The Washington times., 1909-06-04

the eager world could not lose a sec
ond in finding out all about him.
II was slow, dismal morning for
Phil. He took little interest in the
tinualIy f1oated OFF to the happy days
when he had been free and had known
nothing at ali about this SORT OF thing.
At noon he was led to an adjoining
building through a dense crowd of
curiosity seekers, and locked up in a
new cell with his dinner
He looked around the little iron room
with interest. 1t was much cleaner than
the old one. and he was SSther glad of
the transfer. Besides, the guards In the
county jail were more civil.
Mechanically he swallowed his meal.
wondering where Alice was. and re-
peating to himself how thankful he was
that she had not attended the trial.
How he wished the preliminaries were
over. The first morning had been en-
tirely consumed in the selection of four
jurors. Both sides had tried to hurry
through the affair, but the machinery of
the law is long, and little Roadway can
be made in a day.
Phil sat in the prisoners chair
throughout the afternoon listening TO
the Croning of the lawyers voices as
men were selected to try him.
He looked at the jury. They were all
pudgy. passiOnless men. Phil smiled as
he thought OF the absurdity of gather
ing in twelve individuals with blank
faces and empty heads 10 try him-try
him for a deed that he did not commit.
Another day was almost consumed in
the selection Of a jury acceptable to
both sides, and then the trial began
in earnest.
The prosecution stated its case and
then started to argue it. Phil could
scarcely follow the thing. IT seemed to
him as though he were an outsider
called in to sit and smile and watch
two men try 10 convince twelve
Ia mo f,f9o
facts we're so frightfully distorted by
both sides that he could hardly recog-
niZe their.
Not until Bob took the stand did Phil
really take a personal interest in the
case Then he sat, with a quizzical
smile twitching at the corners of his
lips, as he heard Bob swear TO things
utterly absurd.
The prosecution had set up a case
that was very interesting. but so pulled
out of shape that Phil could not recog-
niZe IL as his own.
When he was retuS ned TO his cell that
night message OF encouragement from
Alice. awaited him.
He read it slowly and thoughtfully.
Poor girl! She was outside, she could
hope. But he.
horrtd matter to have much thought for
the future. 1t all depended on the
twelve pudgy, passionless men that
gulped down the prosecutions plausible
SUI - anu sat ti4rir waiting greedy Tor
more.
II was ridiculous to hear men earnest
~ advancing the theory that ne had
gone about deliberately to work to put
nitric ACID in cough drops. To Phil it
all sounded like a narrowing chapter
from a dime novel
Thus four days dragged by, and at
the end OF them Mr.. Rogers was pre-
Senting his case. He made a slight plea
for his client and seemed to be asking
Tor lsniency instead OF trying to combat
the States argument.
Yet Rogers was a clever lawyer, and
he had conducted cases before where
the prisoner was destined TO be rail-
roaded In order 10 satisfy the peoples
insatiate desire for convictions.
Then the last day arrived. Phil was
hardly himself. The confusion OF the
trial had worn him out completely. He
hardly knew himself whether or not he
wak guilty.
He remem bered what Mr.. Rogers had
said about the possibility &c something
turning up at the eleventh nour He
smiled cynically at the thought IL had
not been necessary for him to follow
the trial closely in order 10 know that
the case had gone against him. A look
at the sober faces of the jury would
have satisfied anyone OF that fact
The last minute Of the trial had
come. Mr. Rogers looked over at his
client and shrugged his shoulders.
PhU understood It was all I'D, all
over with him now. The only hope
was that they would not give him thirty