The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 224: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

194 THE COURT OF LONDON bewildering thoughts which had thus swayed him from the moment when Counsellor Sharply first put the question above alluded to, all tended to prejudice him sorely in the eyes of the magistrate and strengthen the suspicions which every one present had already entertained against him. “Well, I see that I must not hope for any satisfactory replies from this gentleman,” said the barrister. ‘ But I will yet ask him one more question,’ he continued, in a sinister tone; ‘‘ and that is, how it was likely to happen that William Dudley was murdered with his own knife? ”’ “With his own knife! ’’ repeated Arthur Eaton, in an amazement which was truly most unfeigned, but which was easily mistaken for the sudden excitement and alarm attendant on the discovery of an incident associated with conscious guilt. “Yes, with his own knife,” reiterated Counsellor Sharply. ‘““ May I request your worship to produce and inspect the weapon? ” | And while the magistrate was complying with this demand, a silence so breathless pervaded the court that a pin might have been heard to drop. And Rose Foster could hear the palpitations of her own heart as it beat violently and rapidly in the virgin bosom that remained upheaved and motionless with a profound suspense. ‘“T observe upon the handle of this knife,” at length said the magistrate, “ the initials W. D.”’ A murmur of surprise, mingled with the profoundest interest, passed through the court; and nearly all eyes were instantaneously turned upon Rose Foster, as much as to assure her that she would soon be proved innocent. Then those looks were in another moment all centred on Arthur Eaton, who was so amazed by this new incident that he felt as if he were floundering in the mazes of a troubled dream where horror, peril, and wonder were all confusedly blended. For the inference to be deduced from the circumstance respecting the knife was too clear not to strike him, as well as everybody present. It seemed to show that inasmuch as Dudley was proved by the surgeon to have been murdered, and had not committed suicide, it could only have been some one closely connected with him, or living in the same house, who could have obtained possession of that weapon where- with the murder was accomplished. CONMICLOO© re) S (CO)