Egypt -- Description and travel -- Humor; London (England) -- Description and travel -- Humor; Voyages and travels -- Humor
First Expert--"Your Honor, I never saw the prisoner before, and I had
no personal acquaintance with the dog, but I am convinced that he stole
the dog, and I will tell you why. You know, of course, that another
man has confessed to stealing the dog. My theory, evolved after much
thought, is that the man who confessed did not steal the dog at all,
but that the dog was stolen by the defendant, who disguised himself so
as to resemble the man who has confessed. (Great sensation.) There
seems to be a universal admission that the man who stole the dog was a
brunette. Some people claim that this fact points to the innocence of
the defendant, who is a blonde; but my theory is that the defendant
dyed his hair and whiskers so as to cause them to resemble the hair and
whiskers of a certain innocent man, then he borrowed a suit of the
innocent man's clothes and went and stole the dog, and the resemblance
was so perfect that even the innocent man and the dog were both
deceived. The innocent man thought that he, and not the defendant, had
stolen the dog, so he confessed and then ran away. But I am here to
save him in spite of his confession. I maintain that if this defendant
were to dye his hair and whiskers and put on a suit of clothes
belonging to the man who has confessed to stealing the dog, then to
anyone a short distance away he would bear a striking resemblance to
the man who has confessed. Therefore the dog was not stolen by the man
who has confessed, but by this infamous defendant cleverly disguised to
resemble the man who has confessed."
The Court--"Then you think he is guilty?"
Expert Witness--"If there is anything in my theory, it is simply
impossible for him to be innocent."
The Court--"Much obliged. Call the next witness."
Next Witness--"I would like to state to the court that the defendant is
not very well liked down in our neighbourhood, where he formerly
resided, and if the court will only convict him it will be a distinct
personal favour to several of us."
The Court--"Do you think him guilty?"
Next Witness--"I haven't the slightest doubt of it. Neither has my
wife. I have been convinced of his guilt ever since I heard him say
one morning, 'I have something to do this afternoon.' It is evident to
my mind that when he said, 'I have something to do this afternoon,' he
meant, 'I am going to steal a dog this afternoon.'" (Sensation.)
The Court--"Then you are quite sure that he did steal the dog?"
Next Witness--"Of course."
The Court--"Are there any other witnesses?"
Prisoner--"I have several witnesses here who saw the other man steal
the dog. I can prove that at the time of the stealing I was ten miles
away, attending a picnic. I can prove, also, that I didn't need a dog;
that I never liked dogs; that I had no earthly motive for stealing a
dog; and that from the time of my first accusation I have consistently
and emphatically denied any knowledge of the crime."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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