'Mrs. Leigh, at times, exhibited signs of deep remorse; _at least so Lady Byron interpreted them to be_, though she does not mean to aver that the feelings Mrs. Leigh then showed were signs of remorse for the commission of the crime alluded to, or any other of so dark a description.' But Lady Byron, under Lushington's skilful hand, protects herself against the possibility of legal proceedings for defamation of character by these words: 'This paper does not contain, nor pretend to contain, any of the grounds which give rise _to the suspicion_ which has existed, and still continues to exist, in Lady Byron's mind. Her statement is made in order to justify Lady Byron ... _in case Mrs. Leigh should be proved hereafter to be guilty_.' As this statement was made after Lady Byron's interview with Dr. Lushington (when he decided to take no part in any attempt at reconciliation), it is perfectly clear that the alleged incriminating letters were not considered as conclusive evidence against Mrs. Leigh. Although they were sufficient to detach Lushington from the party of reconciliation, it was not considered wise to produce them as evidence in 1869, at a time when a strong revulsion of feeling had set in against Lady Byron. The clear legal brain of Sir Alexander Cockburn, trained to appraise evidence, saw through the flimsy pretext which had deceived an equally great lawyer. Time instructs us, and much has come to light in this so-called 'Byron mystery,' since Lady Byron beguiled Lushington. Among other things, we now know, on Lord Lovelace's authority, that Lady Byron was afraid that her child would be taken from her by Byron, and placed under the care of Mrs. Leigh. We also know, on the authority of Hobhouse,[69] that Lady Byron's representatives distinctly disavowed, on Lady Byron's behalf, having spread any rumours injurious to Lord Byron's character in that respect, and also stated that a charge of incest would not have been made part of her allegations if she had come into court. This disavowal was signed by Lady Byron herself, and was witnessed by Mr. Wilmot. It is certain that Lord Byron would have gone into a court of law to meet that charge, and that he refused to agree to a separation until that assurance had been given. This grave charge was still in abeyance in 1816; it was not safe to speak of it until after Byron's death, and then only under the seal of secrecy. 'Upon one contingency only,' wrote Sir Francis Doyle in 1830--'namely, the taking from Lady Byron of her child, and placing her under the care of Mrs. Leigh--would the disclosure have been made of Lady Byron's grounds for _suspecting_ Mrs. Leigh's guilt.'