“I stand here to fight for his life, and if I needed any spur beyond that of a sense of duty, I should find it in the thorough belief which I entertain of his innocence, and that notwithstanding that he has, for reasons of which I am not afraid to state I am ignorant, seen fit in the first instance to plead guilty. “Gentlemen of the jury, you have heard from the eloquent lips of the counsel for the prosecution the story of my client’s life. You have heard how, in a moment of unreasoning passion, he, the bearer of a high and noble name, married an ignorant and low-born gypsy girl. “Now, mark, gentlemen of the jury, this man who is accused of this crime. He did not--as, alas! too many men of his position have done--take advantage of the lowliness of this girl, use her as a toy, and as a toy tired of, throw her away; but, remembering his noble name and all that belonged to it, he married her. “Is that consistent with the story, gentlemen, of the prosecution? But let me proceed. Having soon after this marriage discovered the character of the woman he had made his wife; having found to his cost that he had committed a folly which must mar his life, what does he do? “Most men, as my learned friend truly said, would have rid themselves of what had become an unbearable burden But Lord Clydesfold, the prisoner, does not do this. Rather than drag the honored name of his forefathers in the mud, he elects to leave this woman, to drop the name which he had given her, and, providing for her every want--ay, and luxury--he separates from her, bargaining only that she shall leave him in peace. “I ask you, gentlemen, is this consistent with the guilt which the prosecution lays to his charge? Under this assumed name my client seeks refuge in this secluded spot. He does not dash into a life of dissipation, he does not seek forgetfulness in a reckless course of living, but he comes here, and for months leads the life of a student and of a gentleman. “The only notice that is bestowed upon him by his neighbors is that which is attracted by deeds of charity. It is impossible that such a man as my client should live, however much he might desire it, a life of seclusion. And though he shrank from making friends, friendships are, so to speak, thrust upon him. He is the honored guest of the highest and the best known of the inhabitants. “I think I shall not go too far when I say that I shall call witnesses who will speak of this man, not only with respect most deep and profound, but with affection. And this man you are asked to sentence to death for a crime of the most vulgar and sordid description. “What is the story? That this unfortunate woman came to Lord Clydesfold’s cottage on the night before her death, and demanded to see him. I shall not attempt to disprove the evidence of the servant or of Alford, who heard the deceased declare that her husband wished her death.