The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1897-02-17

III NY tuluu now Il snOulu pest arrive
the truth.
You are guilty of this murder TO
which you were condemped?" l said I
the woman.
"I am truly guilty OF the man
DEATH |, and 1 alone, did i'll" she an
swered firmly. CT know not of wha
my husband is accused that he stand
here bound; but, as God is my judge
OF all part in the killing of the soldier
Giovanni LupD, he is Innocent"
l nodded and turned to her husband
The woman's eyes were steady as trutl
itself.
" You hear what your wife testifesP'
| said to the man. Do you still adhere
to the open confession you made in the
| Duomo Tonight"
" Confession in the Duomo," almost
shrieked the woman, turning to hei
husband, "you made no confession
say you made no confessionn
The man drew long breath, swal.
lowed hard,s that saw the apple in bis
throat first rise and fall, and then swell
as If it would choke him. Then he be-
gan in broken voice:
Excellency," he said, sit is true-all
that l said when the music made me
cry out in agony-up in the church
yonder. And now desire the pun
ishment of man, that 1 may escape the
vengeance of God for the shedding of
blood. l wish to hide the truth no
longer. will not lie to God any more,
nor let this innocent one undergo the
doom which ought to be NINE"
"You are mad-mad-mad, Leo
Perrone! Hold your peace. He is be-
side himself, great general. Do not
listenl" cried the woman, coming
swiftly round the table before any one
could prevent her, and kneeling at my
chair. Stephano, who did not approve
of such familiarity, would have thrust
her back, but 1 motioned him to his
place with my hand without speaking.
The woman sent her hand quickly to
her head as if her wits were in danger
of leaving her and she desired to recall
them. With the hurried movement all
her fine dark hair fell below her waist
in crisps and waves of shining blue
black silk. The soldiers about the
room gasped with astonishment, d.
vided between duty and admiration.
"Do not believe him." she pleaded,
clasping her hands. "He but desires
to save me even at the cost of his own
life. For, you see, he loves me--yes,
he loves me. 1 know him we'll. He
would die to save me, his wife. My
imprisonment has driven him mad.
But listen, most illustrious, hearker.
1t was my hand, my desire, my knife
which slew Giovanni Lupo for the in
a,lt ho OfforoI IN Tho xuifa ~ Too Dar
rome. IL alone did the deed. Do
not listen, Excellency. Send me to
the prison and let him go free?"
She walled rather than spoke the last
words, and, creeping nearer to my
chair, she clutched my hand in both of
hers and strove to look into my eyes to
read my decision there.
Stephano came nearer. This was
too much. He took her by the wrists
roughly and flung them from him as
though their touch had been defile-
ment.
"Get back to your place, womanl"
he said.
The woman rose without murmur
and walked back to the side of her
man, with downcast face.
"Now, Leo Perrone, what do you
say to this?" I asked of the man, whose
strong, piercing eyes dwelt steadily
upon my face.
Excellency," he said, d" Maria, my
wife, loves meas you have seen. She
has done this for love-foresworn her.
self, confessed the thing which she
never did, taken the punishment which
was mine-all because she knew that
for such crime the Judge would hang
a man, but only imprison woman.
Maria Perrone, my wife, did this thing
for my sake, and 1, crawling rat that l
was, permitted it. But all the while
God had me in his grip, and tonight in
the Duomo, He sent me message that
only in making an open confession lay
any hope for my sinful soul. So now l
accuse myself. / will tell the whole
truth here and now. 1t was night
when 1 had been far away. l returned
to my house eager to meet my wife, to
clasp the little Margherita, the sweet
est and most innocent lass in all the
quarter of the Hedgehog. AS came
mp the stair l heard angry voices-then
scream Of pain and fear from my
wife, Maria. AT two bounds l was at
the door, another and I was within.
There stood Giovanni Lupo in the act
of offering insult to my wife. Then
forthwith the madness came upon me,
as it would have come 10 you, Excel
lency, seeing your wife thus, and your
little daughter weeping on the floor.
My wife's marketing knife lay at hand,
on the board where she had been pre-
pairing the supper stuff. l lifted it and
well, that wolf will never insult wife
nor children any more forever. sent
him hurting to his own black Inferno!'
Leo PerrOne ceased and erected his
head proudly, so that his tangled locks
stood out about his head like stone
pine proving on mountain top above
the sea.
Again the woman would have flung
herself at my feet. But Stephano had
suffered enough. He took her by the
arm and led her into the middle of the
room, at q distance both from the table
where stood her husband and from my
chair. He gave her aim little shake
as if to say: "Tell lie or tell truth, but
tell it where you stand, and not else
where"
Then Maria Perrone fell on hel
knees on the polished wood of the