lay, the immense trouble and dissatisfaction all this will give?"

"No trouble, no expense, no dissatisfaction, should stand in the way of
humanity and justice," cried North.

"Of course not. But will justice be done? Are you sure you can prove
your case? Mind, I admit nothing against Captain Burgess, whom I have
always considered a most worthy and zealous officer; but, supposing your
charge to be true, can you prove it?"

"Yes. If the witnesses speak the truth."

"Who are they?" "Myself, Dr. Macklewain, the constable, and two
prisoners, one of whom was flogged himself. He will speak the truth, I
believe. The other man I have not much faith in."

"Very well; then there is only a prisoner and Dr. Macklewain; for if
there has been foul play the convict-constable will not accuse the
authorities. Moreover, the doctor does not agree with you."

"No?" cried North, amazed.

"No. You see, then, my dear sir, how necessary it is not to be hasty in
matters of this kind. I really think--pardon me for my plainness--that
your goodness of heart has misled you. Captain Burgess sends a report
of the case. He says the man was sentenced to a hundred lashes for gross
insolence and disobedience of orders, that the doctor was present during
the punishment, and that the man was thrown off by his directions after
he had received fifty-six lashes. That, after a short interval, he was
found to be dead, and that the doctor made a post-mortem examination and
found disease of the heart."

North started. "A post-mortem? I never knew there had been one held."

"Here is the medical certificate," said Vickers, holding it out,
"accompanied by the copies of the evidence of the constable and a letter
from the Commandant."

Poor North took the papers and read them slowly. They were apparently
straightforward enough. Aneurism of the ascending aorta was given as the
cause of death; and the doctor frankly admitted that had he known the
deceased to be suffering from that complaint he would not have permitted
him to receive more than twenty-five lashes. "I think Macklewain is
an honest man," said North, doubtfully. "He would not dare to return
a false certificate. Yet the circumstances of the case--the horrible
condition of the prisoners--the frightful story of that boy--"

"I cannot enter into these questions, Mr. North. My position here is to
administer the law to the best of my ability, not to question it."

North bowed his head to the reproof.