The Nine of Hearts. Farjeon Benjamin Leopold

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СКАЧАТЬ "Yes."

      The Attorney-general. "Whose money was it that was in dispute?"

      Witness. "Mr. Beach's. He was rich; Mr. Layton had no money to settle. My mistress used to say, 'I know that I am not very handsome, but I can make Mr. Layton comfortable all his life, and I am sure we shall get along very well together. Papa shall do whatever I want.'"

      The Attorney-general. "Then is it your impression that the prisoner paid court to her for her money?"

      Witness. "I don't think he would have looked at her else."

      The Attorney-general. "And that your mistress was aware of it?"

      Witness. "She must have had some notion of it, but it couldn't have been a pleasant thing for her to talk much about, and it seemed to me that she was glad to avoid it. She didn't think she was as plain as she was. No woman does."

      The Attorney-general. "How was the matter finally arranged?"

      Witness. "The money was settled upon my mistress, and after her death it was to go to Mr. Layton."

      The Attorney-general. "Do you know what the amount was?"

      Witness. "My mistress told me it was £20,000."

      The Attorney-general. "Which would come absolutely into the prisoner's possession when his wife died?"

      Witness. "I understood so. My mistress did say something else about the settlement. 'There's one thing I would like put in about the money,' she said, 'and that is, that it shouldn't be his if he married again; but I would not dare to mention it.'"

      The Attorney-general. "Did she give you a reason for not daring to mention it?"

      Witness. "Yes; that he would break the engagement."

      The Attorney-general. "Now, about the wedding. Was it a private or public wedding?"

      Witness. "Not private-oh no, not at all! there were at least a hundred at the wedding breakfast, and any amount of champagne was opened."

      The Attorney-general. "What kind of company?"

      Witness. "Mixed-very much mixed."

      The Attorney-general. "Be more explicit. Were there many of Mr. Beach's set there?"

      Witness. "They were all of his set."

      The Attorney-general. "But some of the prisoner's friends were there as well?"

      Witness. "Not one. There were words about it."

      The Attorney-general. "On the wedding-day?"

      Witness. "Yes."

      The Attorney-general. "Words between whom?"

      Witness. "Between Mr. Beach and Mr. Layton. I heard Mr. Beach say, I gave you thirty invitations to fill up and Mr. Layton answered, didn't fill up one of them. I didn't intend that a friend of mine should meet such a crew as I knew you would get together.' 'Not good enough for you, I suppose?' said Mr. Beach. 'No,' said Mr. Layton, 'decidedly not good enough,' and then he walked away."

      The Attorney-general. "Did your mistress make any remark on the subject?"

      Witness. "No she was too happy to find fault with anything. She was delighted, too, with the wedding presents. There was nearly a room full of them."

      The Attorney-general. "Many of them from the prisoner's friends?"

      Witness. "Not one."

      The Attorney-general. "Do you mean to inform the court that not a single friend or relative of the prisoner's was present, and that among the wedding presents there was not a single token from his connections?"

      Witness. "Not a single one."

      The Attorney-general. "Well, they were married, and they went away?"

      Witness. "Yes; they took the night train to Paris."

      The Attorney-general. "Did you accompany them?"

      Witness. "No."

      The Attorney-general. "Did your mistress's mother die before they left?"

      Witness. "No; some hours afterwards, and a telegram was sent on to them in Paris, at the Hotel Bristol."

      The Attorney-general. "What is the next thing you remember?"

      Witness. "A telegram arrived from Mr. Layton, requesting me to come to Paris immediately. We received the telegram at about two o'clock on the day after the wedding, and I went by the night train."

      The Attorney-general. "Did any person meet you?"

      Witness. "Yes; Mr. Layton. He said my mistress was very ill, and he took me to the hotel. She was in bed, and she remained there for several weeks. I attended her the whole of the time."

      The Attorney-general. "Did she have good doctors?"

      Witness. "The best that could be got."

      The Attorney-general. "Was the prisoner attentive to her?"

      Witness. "Pretty well; I shouldn't have liked it."

      The Attorney-general. "What do you mean by that?"

      Witness. "Well, he never sat by her bedside for any length of time; he never held her hand; he never kissed her. Oh, it is easy to tell when a man loves a woman!"

      The Attorney-general. "How long was it before she was able to get about?"

      Witness. "Quite three months."

      The Attorney-general. "Did she then return to England with her husband?"

      Witness. "Not for another month. They went to Italy, and I went with them."

      The Attorney-general. "Did the prisoner's attentions to his wife undergo any marked change after her convalescence? Was he more affectionate-more lovingly attentive?"

      Witness. "Not that I saw. All he seemed to crave for was excitement. It was nothing but rushing here and rushing there. Every night some theatre or entertainment to go to; every day riding about, and dining out at different places."

      The Attorney-general. "So that there was not much of home life?"

      Witness. "None at all."

      The Attorney-general. "Was this state of things agreeable to your mistress?"

      Witness. "I am not sure. Sometimes she suggested to her husband that they should spend a quiet evening at home, but he always replied that he had tickets, or had taken seats, for some place of entertainment. When she spoke to me of the life they were leading, she used to say how attentive her husband was to her, and how he was always looking out for something to amuse her. But I did not regard it in that light; I thought it was more for himself than for her that he kept up such a round of excitement. It helped him to forget."

      The Attorney-general. "To forget what?"

      Witness. "That he was a married man."

      The Attorney-general. "During СКАЧАТЬ