The White Rose of Memphis

“‘You are going to leap into the contest as an attorney, and plead your client’s case?’

“‘No, I am not going to make any leap at all; but I have a trap set to catch certain birds, and I am going to arrange the bait myself, and at the proper time I shall spring the trigger and pen the game. It is my intention to spend the remainder of this day in the court-house; in fact, I think I shall make that place my headquarters until the trial is over.’

“‘Do you think you can stand the jokes and jeers and vulgar gaze of such a crowd as you must necessarily meet in a criminal court-room?’

“‘I can bear anything, endure anything, submit to anything, in order to save my dear, unfortunate friend!’

“‘Lottie, I do not believe this world ever contained another such a good-hearted, noble girl as you – so unselfish, so thoughtful of others, so generous and sympathetic!’

“‘Edward, reserve your compliments until Viola is clear, and then you may pile the flattery on as much as you please.’

“‘I suppose you will make an eloquent speech to the jury in defense of your client; I can in my imagination hear the sweet words echoing through the halls of justice.’

“‘Cease your levity, if you please; the occasion demands seriousness. You know very well I do not intend to make a speech; but I am in real downright earnest when I say that I am going to ask the judge to allow me to cross-examine some of the witnesses. You see I have been studying a great many commentaries on criminal evidence, and have learned that when a witness swears falsely to one material point, he is not to be believed in anything else. Now I am going to propound certain questions to some of the witnesses, and if they swear what they did on the former trial, why, then, they will be in my trap.’

“‘Lottie, don’t you think it advisable to acquaint Mr. Rockland with all the new facts in your possession, so he could be prepared to handle them when the trial comes off?’

“‘No, I do not; and besides this, I cannot reveal to any one the secrets confided to me by another, without her consent.’

“‘Ah! it is a “her” then who works the wires behind the curtains?’

“‘There are no wires to work nor any curtains to work behind; but enough of this; come, we will now go to the court-house.’

“As I entered the court-room with Lottie leaning on my arm, the eyes of the lawyers and spectators were at once fixed on her with a curious gaze, as she moved across the room like an empress, and advancing to the clerk’s desk, asked for the papers in the Bramlett case. The little sleek-haired clerk, whose nose was very large, stood with his mouth wide open, his pen in his hand, gazing at the angelic beauty before him, as much astonished as if a ghost had suddenly risen out of the ground. Lottie again called for the papers, when the little clerk began to stammer:

“‘You had better – that is, we could not – I must ask you to see Mr. Quillet, madame – it is against the rules to let papers go out of the office, except to the attorneys.’

“I do not wish to take the papers out of the office, sir,’ replied Lottie modestly, as she smiled sweetly, ‘I can examine them here.’

“The little clerk was very much embarrassed, but refused to let her have the papers until he was ordered to do so by Mr. Quillet. Lottie took the great bundle of documents, and, scattering them about on the table, seated herself and began to read them, while the judge and Mr. Quillet eyed her closely. A group of lawyers assembled inside of the bar and began to whisper to each other, occasionally pointing at Lottie, who was too deeply engaged with the papers to notice them.

“‘She is the most beautiful woman I ever saw,’ I heard Mr. Quillet whisper to a lawyer who sat near him.

“‘Who is she?’ inquired the man to whom Quillet had addressed the remark.

“‘Miss Charlotte Wallingford, I believe – an adopted daughter of Mr. Rockland.’

“‘Well, Quillet, I indorse your judgment; I don’t think I ever saw such a perfect model of beauty before. What is she up to there? She seems to work as if she meant business.’

“‘She is examining the evidence in the Bramlett case; she is a stanch friend to the defendant; you were not here when the case was tried, I believe?’

“‘No.’

“‘Well, it is an interesting case, full of strange, romantic mystery. It is to be tried again next Thursday; so you will hear the evidence.’

“‘Quillet, if I could marry such a woman as that, I think I should be willing to surrender my bachelor freedom, and put my neck under old Hymen’s yoke.’

“‘Yes, no doubt of it; and I dare say I could find a brigade of men in this city who would do likewise; but you need not lay siege to that castle – that article is already bespoke.’

“‘How is that?’

“‘She is going to marry that tall, awkward booby yonder, leaning against that column – the one with the long, shaggy whiskers.’

“‘Well! well! there is no accounting for a woman’s taste. It is surpassingly strange that so glorious a beauty should take a fancy to such a bulk of humanity as that!’

“‘Hush!, hush! he is listening to us.’

“Then they continued the conversation in lower tones, so I could not hear any more.

“The court took a thirty minutes’ recess, which afforded me an opportunity to introduce Lottie; this I lost no time in doing.

“‘Miss Wallingford,’ observed the judge, as he courtesied to her and dropped into a seat by her side, ‘you seem to be deeply interested in those papers; may I inquire what they refer to?’

“‘Those papers refer to the evidence that was in the Bramlett case on the first trial,’ said Lottie, as her pretty eyes rested on the handsome countenance of the judge.

“‘Oh, yes; that is the case that was set for Thursday; a very strange case it is, indeed! You are the young lady who has been staying in the jail with Miss Bramlett?’

“‘Yes, sir; and I am a true friend to that young girl.’

“‘Well, Miss Bramlett ought to be proud of the friendship of such a lady; and I promise you that your friend shall have a fair and impartial trial. I suppose you will be present to witness the proceedings?’

“‘Oh, yes, I certainly shall attend the trial; I should have been present at the first trial, but I was very ill at the time. I have a little favor to ask of your Honor, which I hope you will grant – provided it is not against the rules of practice.’

“‘I beg you to name it, Miss Wallingford; and I promise in advance to grant it, if it is within my power, even if it requires a change of our rules.’

“‘I thank you sincerely, sir; I should like very much to have the privilege of cross-examining some of the State’s witnesses.’

“‘Oh, is that all? You shall cross-examine all of the State’s witnesses, if you like; and you may make a speech in defense of your friend, if you wish.’

“‘I have no inclination to make a speech – I am not a lawyer, but I have been studying Miss Bramlett’s case. There are some very peculiar points in it, with which Mr. Rockland is totally unacquainted; and I have other peculiar reasons for wishing to cross-examine some of the witnesses.’

“‘Mr. Quillet,’ said the judge, addressing that gentleman with a bland smile, ‘you had better look to your laurels, next Thursday, for I think you are going to encounter heavier mettle than usual.’

“‘A defeat caused by Miss Wallingford would be as good as a victory over an ordinary adversary.’

“‘You are quite complimentary, Mr. Quillet; you seem to understand the weakness of our sex; we all love flattery.’

“‘Candidly speaking, Miss Wallingford, I do most sincerely wish you may be able to furnish evidence enough to justify a jury in acquitting your friend.’

“‘Indeed, I thank you for your kind wish, and flatter myself that I shall be able to put a different feature on the case the next time from what it was on the first trial. On next Thursday I am going to unravel one of the strangest mysteries that ever was revealed in open court. I will make you think I am a real magician. Lucio made a duke out of a friar, and I will make a saint out of a murderess – that is, I will show a saint where everybody sees a demon.’

“‘May God speed you, Miss Wallingford,’ the judge replied; ‘you deserve success, whether you achieve it or not.’

CHAPTER XXXII

“The judge was so completely charmed by Lottie’s brilliant conversation and sparkling wit that he forgot all about the business of his court, and consequently the thirty minute recess was prolonged to an hour, and probably would have gone on indefinitely, but Mr. Quillet reminded him of the McCay case, which had been set for trial that day.

“‘Ah, yes, Mr. Quillet,’ said the judge, as he looked at his watch and rose from his seat, ‘I crave your pardon; I was so much fascinated with Miss Wallingford’s conversation that I had entirely lost sight of business. She is the most intellectual woman I ever met. Then her beauty is equal to her talent; the truth is, she is an animated library.’

“‘How could she be otherwise, after being tutored by old Rockland? I hope she is not as cold-hearted as that old iceberg.’

“‘No woman with such a face as hers ever possessed a cold heart, for I think she is the most beautiful woman I ever saw.’

“This conversation was carried on in an undertone, close to where I sat, and notwithstanding I had often heard extravagant encomiums passed on Lottie’s beauty and intellect, I felt a sensation of pleasure at hearing her praised by a man possessing such a solid mind as Judge Flipout. I could scarcely realize the favors that fortune had showered on me, by enabling me to win the heart of a woman whose brilliant mind and dazzling beauty had won the admiration of all who beheld her.

“‘The State vs. McCay,’ said the judge, as he resumed his seat and began to turn the leaves of the trial docket.

“‘Ready for the State,’ replied Mr. Quillet.

“‘Bring in the prisoner, Mr. Sheriff,’ observed the judge.

“That officer went into an antechamber and soon returned, followed by a pale-faced little man, whose emaciated appearance indicated the presence of severe illness. He was leaning on the arm of his wife, whose haggard features and sunken eyes exhibited unmistakable evidence of intense suffering. She held a sickly looking infant against her breast with one arm, while she supported her husband with the other. She was followed by two pale-faced little girls, about three years old, who clung to the tattered skirts of the faded calico dress worn by their mother. They were bright-eyed, pretty little timid twins, whose pinched features told a tale of want, misery and starvation as plain as print.

“‘Who is your attorney, Mr. McCay?’ inquired the judge, as he began to rub the left side of his nose with the forefinger of his left hand, which he always did when vexed about anything.

“‘I have no attorney, sir,’ replied the defendant meekly; ‘I did not have any money to pay a lawyer to defend me.’

“Lottie instantly rose and whispered to Colonel Buff, a lawyer of considerable reputation:

“‘Defend that unfortunate man, Colonel Buff, and I will compensate you liberally.’

“The attorney then stepped forward and announced himself as attorney for the defense.

“After the indictment was read, the prosecuting witness was ordered to take the stand. He was a large, red-faced man, with a hangdog look on his countenance, while an offensive scent of mean whisky and tobacco pervaded the atmosphere for ten feet in every direction from his filthy body. His evidence was in substance as follows:

“‘I was passing along the street near defendant’s residence with a wagon loaded with bacon, and when near his house, one of the wheels of the wagon broke down, causing one of the casks to roll out; falling against the curb-stone, it burst and scattered the meat on the ground. The defendant came and proposed to purchase a side of the bacon, stating that his wife and children were on the verge of starvation, caused by the sickness of himself and wife. I was at first disposed to make the trade with him, and perhaps would have done so, but I soon discovered that he did not have any money to pay for the meat. He begged me to sell it to him on a short credit, making at the same time a most solemn promise that he would pay me as soon as he got able to work. I of course declined to accept his proposition; he then offered to pawn his coat, hat and pocket-knife with me as a security that I should have the money. I rejected this nonsensical offer, and went away to get my wagon wheel mended at a shop hard by; when I returned I noticed that one of the sides of bacon had been cut, and a large piece of it was missing. I went immediately to the defendant’s residence, where I found the stolen bacon in a pot which was boiling on the fire. I took it, and, replacing it in the spot where it had been cut away, found it exactly fitted – consequently I knew it was my meat.’

“‘We rest our case here, if the court please,’ said Mr. Quillet, as the villainous looking witness retired from the stand.

“‘Have you any witnesses for the defense, Colonel Buff?’ inquired the judge.

“‘We will introduce Mrs. McCay for the defense,’ replied Buff.

“The poor woman staggered into the witness box, while the half-starved babe was vainly endeavoring to draw a little nourishment from her breast.

“‘Mrs. McCay,’ said Colonel Buff, ‘please tell the court and jury all you know about this case.’

“She wiped the fast falling tears from her pale cheeks with the sleeve of her tattered dress, and in a tremulous voice mingled with broken sobs, said:

“‘My husband is a railway engineer, and when he was able to work, we did not want for anything; but his health failed, and he was compelled to give up his situation; we did not suffer for food then until I fell ill. When we both lost our health, we were driven to the necessity of selling everything we had in order to buy provisions and medicines. Our condition continued to grow worse until we were driven to the very brink of starvation, when a beautiful angel visited our humble home, and furnished us everything necessary to make us comfortable. She continued to visit our house every day, supplying all our wants, and she engaged the services of a good, kind doctor, who came to see us often, and gave us his medicine and his kind attention. So long as that beautiful angel visited our home, my husband’s health continued to improve, because she not only furnished all the provisions and medicine that we needed, but she was such a kind, gentle nurse, that we all improved while she was with us; but they put the beautiful angel in jail, and she never came to visit us any more.’

“‘Edward, that was Viola,’ said Lottie, as she seized my arm and smiled through her tears; ‘Heaven bless that dear girl, do you think now she ever committed murder?’

“‘Before the great Creator, I declare she is not guilty!’

“Mrs. McCay paused a moment to wipe the tears away; while Flipout put the friction heavy on his nose.

“‘My father died,’ continued the witness, ‘leaving an estate of ten thousand dollars, and I, being his only child, was entitled to all the money, which (had I received it) would have placed us beyond the reach of want; but the money was paid into the hands of Mr. Anterson, the public administrator, who kept it and refused to pay it to me.’

“‘If the court please,’ said Mr. Quillet, ‘while I deeply sympathize with this unfortunate woman, I must insist that her statement cannot be admitted as evidence in this case.’

“‘I concur with my learned friend,’ said Colonel Buff, ‘and shall not insist on her statement as testimony unless she can tell us something directly bearing on the case.’

“Then, addressing the witness, Colonel Buff propounded the following question:

“‘Mrs. McCay, do you know anything about the slice of bacon that is alleged to have been stolen?’

“‘My husband brought home a small piece of bacon, telling me – ’

“‘Stop,’ said Quillet, ‘don’t tell anything about what your husband said.’

“‘Then I have nothing more to tell, if you refuse to hear what my husband said, though I know he did not steal the bacon.’

“‘How do you know he did not steal it?

“‘Because he told me so.’

“‘We ask your Honor to exclude what defendant said,’ exclaimed Quillet.

“‘Certainly,’ replied the judge, ‘the statements of defendant will not go to the jury.’

“‘Any more witnesses, Colonel Buff?’ inquired the court.

“After a hurried consultation with his client, the colonel rose and addressed the court:

“‘If your Honor please, I have advised the defendant to withdraw his plea of not guilty and throw himself on the mercy of the court, which he has consented to do. I have been induced to take this course because the jury could not, consistently with their oaths, acquit the prisoner in the face of the evidence. This is a case which appeals in the strongest terms to the mercy of the court, and I am sorry that your Honor does not possess the power to discharge the prisoner, because I do conscientiously believe the circumstances would justify your Honor in a course of that kind, and that you would not hesitate to do it if you had the legal authority.’

“‘Mr. McCay,’ said the judge, ‘have you any reason to urge against the sentence of the court?’

“The prisoner rose to his feet with trembling limbs, leaning against a table to steady himself, and said:

“‘The prosecuting witness has sworn falsely – I did not steal his bacon; he promised that if I would watch his property until he could go to the shop and get his wagon wheel mended he would give me enough of the meat for our dinner. I agreed to remain and watch the wagon until his return, and with this understanding he went away, leaving me with the property. Some time after he went away I cut off a few pounds of the bacon and carried it home, as I knew my little children were very hungry, intending to go immediately back to my post, but before I had time to return the witness came to my house in a great passion, and charged me with stealing the bacon.’

“As the unfortunate man resumed his seat, Flipout began to rub both sides of his nose furiously and said:

“‘The duty which the law imposes upon me in cases of this nature is a very painful one to perform. I cannot escape it, though much I wish I could. The court will take the liberty to say that the prosecuting witness in this case has shown himself to be a cruel, unfeeling wretch, and it is very sorry that it has not power to inflict upon him such punishment as his meanness so richly merits. The punishment in this case is about to fall on the wrong man, consequently the court will make it as light as possible. The sentence of the court is that the defendant be imprisoned in the penitentiary for two years.’

“Lottie now drew her chair near a table, seized a pen, and began to write very rapidly, and continued until she had covered two sheets of paper; then she directed me to hand it to the judge. He adjusted his spectacles and read the document.

“‘Mr. Quillet,’ said Flipout, ‘Miss Wallingford has prepared a truthful history of this case, with a petition asking the Governor to grant a pardon, and I shall sign it with a great deal of pleasure, and hope you will do likewise.’

“‘Indeed, sir, you could not ask me to do anything that would afford me more gratification.’

“The judge and Mr. Quillet placed their signatures to the paper, then every lawyer in the room promptly stepped forward and signed it.

“‘Now, Edward,’ said Lottie, ‘take this document to the telegraph office, have it sent by wire immediately at my expense, and tell them to send the answer to me without delay.’

“I gladly obeyed her instructions, and more than that, I hurried to Mr. Rockland’s office and prevailed on him to send a private dispatch to the Governor, requesting a favorable consideration of the petition, knowing that the Governor would do anything reasonable to accommodate his friend Rockland.

“As soon as I had sent off the dispatches I again made my appearance in the court-room, supposing Lottie would be ready to return home; but in that respect I was very much disappointed.

“‘The next case on the docket, Mr. Quillet, is the State against Anterson,’ said the judge.

“‘We are ready for the State,’ replied Quillet.

“‘Is the defendant in court, Mr. Sheriff?’

“‘Yes,’ replied a fat short man, whose skin appeared to be stretched to its utmost capacity in the effort to cover his ponderous body.

“Mr. Anterson then moved to the front with as much dignity as ever General Washington possessed, and announced himself ready for trial. He was exquisitely dressed in glossy black cloth, cut in the most approved style, while a large ring set with diamonds sparkled on one of his fingers, and a costly diamond pin glistened on his bosom. His boots were polished until they looked like the face of a mirror, and his hair was sleek, oily, and neatly combed; his little soft hands were as white as those of a delicate lady, and he was the most innocent, harmless looking little man I ever beheld. The indictment charged this innocent little man with embezzling the trifling sum of ninety thousand dollars of money belonging to sundry widows and orphans of the good city of Memphis, county of Shelby, State of Tennessee. Nineteen other bills of a similar character had been presented against that distinguished little gentleman, charging him with embezzlement. The fact is, he had made a clean sweep of something near three hundred thousand dollars of trust funds that had come into his hands as public administrator.

“‘Who are your attorneys in this case, Mr. Anterson?’ inquired his Honor.

“With a dignified wave of his hand he pointed toward a dozen lawyers who had assembled near their distinguished client.

“‘You seem to be well supplied with attorneys, sir,’ observed the judge, as he renewed the friction on his nose.

“‘My attorneys are not all present yet, sir,’ said the handsome little man, ‘but we can send for Mr. Rockland and Mr. Bullger, so as to have them here in a few minutes.’

“‘Are you ready to proceed with the case now, gentlemen?’ inquired Flipout, addressing the brigade of lawyers.

“‘I believe we are ready,’ replied Mr. Fullbrain, a red-faced lawyer, with large Roman nose, broad mouth and massive jaws. This distinguished lawyer was commonly called Hogjaw, which nickname had been suggested by the striking resemblance between his jaw and that of a fat Berkshire hog.

“‘We make a motion to quash the indictment in this case, if your Honor please,’ said Hogjaw, as he held the bill up before the court.

“‘State the grounds of your motion, if you please, Mr. Fullbrain,’ exclaimed the judge impatiently, as he began to warm up his nose with his finger, while his keen black eyes sparkled with anger.

“Mr. Quillet began to pace up and down the floor with his hands thrust deep in his pockets, while a defiant expression mantled his face. The clerks dropped their pens and moved to the front so as to witness the great brain-battle soon to be waged, while a motley crowd of idlers moved like an ocean wave toward the combatants, eager to view the interesting contest.

“Hogjaw surveyed the crowd for a moment, slowly running his eyes over the eager throng, as if inviting them to prepare for the intellectual banquet which he was about to dish out to them; then turning toward the court, he swelled out his brawny chest, as if taking in a supply of wind, which was to be converted into a terrific tornado, with which he expected to blow the attorney-general and his little bill of indictment out of the court-house.

“‘If your Honor please,’ began Hogjaw, ‘we think there is a fatal defect in this bill of indictment, a patent incurable defect which must appear as clear as the sun at noontide to the mind of an intelligent court. It is a source of indescribable regret to me, sir, to find such a glaring defect in this bill, as we would have greatly preferred to try this case on its merits, because we are happy to be able to inform your Honor that we are prepared to vindicate the innocence of our client. His distinguished reputation for honor and unblemished integrity – his lacerated feelings – his wounded pride – all cry aloud for redress. We feel an abiding confidence in our ability to clear our distinguished client with the brilliant array of witnesses who are ready to testify to his innocence, but we find the bill of indictment so fatally defective that we are driven to the necessity of making the motion to quash. We would gladly have avoided this course but for the duty which we owe to the legal profession, which tells us that such mistakes should not be encouraged or countenanced by lawyers who profess to have such a feeling as self-respect. Who is the man intended to be indicted under this bill? yes, who is the man? that is the question I dare to ask of this honorable court. This innocent, much injured man has been seized and ruthlessly dragged away from the bosom of his family, and treated as a common malefactor, all of which unpardonable wrongs have been inflicted upon him by the officers of the law acting under a mistaken belief that the grand jury had presented a bill of indictment, into open court against him. Now, sir, I boldly assert in the presence of this honorable court and high Heaven that no such thing has ever been done. A thing, a scrap of worthless paper, is filed here, which ignorant people might be deceived into believing was a bill of indictment, but you cannot cram such nonsense into the brains of sensible men. My client’s name is Anterson, which name I unhesitatingly assert cannot be spelled without a t, and if any man under the blue vault of Heaven will show me a t in connection with the name on this indictment, why, then, I promise to surrender the case. Doubtless the writer of this bill was endeavoring to make a t when that little deformed animal was made, but I have the temerity to assert that no gentleman with as much as a thimble full of brains in his head, or an ounce of self-respect in his heart, would undertake to call that animal a t in open court. So far as civilization extends, the English language is written and spoken, and that elegant language is composed of certain letters whose office it is to represent certain sounds. The twentieth letter in our alphabet is called t, which letter is made with a perpendicular stroke of the pen, then a horizontal stroke, making a cross near the top end of the upright line. Now we all know that the letter cannot be made without the cross. Your Honor is doubtless familiar with the wise and charming compositions of the celebrated poet Ramsquadlar, whose reputation is co-extensive with the world. That distinguished bard said: