in a worthier cause some
time."

I did not tell him how worthy the cause this time had been, how were it
not for that bold leap of mine there would have been no star witness
for the people to-morrow.

Something in my noncommittal air seemed to touch father, and make him
still look anxiously at me. "Of course, Dingley is going to have the
matter investigated further. The woman will probably be arrested, if
only on suspicion."

But that evening he told me that Mr. Dingley had said nothing had been
elicited from her that would warrant such a thing; and though father
seemed vexed and dissatisfied, he argued what could one do if there was
no evidence to fasten upon?

I did not answer; I knew it would be of no use, Mr. Dingley's
explanations were so reasonable. But since I had talked with father
that morning a piece of news had come to me which had only succeeded in
strengthening my belief in the meaning of the Spanish Woman's actions.
This was brought me by Hallie, my envoy extraordinary, who had wormed
it out of her mother who had got it from Mr. Ferguson.

It seemed that on Saturday, just after Hallie had left the court, the
Spanish Woman had taken the witness-stand and testified that she had
been Rood's wife. Mr. Ferguson said this was ridiculous to suppose,
yet no one, not even Mr. Dingley, had challenged her statement. She
denied there had ever been any trouble between the two men. She said
she had been interested in Mr. Montgomery as a woman might be who was
old enough to be his mother, but that Rood had been her husband and
that she had loved and been faithful to him. She was wonderfully calm
and convincing, Mr. Ferguson had said, and it looked at first as if her
testimony would help the defense very much, but when Mr. Dingley's
associate began cross-examining her, he seemed to turn her testimony
inside out, and then it appeared that her evidence had been the worst
thing possible for the prisoner. For if Rood had stood so firmly in
Montgomery's way, the lawyer argued, that would give the very strongest
motive for the shooting.

"Wasn't it dreadful!" Hallie exclaimed. "When she wanted so much to
help him, to find she had only made things worse. Father said that
when she realized how the evidence had been turned against him she grew
as white as death."

From this I was able to understand better why the Spanish Woman had
been willing to take the terrible chance involved in sending for me to
come to he