The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1914-05-09

An inquiry was ordered by the
house of commons, and after long de-
lays and apparently great reluctance.
the Times was compelled to put Pig
oft In the box. The day of retribu-
ton had come slowly, but surely.
Most Tragic Cross Examination.
1t was not long before it was seen
by everybody that Pigott was the au-
thor and writer Of the terrible let
ter which had created such cyclone.
! was then editor of paper, and
took on myself the duty of describing
the important scenes in this exciting
drama, and thus had the opportun-
ity of seeing perhaps the most tragic
cross-examination the courts of law
have seen. The cross-examiner was
the late Lord Russell-then Sir
Charles. and still at the bar. He
lowered, even amid the legal giants
engaged in this case. as easily above
them all as does the Matternhorn
above all other Swiss mountains.
And. confident in his case. Russell,
fell upon Pigott with all the tre-
mendous and almost cruel force of
his own strong personality and Of
the still stronger force of the facts
he knew. And poor Pigott, in the
course of half an hour, was reduced
to pitiful pulp. You could see the
unfortunate wretch crumpling up.
and. as it were, dissolving, under
the pitiless cross-examination.
Peals of Laughter.
But to the court generally the
spectacle descended from tragedy to
farce. AS begging-lstter after let
ter was read, with their unctuous
whine and their hypocrisy, nobody
could keep his countenance. and
peals of laughter resounded through
the court. The comic effect was in
creased to an almost intolerable do
gree by the strange spectacle on the
bench where the three grave judges
sat, aloof from all this bubbling and
seething weller of human and politf-
cal passion on the seats below. One
Judge. the late Mr.. Justice Day. had
excited strange feeling because.
alone OF the three. he had never op-
ened his lips throughout the whole
inquiry. But. to the amazement Of
everybody. Pigott broke down this
composure and aloofness. Mr.. Jus-
tice Day writhed in laughter. he
seemed almost hysteric, and this
strange and unexpected sight set tho
roar all over the court. until in the
end the laughter seemed to end in
one universal shrek. And mean.
time Russell went on involving the
trembling and discomposed wretch IN
the box in new contradictions. new
and even more palpable lies: until
IN the end it looked as if a great
bruiser were kicking to death the
weak opponent he had already
bruised into pulp.
Then Pigott Fled,
NO one was surprised when the
court met the next day that Pigott
was no longer in the box, and the
news came that he had fled. He
mad In the meantime, with the char
acteristic weakness and treachery of
such nature, made an attempt tn
save himself by going into the oppo-
site camp. In Mr.. Labouchere
mousse before the keen, searching and
merciless eyes of that master cynic
and of the late Geo. A. Sala. he told
the whole story of the forgeries. even
revealing the methods which he had
employed to give some approach to
resemblance to the signature of Par
nell. Detectives pursued Pigott hot
loot to Madrid, whittier he had fled.
they found him in hotel of that
city. On some excuse he managed to-
De allowed to go to his bedroom, and
there he blew out his brains