The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1918-10-29
BRAND WHITLocK

Of a condemnation for spying, but he
did not know that Il had anything To
do with the case Of Miss Cavell, and
hat In any event IL was impossible that
they would put a woman to death that
night.
WHO has given you this informa-
ton, for to come and disturb me at
such an hour you must nav important
information" lie said.
De Leval replied: without doubt
consider it very serious, but | must
| refuse to tell you from whom ! re-
ceived the information. Besides, what
difference does 1t make? II the in
formation is true our presence at this
hour Is justified. If it is not true /
am ready to take the consequences of
my mistake
The baron grew irritated.
What" he said, rs It because they
say that you come and disturb me az
such an hour, me and these gentlemen?
No, no. gentlemen this news can not
be true. orders are never executed with
such precipitation. especially when a
woman Is concerned, Come and see me
tomorrow. Besides. how do you think
that at this hour ! can obtain any in
formation? The encouragement must
certainly be sleeping.
Gibson, or one of them. suggested to
him that a very simple way OF finding
out would be to telephone to the prison.
Quite right" he said. Il had not
thought of that"
He went out, was gone a f6W minutes
and came back embarrassed, so they
said, even a little bit ashamed, for he
said:
You are right, gentlemen; / have
heard by telephone that Miss Cavell
has been condemned and that she will
be shot tonight"
Then De LevaI drew out the letter
that | had written to the baron and
gave it to him and he read it in an
undertone-with q little sarcastic smile.
SO DE Leval said-and when he finished
he handed 1t back to De Leval and
said:
But 1t is necessary to have a plea
for mercy at the same time"
Here it is said De LevaI, and he
gave hin the document. Then they all
sat down.
could see the scene-as 1t was de-
scribed to me by Nillalobar, by Gibson,
by De Leval- that pretty little salon
L"uis XVI that knew 50 well-Lauc-
Een giving way to an cutburst of feel
ing against that spy" as lie called
Miss Cavell, and Gibson and De Leval
by turns pleading with him, the mar
quis sitting by. 1t was not Il question
OF spying, as they pointed out; it was
q question Of the life of a woman, a
HE that had been devoted to charity.
.f.'a ,o'''Nib hllt llbl HuISbtl
wounded soldiers, she had even nursed
German wounded at the beginning of
the war, and now she was accused of
but one thing, to have helped English
soldiers make their way toward Hol-
land, She may have been imprudent.
she may have acted against the laws of
the occupying power, but she was not
a spy, she was not even accused Of
being a spy, she had not been convict
ed OF spying, and she did not merit the
death OF a spy. They sat there plead
Ing. Gibson and De Leval. bringing
forth all the arguments that would
occur to men Of sense and sensibility,
Gibson called Lancken's attention to
their failure to inform the legation of
the sentence, of their failure to keep
the word that Conrad had given. He
argued that the offense charged against
Miss Cavell had long since been accom-
pllShed, that AS she had been for some
weeks in prison a slight delay in car
rying out the sentence could not en-
danger the German cause: he even
pointed out the effect such a deed as
the summary execution of the death
sentence against a woman would have
upon public opinion, not only in Bel
gum but in America and elsewhere:
he even spoke Of the possibility of re-
prtsalS,