t--it's a great point. Now, we
all know that this morning, before he was committed, Barthorpe, much
against the wishes of his legal advisers, insisted, forcibly insisted,
on making a statement. It's in the evening papers here, verbatim. I'll
read it to you carefully--you heard him, all of you, but I want you to
hear it again, read slowly. Consider it--think of it carefully--remember
the circumstances under which it's made!"

He turned to the table, selected a newspaper, and read:

"'The accused, having insisted, in spite of evident
strong dissuasion from his counsel, upon making a
statement, said: "I wish to tell the plain and absolute
truth about my concern with this affair. I have heard
the evidence given by various witnesses as to my
financial position. That evidence is more or less true. I
lost a lot of money last winter in betting and gambling.
I was not aware that my position was known to my uncle
until one of these witnesses revealed that my uncle had
been employing private inquiry agents to find it out. I
was meaning, when his death occurred, to make a clean
breast to him. I was on the best of terms with
him--whatever he may have known, it made no difference
that I ever noticed in his behaviour to me. I was not
aware that my uncle had made a will. He never mentioned
it to me. About a year ago, there was some joking
conversation between us about making a will, and I said
to him that he ought to do it, and give me the job, and
he replied, laughingly, that he supposed he would have
to, some time. I solemnly declare that on November 12th I
hadn't the ghost of a notion that he had made a will.

"'"On November 12th last, about five o'clock in the
afternoon, I received a note from my uncle, asking me to
meet him at his estate office, at midnight. I had often
met him there at that time--there was nothing unusual
about such an appointment. I went there, of course--I
walked there from my flat in the Adelphi. I noticed when I
got there that my uncle's brougham was being slowly driven
round the square across the road. The outer door of the
office was slightly open. I was surprised. The usual thing
when I made late calls was for me to ring a bell which
sounded in my uncle's private room, and he then came and
admitted me. I went in, and down the hall, and I then saw
that the door o