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Page 79
When quiet had been fully restored Maitland continued:
"I was about to say when the interruption occurred that Mr. Clinton
Browne and Mr. Charles Herne would both testify to the fact that a
very sensible time elapsed between the delivery of the blow and the
death of the victim. You will see, therefore, that I shall prove to
your satisfaction that Mr. Darrow's death did not result from prussic
acid, as stated by the prisoner. I shall show you that a chemical
analysis of the wound made in my laboratory shortly after the murder
gave none of the well-known prussic-acid reactions. I shall prove
to you that John Darrow sprang to his feet after receiving the blow
which caused his death. That he clutched at his throat, and that,
after an effort consuming several seconds, he spoke disjointedly.
I shall convince you that if he had been poisoned in the manner
described he would have been dead before he could have so much as
raised his hand to his throat. We have been very particular to
make sure the exact nature of the poison which it is claimed was
used, so there can be no possible doubt upon this point. I shall
show you further that the little Capucin monkey which M. Latour says
he killed is still alive, and I will produce him, if necessary, and
will challenge M. Latour, or anyone else for that matter, to put him
through the drill which it is claimed he has been taught. I shall
inform you that, since I claim the monkey had no part in Mr. Darrow's
death, I could not, during my examination of the prisoner, have been
stating anything from knowledge when I spoke of the manner in which
he had trained the animal, and gave details which M. Latour accepted
as those of the murder. My sole effort was to state a plausible way,
in order to see if the prisoner would not adopt it as the actual
course pursued. I also coupled with this the killing of the monkey
(though I knew the animal was still alive), that I might see if M.
Latour would follow my lead in this also. You have seen that he did
so; that he indorsed my guesses where they were purely guesses, and
that he also accepted the one statement I knew to be false. I shall
therefore ask you to consider about what the chances are that a
series of guesses like those which I made would represent the exact
facts as M. Latour has claimed, while at the same time you do not
lose sight of the undeniable fact that upon the only detail regarding
which I had positive information, M. Latour bore false testimony."
Here Maitland whispered to Jenkins, who in turn spoke to the sheriff
or some other officer of the court. I would have given a good deal
just then to have been able to translate M. Godin's thoughts. His
face was a study. Maitland immediately resumed:
"It has been positively stated by M. Latour that he gambled with Mr.
Darrow on Decatur Street between the 1st and 15th day of March. This
is false. In the first place it can be shown that while Mr. Darrow
occasionally played cards at his own home, he never gambled,
uniformly refusing to play for even the smallest stake. Furthermore,
Mr. Darrow's physician will testify that Mr. Darrow was confined
to his bed from the 25th day of February to the 18th day of March,
and that he visited him during that time at least once, and oftener
twice, every day.
"Again; M. Latour asserts that he never saw M. Godin till the day
of his arrest, and M. Godin asserts that he never entered M. Latour's
rooms until that day. I have a photograph and here a phonographic
record. The picture shows M. Latour's rooms with that gentleman and
M. Godin sitting at a table and evidently engaged in earnest
conversation. This cylinder is a record of a very interesting
portion of that conversation--M. Godin will please not leave the
room!"
This last was said as M. Godin started toward the door. The officer
to whom Jenkins had recently spoken laid his hand upon the detective
and detained him. "We may need M. Godin," Maitland continued, "to
explain things to us.
"I invite your attention to the fact that M. Godin has testified
that he was assisted in his search for Mr. Darrow's murderer by
certain library slips which he saw M. Latour make out in two
different names. He has also testified that he did not know even
the names of any of the books procured on these slips, and that
one of them, entitled 'Poisons, Their Effects and Detection,' he
not only never read, but never even heard of. I shall show you
that all of these books were procured with M. Godin's knowledge,
and that most of them were read by him. I shall prove to you
beyond a doubt that he has not only heard of this particular work
on poisons, but that he has read it and placed his unmistakable
signature on page 469 thereof beside the identical paragraph which
suggested to Mr. Darrow's murderer the manner of his assassination!"
M. Godin started as if he had been stabbed, but quickly regained
his self-control as Maitland continued: "Here is the volume in
question. You will please note the thumb-mark in the margin of page
469. There is but one thumb in the world that could have made that
mark, and that is the thumb you have seen register itself upon this
letter. It is also the thumb that made this paint smutch upon this
slip of glass."
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