he questions propounded were regarded as of considerable importance,
more especially his admission that he had received letters from a
prominent Irishman in Toronto, and which had been addressed to him under
cover to a second party. He was then released. Alexander Sullivan's law
partner, Thomas G. Windes, and E. J. McArdle, a young Irish lawyer were
also examined, but both declared that they knew nothing whatever
regarding the matter under investigation.

It was evident by this time that sufficient had been accomplished to
frustrate the purposes of the conspiracy, and, as the resumption of the
search for jurors was imperatively ordered by the court, the effort to
discover the wheels within wheels of the jury-bribing plot was abandoned
for the time being. Enough had been discovered to prove that the men
behind the prisoners were prepared to go to any lengths to prevent a
conviction. As Luther Laflin Mills remarked, in that earnest and
impressive manner which characterized all his utterances:

"The plot was the most damnable and hellish that has ever been concocted
to defeat the ends of justice. It can not be exaggerated. It extends all
over the country, and its ramifications are so numerous and far-reaching
that it seems almost incredible that we have made such progress in
marking them out. It is without parallel in the history of legal
jurisprudence in this miserable effort to defile the laws of Illinois.
When all the facts are known, as they are sure to be sooner or later,
the whole civilized world will be shocked, as it was when the news of
the conspiracy that ended in Dr. Cronin's death was sent out. The public
is entitled to know all the facts, because it ought to know the
obstacles that the officers of the prosecution have had to encounter
from the 4th of May up to the present time. We have sought earnestly
and honestly to prevent a miscarriage of justice in this case, and
thanks to the brave young man who was proof against bribery and his
courageous employer who reported the facts to us, we have broken up a
conspiracy that would have set at naught the labor of months."

[Illustration: SCENE IN THE COURT ROOM DURING THE MEMORABLE TRIAL.]

CHAPTER XX.

A JURY SECURED AT LAST--NAMES AND SKETCHES OF THE TWELVE MEN SELECTED TO
DETERMINE THE GUILT OF THE ACCUSED--THE TRIAL UNDER WAY--OPENING
SPEECHES FOR THE STATE--SCENES IN THE COURT ROOM.

Hundreds, if not thousands of people besieged the entrances to