British -- Cuba -- Fiction; Cuba -- History -- Revolution, 1895-1898 -- Fiction
“The one upon the head was evidently caused by a fall upon a stone,
which would, I think, alone have produced insensibility,” he said. “The
one upon the cheek was apparently the result of a blow from a stick, but
it might have been occasioned by a fall.”
“Would either of the blows alone have occasioned death?” asked a
juryman.
“Not directly,” said the doctor. “The cause of death was exhaustion
resulting from immersion. A man who fell upon the boulders beneath the
bridge and rolled into the water would be very likely to succumb in that
fashion.”
Two servants from the hall were called, and then Tony’s man. “I saw Mr.
Appleby go out,” he said. “It was about eleven o’clock, but might have
been later. He took something from a rack which held sticks and riding‐
whips. He usually did take a stick. What do I mean by usually? Well, he
would walk down the avenue and home by the footpath now and then just
before he went to his room at night. I heard him come in about half an
hour later. I noticed mud on his shoes and trousers next morning; but he
would have to cross a wet place before he reached the lawn.”
Everybody seemed satisfied; but there was a little murmur when Miss
Wayne appeared, and somewhat indignant glances were cast upon Sergeant
Stitt. She wore a veil, but she removed it when she turned to the jury;
and it was in a clear, cold voice, which had a trace of haughtiness in
it, she answered the questions asked her.
“I am. I believe, the last person Mr. Appleby spoke to before he went
out,” she said. “So far as I noticed he did not appear disturbed or in
any way irritated. I met him at the head of the stairway.”
“Was the meeting accidental?”
A faint trace of color crept into the girl’s cheek, but it was in a
clear, even voice she said: “He had given me to understand that he
wished to see me.”
“Had he anything in particular to say to you?”
One or two of the jury made it evident that they considered the question
in bad taste, but there was a curious silence when it was seen that the
witness hesitated.
“He asked me for ten pounds,” she said.
Tony gasped when this was told him, and felt his face grow a trifle
warm, while a little thrill of indignation ran through him. He had been
pleased to see his friend and sweetheart on good terms, but that one
should borrow ten pounds from the other suggested a degree of intimacy
he had not contemplated.
“Do you know why he wanted the money?” asked the coroner.
The girl looked at him steadily, and nobody saw that her hands were
trembling. “No,” she said coldly. “That is, I do not know exactly. I
had, however, asked him to do me a favor which might cost a little
money, and surmised that he needed some. It was not quite certain that I
should see him on the morrow.”
“What was the favor?”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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