The Irish standard., 1900-09-15
IN The CELEBRATED PARAELL CASE
Confused tt Q Prim, Priggish and
Composed Houston.
COMPLETE COLLAPSE OF The FoRGra
The Three Judges on the Bench
Enjoyed the Fun.

In the memorable trial which began
on Oct. %. 1883, and came to*an end
on Nov. %. 1889, there were many
scenes which those who witnessed
them will never forget, says the Lon
don Daily News. In these scenes the
chief personages We're Sir Charles
Russell, as he then was, and Richard
Pigott the forger. and Houston, FL
gott's employer and d,lpe, and lie Ca
ron-that strange. sinister figure, the
lblest by far of the witnesses for the
Times. One remembers those scenes,
not merely for their dramatic interest
of the moment but also for their reve-
lation of the many sided character of
the great advocate who shattered the
fabric of lies laboriously built up ns
an obstacle against the effort of Eng
lish Liberalism in the cause of Ireland.
OF all those scenes the most stirring
was, of course, RusselIs crOss-exnmin-
alton of Pigott. which began on Feb.
81, 1889. During the whole Of the pre-.
cetling day and the first few hours ,of
the 21st Sir Charles Russell had been
making his last preparations for his
onslaught. He had turned Houston
inside out, so to speak. And lie had
been quietly taking stock Of Richard
i, Pigott during the forger's long windcl,
plausible story to Sir Richard Webster.
Who can forget his treatment of the
prim, priggish composed, bnnlioxicnl
Houston? Composed, mean, until
Mr.. Houston became demoralized by
the merriment caused by his own nd
missions in answer to abrupt little
questions, delivered in II sort of conf
dental undertone, curiOusly mt vari-
ance with the sudden, searching gaze
that accompanied them. After eleven
years l can see Mr.. Houston, in the
flesh as it were, coming mserably to
grief In that cross-eXanination about
the black bag in which Pigott and his
alleged confederates brought the Par
nell letters to their purchaser in the
Hotel des Deux Mondes, Avenue dc
rOpera, Paris. can hear the laughter
in the densely packed court--laughter
promptly suppressed by the usher
while Mr.. Houston told how he waited
"upstairs'' while the bargaining for the
letters was going on downstairs" and
how he refrained from going "d0wn-
stairs" or seeing who was there, or
taking any part whatever in the bar
gaining-"becausc,~ said Mr.. Houston,
II wished to keep myself aloof; l
wanted to keep myself in ignorance of
the source of the letters" can hear
Sir Charles 'nyc"-"aye," ut
tered Mt intervals, quietly, encourng-
ingly as 1t were, while the smart Mr.
Houston was laying bare his own ex-
treme simplicity-or worse. Sir
Charles looked Mt the ceiling. Then
down again, in an absent-mindcd sort
of way. He unpOckets his snuffbOX.
He taps the lid. With his right thumb
he helps himself to n pinch. "YOu
didn't go downstairs?' he asks quite
casually. NO" The snuffy brown
handkerchief half way up to Sir
Charles nose stops. The keen eyes
look Mr.. Houston through and through.
"No?" "No." Laughter-and furious
rebuke in the usher's eyes.
At half past one on the following
day Sir Richard Wcbster's examina-
ton of Richard Pigott came to an end.
Almost before Sir Richard sat him
down Sir Charles was up The loud
murmur of talk that broke out after
Pigotts "evidence" came to dead
stop You could hear a pin fall as
Russell and Pigott stood there con.
fronting each other. "Take that'-thc
words rang out sharply in the breath
less silence. "That" was a sheet of
paper which Sir Charles Russell held
out. Pigott took it-gazing the while
at Sir Charles in blank bepuzzlement.
Everybody in court glanced at every
other. Gle has him." barrister wills
pered, turning round to me. "Write
down 'liyelihood,' likelihood,' your
own name, 'proselytism,' Patrick
Egan' and his initials and 'hesitancy.'
Which Pigott did, smiling the while,
foolishly, and with flushed face. 1t
will be remembered that in one of the
forged letters Pigott had spelled the