The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1907-01-18

tentative. l must tell you that there
is but one verdict, and that verdict is
one of guilty Do your duty. gentle
men, and do it without fear. You leave
yourselves and you leave my long-suf
fering and deeply injured client in the
! hands of one in whom you may safely
repose the most mistaken confidence.
To you, my lord, dare address but
one word only. You will let your own
heart speak"
There were tears in court. there
were tears in the jury box, even the
| Judge himself was visibly affected.
! There was a moments silence, broken
| only by sobbings here and there, and
then counsel, rising from the seat into
which he had fallen at his last word,
said:
Call William Molesworth."
A gray haired man, attired with an
old-fashioned precision, stepped into
the box and was sworn. He was deep
! ly moved, and at first answered ques-
tions put to him with difficulty.
"Your name is William MoleswcrTH1
You are solicitor in practice in Lii.
coins Inn? Will you tell me ii l have
been rightly Informed that Aloysius
Brangwyn the elder, the confession of
whose murder by his nephey, Alexis,
you have just heard, was your first
client of Importance"
"He was actually my first. He and
my elder brother were old schoolfel-
| lows. and my brother introduced me"
How long did you continue to trans
act his legal business?"
Until the legal presumption of his
! death, two years after his decease."
Con what personal terms did you
stand with your client?"
For the last forty-fve years of his
life on terms of intimate friendship"
You were aware of his testamen-
tary dispositions, we may assume?'
Il drew up the only will he ever
signed"
will you tell us how his fortune
was bequeathed?"
TT was divided equally between his
nephews. There were some minor be-
! quests, with regard to which l have
not refreshed my memory"
| Precisely They are of no moment
| Mr.. Molesworth. Was the fortune a
large one?"
1.-The personality was sworn under
G523.0OO."
$50 that each of his heirs had to
look forward to an Inheritance Of a
quarter of million?"
! Rather more"
| Rather more. Were they both
aware of this?"
| 'Mr. Brangwyn asked me to read
and explain the will to his great-neph-
ews on their twenty-first birthday"
did he give you reason for that?"
| well, he made the reading of the
| will the occasion for little sermon.
| He told the young men that he relied
! on and had faith in their honor, but he
i wished them to understand that they
had large expectations, and that those
expectations would be forfeited il
either of them were guilty to his
knowledge of any conduct seriously
unworthy Of a Christian, gentleman"
did you receive from him a few
days before his disappearance letter
J relating to the prisoner"
"Yes. He had received news of an
act of his which he described as that
of a bastard and scoundrel He
gave me instructions to prepare new
will beQueathing everything to his
nephew, Alexis, and charging the es
tate with an annual payment of two
hundred and fifty pounds to his elder
nephew"
Nov we know that Mr.. Brangwyn
was foully murdered before that Sec
ond will was drawn"
"It was only half drafted at the
time"
You had strong presumption that
| the prisoner had a hand in his disap-
pearance?"
II believed him to have murdered
my old friend"
did you tell him so?"
ITO my bitter grief and shame, l
did"
How long did that belief continue
in your mind?"
Until he was publicly exculpated by
the attorney general at Bow street."
II have been given to understand,
Mr.. Molesworth, that you expressed
your belief with some freedom"
| Il expressed it, to my undying re-
gret and remorse, everywhere and any
where when occasion offered"
"The prisoner knew this?"
"He knew it only too we'll" The
witnesses voice broke, and he wept.
"You know that II he had chosen to
inculpate his cousin he could have
! convinced you of his innocence at any
moment"
II know 1t. Mr.. Atkinson. l know
It." Atkinson, G.. c., and the vener-
able solicitor were old friends and old
professional associates.
| "And will you tell us why. in your
opinion, he refrained from action?"
why, sir? Because he would not
stoop to soil the name hs bears"
(, Had he gone to the police at any
| %iuo after the dfscnvorv or the hodv In