een together for
several hours before; this subject must have been uppermost in their
minds, whereas this appears to have been the commencement of their
conversation upon it. Now this depends altogether upon the tone and
manner of the expression; upon the particular word in the sentence which
was emphatically spoken. If he had said, "When did you _see_ Dick,
Frank?" this would not seem to be the beginning of the conversation.
With what emphasis it was uttered, it is not possible to learn; and
therefore nothing can be made of this argument. If this boy's testimony
stood alone, it should be received with caution. And the same may be
said of the testimony of Palmer. But they do not stand alone. They
furnish a clew to numerous other circumstances, which, when known,
mutually confirm what would have been received with caution without such
corroboration. How could Leighton have made up this conversation? "When
did you see Dick?" "I saw him this morning." "When is he going to kill
the old man?" "I don't know." "Tell him, if he don't do it soon, I won't
pay him." Here is a vast amount in few words. Had he wit enough to
invent this? There is nothing so powerful as truth; and often nothing so
strange. It is not ever suggested that the story was made for him. There
is nothing so extraordinary in the whole matter, as it would have been
for this ignorant country boy to invent this story.

The acts of the parties themselves furnish strong presumption of their
guilt. What was done on the receipt of the letter from Maine? This
letter was signed by Charles Grant, Jr., a person not known to either of
the Knapps, nor was it known to them that any other person beside the
Crowninshields knew of the conspiracy. This letter, by the accidental
omission of the word Jr., fell into the hands of the father, when
intended for the son. The father carried it to Wenham, where both the
sons were. They both read it. Fix your eye steadily on this part of the
_circumstantial stuff_ which is in the case, and see what can be made of
it. This was shown to the two brothers on Saturday, the 15th of May.
Neither of them knew Palmer. And if they had known him, they could not
have known him to have been the writer of this letter. It was mysterious
to them how any one at Belfast could have had knowledge of this affair.
Their conscious guilt prevented due circumspection. They did not see the
bearing of its publication. They advised their father to carry it to the
C