Fardorougha, The Miser: The Works of William Carleton, Volume OneCarleton, William
General
Fardorougha, The Miser: The Works of William Carleton, Volume One
Carleton, William
Ireland -- Social life and customs -- Fiction
At length the trial came on, and our unhappy prisoner, at the hour of
eleven o'clock, was placed at the bar of his country to stand the brunt
of a government prosecution. Common report had already carried abroad
the story of Una's love and his, many interesting accounts of which had
got into the papers of the day. When he stood forward, therefore, all
eyes were eagerly riveted upon him; the judge glanced at him with calm,
dispassionate scrutiny, and the members of the bax, especially the
juniors, turned round, surveyed him through their glasses with a gaze
in which might be read something more than that hard indifference which
familiarity with human crime and affliction ultimately produces even in
dispositions most human and amiable. No sooner had the curiosity of the
multitude been gratified, than a murmur of pity, blended slightly with
surprise and approbation, ran lowly through the court-house. One of
the judges whispered a few words to his brother, and the latter again
surveyed Connor with a countenance in which were depicted admiration
and regret. The counsel also chatted to each other in a low tone,
occasionally turning round and marking his deportment and appearance
with increasing interest.
Seldom, probably never, had a more striking, perhaps a more noble
figure, stood at the bar of that court. His locks were rich and brown;
his forehead expansive, and his manly features remarkable for their
symmetry; his teeth were regular and white, and his dark eye full of a
youthful lustre, which the dread of no calamity could repress. Neither
was his figure, which was of the tallest, inferior in a single point to
so fine a countenance. As he stood, at his full height of six feet, it
was impossible not to feel deeply influenced in his favor, especially
after having witnessed the mournful but dignified composure of his
manner, equally remote from indifference or dejection. He appeared,
indeed, to view in its proper light the danger of the position in which
he stood, but he viewed it with the calm, unshrinking energy of a
brave man who is always prepared for the worst. Indeed, there might be
observed upon his broad, open brow a loftiness of bearing such as is not
unfrequently produced by a consciousness of innocence, and the natural
elevation of mind which results from a sense of danger; to which we may
add that inward scorn which is ever felt for baseness, by those who are
degraded to the necessity of defending themselves against the villany of
the malignant and profligate.
When called upon to plead to the indictment, he uttered the words “not
guilty” in a full, firm and mellow voice, that drew the eyes of the
spectators once more upon him, and occasioned another slight hum of
sympathy and admiration. No change of color was observable on his
countenance, or any other expression, save the lofty composure to which
we have just alluded.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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