d-stained dress; his wounded hand; the missing pistol; the agitation
of his manner when discovered amid the charred and torn remains of
letters,--all these have to be accounted for. And remember at what
moment they occurred! When his house was the scene of festivity and
rejoicing; when above a thousand guests were abandoning themselves to
the unbridled enjoyment of pleasure,--this is the time the host takes
to arrange papers, to destroy letters, to make, in fact, those hurried
arrangements that men are driven to on the eve of either flight or some
desperate undertaking. Bear all this in mind, gentlemen: and remember
that, to explain these circumstances, the narrative of the prisoner
must be full, coherent, and consistent in all its parts. The courts
of justice admit of neither reservations nor mysteries. We are here to
investigate the truth, whose cause admits of no compromise."

The witnesses for the prosecution were now called over and sworn.
The first examined were some of the servants who had overheard the
conversation between Cashel and Kennyfeck on the morning of leaving
Tubbermore. They differed slightly as to the exact expressions used,
but agreed perfectly as to their general import,--a fact which even the
cross-examination of Mr. Jones only served to strengthen. Some peasants
of Drumcoologan were next examined, to show that during the day slight
differences were constantly occurring between the parties, and that
Cashel had more than once made use of the expression, "Have your own way
_now_, but ere long I'll take mine;" or words very similar.

The old man who discovered the body, and the postilion, were then
questioned as to all the details of the place, the hour, and the fact;
and then Tom Keane was called for. It was by him the pistol was picked
up from the drain. The air of reluctance with which the witness ascended
the table, and the look of affectionate interest he bestowed upon the
dock were remarked by the whole assemblage. If the countenance of the
man evinced little of frankness or candor, the stealthy glance he threw
around him as he took his seat showed that he was not deficient in
cunning.

As his examination proceeded, the dogged reluctance of his answers,
the rugged bluntness by which he avoided any clear explanation of his
meaning, were severely commented on by the Attorney-General, and even
called forth the dignified censure of the Bench; so that the impression
produced by his evidence was, t