Capital punishment -- Fiction; Chicago (Ill.) -- Fiction; Criminals -- Fiction; Prisoners -- Fiction
“Then the judge give them a few minutes recess for ever’body to walk
around a little, and ever’one looked at me, just as they’d done all the
time. When they come to order the judge told us to go on with our side.
My lawyer turned to me and said he didn’t see what use it was to prove
anything, and we might just as well let the case go the way it was. I
said I ought to go on the stand and tell about that paper, and how it
was nothin’ but the one that come around the beef, and he said they
wouldn’t believe me if I said it. And anyhow it wouldn’t make any
difference. If I once got on the stand they’d get me all mixed up and
the first thing I knew I’d tell ‘em all about ever’thing, and so far as
witnesses went he couldn’t find anyone to do me any good.
“I thought ‘twould look pretty bad not to give any evidence at all, and
he said he knew that but ‘twould look a mighty sight worse if we put any
in. So my lawyer got up and ever’one watched to see what he was goin’ to
do, and then he just said ‘May it please the court, we have concluded
not to put in any evidence.’ And ever’one commenced to whisper, and to
look at me, and to look ‘round, and the judge looked queer and kind of
satisfied, and said then if there was no evidence on our side they would
take a recess till mornin’ when they could argue the case. Of course,
after I went back to the cell and got to thinkin’ it over I could see
that it was all off more’n ever, but I didn’t see that the lawyer could
have done any different.”
* * * * *
Here Jim got up and went to the grating and called to the guard.
“I’m gettin’ a little tired and fagged out and it ain’t worth while to
go to bed. Won’t you just give me some more whiskey?”
The guard came up to the door. “Of course, you can have all the whiskey
you want,” he said. “Here’s a bottle I’ve just fetched up from the
office. You’d better drink that up and then I’ll get you some more.”
Jim took a long drink at the bottle, and then passed it to his friend.
Hank was glad to have something to help him through the ordeal, which
had been hard for him to bear.
Presently the guard came back to the grating and asked Jim what he
wanted for breakfast.
“It ain’t breakfast time yet, is it?” Jim gasped.
“No, but I’m going to the office after a while and I want to give the
order when I go. You’d better tell me now. You can have ‘most anything
you want. You can have ham and eggs, or bacon or steak, and tea or
coffee, and bread and butter and cakes; or all of ‘em—or anything else
you want.”
“Well, I guess you’d better bring me ham and eggs. I don’t seem to care
for steak, and I don’t think I want any coffee. I’d rather have a
cocktail. You’d better bring me plenty more whiskey too when you come.
You know I hain’t slept any and I’m kind of nervous. I guess it’ll be
better if I don’t know much about it; don’t you?”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account