Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-04-22

hang n man for anything"
Against this sympathy for the ac'
cused, Stowell had risen to make his
reply for the Crown.
He did not deny the dead woman's
transgression. 1t was true that she
must have known when she married the
prisoner that she was about to become
the mother Of child by another man:
But II that moral fact could be urged
against the wife, was there nothing OF
the same kind that could be advanced
in her favor?
She had been cruelty betrayed and
abandoned. Looking to the future she
had seen the contempt of her little world
before her. What had happened? In
the dark hour of her desertion the pris-
oner had come with the offer Of his love
and protection. 1t was in evidence that
for time she had held back and that
he had pressed himself upon her. None
could know the secret of the dead WON.
ans soul, but was it unreasonable to
think that standing between the two
fires Of public scorn and the prisoners S
affection she had said to herself, as poor
misguided women in like cases did every
day: "He loves me so much that he will
forgive me whatever happens.
But had he forgiven her? No, he had
killed her, willfully, cruelty, brutally,
not in the heat of blood, but after long
deliberation--he, the big powerful brute
and she the weak, helpless, half. naked
woman-the woman who had been
faithful to him since the day he married
her, the woman he had sworn to love
and cherish until death parted them.
No, the plea of moral justification
was rotten to the hearts core, and had
nothing to say for itself in a court Of
law. The defense had urged that it
was founded on the laws Of nature
that marriage implied chastity on the
woman's part, and this woman had
come to her husband unchaste. On the
barous law of man-the infamous theory
that wife was the property of her hus-
band and he was at liberty to do as he
liked with her.
A wife was not the property Of her M
as he liked with her. There was no
such thing as the unwritten law. What
was not written was not law. And
if, as the result Of the verdict in that
court, 1t should 60 forth that any man
had right to kill his wife in any cir.
cumstances-to be judge and jury and
accuser and eXecutioner over her-the
reign Of law and order in this island
would be at an end. no wOman's life
would be secure, the daughter of no
member Of that jury would any longer
be safe, and human society would dis.
solve into welter of civilized saw
agery-the worst sayagery of all.
The effect of Stowell's reply had been
been frightened or convinced, and even
the prisoner himself, during the more
intimate passages, had held down his
head as If he felt himself to be the
vilest scoundrel on earth.
Among the advocates (they had
reached the station by this time, got
into the carriages, and lit up their
pipes) opinion was more divided. The
younger men were enthusiastic, but
some of the older ones thought the
closing speech for the Crown had been
false In logic and bad In law.
One of the latter, with special
cock of the hat. Git was old Hudgeon
the young men called him Fanny
now sat with his shaven chin on the
top Of his stick and said.
man has got to live up to, with all
his tall talk about women. But well
see! Wen see!"
Cell, who was wildly excited by his
friends success, was walking to and
fro on the platform waiting for Stow
els arrival. When he came (he was
the last to Gomez he had a graver looA
on his face than Cell had ever seen
there before, except once, and he
seemed to be painfully preoccupied.
"Ah, is 1t you? 7" he had said, wher
Cell laid hold Of him-he had started
as II he had seen ghost.
They got into the train together ant
had q carriage to themselves. Gel
began with his congratulations, but
Stowell brushed them aside, and said:
"What happened with your father2''
Cell told his story as he had told
1t at Derby Haven-that the Speaker
had cut up badly and turned him ou
of the house.
"But what do I care? Not q ha'.
porth! Best thing that ever happened
to me, perhaps. "
"And Bessie?"
"Oh, Bessie? Well. that's all righ
now. A bit troubled at first abOu
my being cut off by the family ant
losing my income. Just like woman
So unselfish -
There was silence for some time afte
that save for the rumble Of the carriag
wheels. Then Cell said he was sOrr.
he had told Bessie about the loss Of tn
Income. She would always be thinking
he would regret the sacrifice he ha,
made for her. u be could ealy an,
lnome way oe ohoWing her llt dldn'