rious for life. He looked round upon me slowly when he
had ceased to speak, and I saw that his dark eyes were burning with
triumphant fire. He sat down, and for a moment there was a dead hush
in the crowded place, and then a buzz of excited speech, and then a
clamour. In the midst of it an officer placed a chair before the judge,
immediately between the judicial seat and the railed space in which I
stood. If I had been amazed at the speech of the young advocate, you may
guess how I felt when Arthur Clyde came forward and took the seat. His
eyes met mine once, and I saw that they were brimmed with tears, and
there was such a smile upon his face as I never saw before. Was I mad,
or lost in some fantastic dream? This man voluntarily here, of all
men--and smiling upon _me!_ It was at once incredible and true. I
waited, dizzy and breathless, to hear and see the end.

The customary oath administered, my advocate arose, and, in the midst of
a deathlike silence, questioned Arthur Clyde. He first drew from him the
story of the Basso Porto, and at its close begged to recall the three
witnesses who had deposed to my participation in the quarrel. They came,
and each identified Arthur as the third party in the fracas. Arthur
gave his evidence in English, through the sworn interpreter of the
court, and Mr. Gregory once or twice gave hints to the advocate when
question or answer missed precise translation. He told of our second
meeting with Grammont, and of his own departure. Then came a story which
amazed me, and riveted the ears of every creature there. That story I
reproduce from the columns of the 'Giorno.'

Advocate: Where did you go next?

Witness: To the Caffe d' Italia to await my friend.

Advocate: How long did you stay?

Witness: Only half-an-hour. I felt suddenly unwell, and walked again on
the Chiaja.

Advocate: Did you see your friend again?

Witness: Yes. He was still engaged in talk with Mr. Grammont; and since
I had no wish to meet him then, I walked along the road to Posilipo.

Advocate: Did anything happen upon the road?

Witness: I was violently sick, and, feeling very faint afterwards, lay
down upon a slope at the side of the road under the shade of a tree, and
rested there.

Advocate: What happened next?

Witness: I heard voices in the lane below me.

Advocate: Relate now what happened.

Witness: I saw two men--Mr. Grammont and another--talking together. They
spoke in English. The man asked for mon