The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-04-25

sgSge Wa entirely crpese1 20 him Alter
/ I had given ny testimony M-. Stewart
/ Fut forward kzme&zoa in ths box 70 sup
/ port his case. ard expectation In court
stood en- tirsoe with interest 50 strange
| = witness had never basors appeared IN
/ that place. Poiynsssan heashen. who
was only acquainted with the nature Of
/ an cath IN the NEST collccaisl sense, and
/ whose English was by far too imperfec:
/ TO stand successfully the ordeal @. cross
/ examination.
/ However. ey skiisfuily leading his IN
/ tIt0rsse savage on, BIT BY hl.- Stewart sue
ceedec al last in getting cut Of the Kan
aka iGuly sworn OF his OWL ssttsnl such
. coherent account % the death OF the
/ two persons Ia sosved In the w1ik-Thorn-
1 dyke and Donaldson. as AZ least interested
and amused the court for some twenty
/ minutes. kamsaloz grew graphic after
while. ard proceeded IN dunno shos,
alter his fashion, with running CON-
nens % words 10 explain what ae had
seen Of the history Of the document. he
described how Thcrndyke bad taken the
Paper In despair from sis pocket. how he
had looked like this, and spoken earnestly
70 Donaldson and !. who were lsfEg at
/ his side. and how AZ last he had taken =
stick just SOTO write with
"a stick7' ths learned Judge intsrposed.
| leaning critically forward. What did he
/ me just how he used IL
The Kanaka- nothing 10th. and una
/ dashed By the dignity Of the court, took
piece OF paper from Stewards hand. and
I thsn. with the blunt end o. penaoldsr.
/ went through the panionlEnle act OF
| writing on il very painfully and carefully.
Him 10 LIKE that" be said simply. Him
write SO. Him make letters
But what did he write within lae
lad n g.
belief. The witness proved too much
| he had no ink. you Enow. my man; and
there are no letters 70 % seen new on the
paper"
kameAIoA looked disturbed He sh ,ok
his head. and touched his brow. His
presence Of mind seemed 10 forsAks him
Him write with XII pronounced key,
he said AZ last after long pause Say
/ ki Ia haaska talk. No say it In English"
'.ohl he wrote with . key" the judge
answered. with q stiu broader smile. "A
nest singular Implement. certainly! And
/ 1ust now you told us he wrote with q
/ stick, didn't your AIR. Stewart / am
AFRAID this witness OF yours won't much
/ avail your clients contention. lie swears
| too hard. His notions OF truth are too
| obviously Felynesian."
A litter went around the court The
/ Kanaka raised his head, knit his busay
bIows, and ElAred about him denantiy.
But, at the same moment. Stewart clap
/ ped his hand In turn 10 his own forehead.
Something seemed 10 come back to his
memory with = rush. he acted as IL hs
saw IL all now.
My Lord" he said suddenly. turning
10 the judge. all flushed. this Will is
sisned-duiy signed and witnessed. I
haven't At present ths slightest doubt OF
| IL. hamealoa's WORDS have suggested The
truth 10 me. / beg the courts leave for
very brief delay. II your lordship will
OILY impound the document for a moment.
aud allow me twenty minutes to return
TO my chambers, I can exhibit IL before
tho court with the signatures in proper
order. III nay learned friend wishes he
may continue meanwhile TO cross-ex-
anime the witness"
Before the twenty minutes were out hs
was back in court again. GREATNESS. but
very triumphant In one hand he carried
q serious looking book. IN the other,
small vial or SONS chemical liquid
My lord" hs painted out. jueilant. will
| your lordship have the goodness TO let mo
read this passage? It's In 1alDoy's Eth
roiogy OF the Equatorial Islanders and
IL Will explain the evidence 1 next intend
10 submit TO you"
The judge took the book and glanced at
IL superclAeusly. As hs read, however. he
raised his eyebrows by slow degrees.
That's certainly possible" Ia said la
more judicial iona You can try 1t, st
least. Mr.. Stewart Read aloud what tho
passage says" and he handed the book
back 70 him
AT this point OF his narrative, Capt.
Dickson suddenly stopped short. Arising.
and begging to be excused for q moment
he entered his stateroom and began rum
msSins among some papers and docu-
Iaeats in the recess OF bureau. After a
brief search he succeeded In finding the
object OF his Qnest--a simple scrap OF
paper. Reseating himself By my side. ne
held IL up before me. with the remark:
| This. my friend. IL al extract from
-raIooy's Ethnoiogy'-the passage Lawyer
Stewart read ia court. ana which he after
wards copisi for me. New listen what IL
says. And he read as follows:
Many OF the islanders also employ for
records sort OF rude Lieroglyphics allied
10 pict9rs-wrisins. Specimens from
Easter island have been brought 10
Europe. In samoa, these characters are
habltually inclsed on tablets OF wood or
stCne: but in Christmas island and the
Manihiki group, the natives have either
independently invented or else borrowed
from the example o. European voyagers
the method Of procedure closely allied To
our own pea-and-ink manuscript They
use for stile or pen joint OF bamboo.
shsrpeGsd 10 n nns point. and slit up the
middle like = Qulu or steel nib: and FOR
writing Eaid they boil down the expressed
juice OF tbs hi plant tmanica tinctoria
de candollel This Juice dries At first a
deep metallic blue. after which It graiu-
ally fades ia few months TIL Il dlsap
pears altogether; but Il can De revived st
any time and rendered absolutely per-
nanent by washing IL over with a weak
solution OF nitrate Of silyAr and sGlphpric
acid"
When the lawyer finished this passage
IN court-remArked Capt. Dickson. as he
took up the thread OK his story-counsel
fer the Thorntyks brothers laughed.
IL our learned friend Is going TO try
any hocus-pocus OF that sort" he said.
smiling. "on this already too dubious and
discreditea document"
But the Judge interrupted him with a
very stern face: Mr.. Stewart has = per-
feet right to try the experiment IL he
likes" he answered quietly. in his
clients interest. indeed, lis his duty TO
try IL. Should II succeed we shall then
have 10 inquire into the gsnuiueness OF
the signatures and the fact OF the attesta-
tiau.''
with a trembling hand the young at
torney drew out from his pocket little
camers hair brush. and. before the judges
own eyes smearrd the liqgfd from tae
vial carefully over the place where the
signatures were net. For a minute or
two they looked with the infenssss IA
terpst; then something began vaguely 10
dlscolsr the raper r. patches. The judge
nazcd hard at II. and CALCULATED: Re
narkabseT' After another long pause he
held the paper up. ard read cut three