused
against the kindly counsel of the court, the prayers of his aged mother,
the advice of his own attorney, and of his best friends. Joe Newbolt has
refused to repeat those words to you, gentlemen of the jury, but I will
tell you what the substance of them was."

The prosecutor made a dramatic pause; he flung his long, fair locks back
from his forehead; he leveled his finger at Joe as if he held a weapon
aimed to shoot him through the heart.

Mrs. Newbolt looked at the prosecutor searchingly. She could not
understand why the judge allowed him to say a thing like that. Joe
displayed no indication of the turmoil of his heart. But the light was
fading out of his face, the gray mist of pain was sweeping over it
again.

"Those words, gentlemen of the jury," resumed the prosecutor, "were
words of accusation from the lips of Isom Chase when he entered that
door and saw this