The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 216: what you’re looking at

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

CHAPTER XXIII AN INTERVIEW IN NEWGATE NEARLY two months and a half had now elapsed since the Honourable Arthur Eaton was committed to Newgate, to await his trial on the. charge of murdering his valet William Dudley. We must remind our readers that when the investigation of that dark and mysterious tragedy took place at Bow Street, Mr. Eaton addressed the magistrate in the following manner: ‘‘ I can only say that I am innocent of this foul deed which is imputed to me. That a tremendous mass of circumstantial evidence has accumulated against me, I readily admit; but there is a key to the reading of this terrible mystery, a clue to the unravelling of this skein of incidents, at present so tangled and so complicated. That is, however, my secret for the present; useless and unavailing were it to enter upon any explanations at this moment or in this place. No, for a more solemn occasion and a higher tribunal shall be reserved a narrative the details of which will cause every heart to thrill with horror throughout the land, and turn into sympathy and commiseration the loathing and abhorrence which in the meantime may attach them- selves unto me.”’ It will be readily understood that Arthur Eaton alluded, in this address, to the bitter persecution which he had experienced at the hands of Fernanda, and every detail of which he purposed to reveal in self-defence at the proper time. But in those days of which we are writing, the newspapers were of diminutive size, and their reports of cases were necessarily limited and brief. It therefore happened that the whole of Arthur Eaton’s address to the magistrate was omitted; and not the slightest reference was made to his 190 . Eomicbooks-co m