row wearied of the position, for Clear proved tougher
than we anticipated, and showed no signs of dying. In despair, I thought
I would give him the means to kill himself.

"Mind, I did not wish to murder him myself; but the man, when in his
drinking fits, thought he was attacked by enemies, and when in a
melancholic frame of mind, on recovery, would frequently hint at
suicide. I therefore thought that if a weapon were left within his reach
he might kill himself. I don't defend my conduct in this case, but
surely this drunken scoundrel was better dead than alive. In choosing a
weapon, I wished to select one that would implicate Ferruci rather than
myself, in case there was any trouble over the matter; so I chose for my
purpose a stiletto which hung by a parti-coloured ribbon on the walls of
the library at Berwin Manor. I fancied that the stiletto, having been
bought in Florence, and Ferruci coming from Florence, he, if
anyone--should any of these facts come to light--would be credited with
giving it to Clear.

"I took this stiletto from Berwin Manor some time before Christmas, and,
bringing it up to town, I left it, on the day before Christmas, on the
table in Clear's sitting-room. That was at nine o'clock in the night,
and that was when I last saw him alive. Who killed him I know no more
than any one else.

"On Christmas Eve I was ill, and wrote to Lydia to come up. She met me
at the Pegalls', but as I felt ill, I left there at six o'clock, and
Lydia stayed with the family all night. At seven o'clock Mrs. Clear came
to me with Ferruci, and brought back the cloak which I gave afterwards
to Rhoda. She wanted to see her husband again, but I refused to let her
risk the visit. Ferruci came to tell me that he was arranging to place
Vrain--who was becoming too violent to be restrained--in the private
asylum of Dr. Jorce, at Hampstead. Mrs. Clear was to go with him, and we
conversed about the matter.

"Ferruci went away first, as he desired to see Clear, and for that
purpose waited about until it was darker, and went into the back yard
shortly after eight o'clock. There he was seen by Rhoda as he was about
to climb the fence, and, not knowing it was the girl, he took fright and
ran out of the yard into Jersey Street. Here he found Mrs. Clear, who
had left me and was waiting for him, and the pair went off to see Dr.
Jorce at Hampstead. I believe they remained there all night.

"Left alone, I climbed over the fence about nin