Now, judge! says he, speaking as one who has command of the situation, and you twelve of the jury! heres a witness that is likely to let a gleam of daylight into your deliberations.
Now, judge! says he, speaking as one who has command of the situation, and you twelve of the jury! heres a witness that is likely to let a gleam of daylight into your deliberations.
An exclamation is heard, followed by the words, O God, it is he! A tall man staggers forward, and stands by the side of the Headless Horseman. It is his father!
A cry proceeds from a more distant point a scream suddenly suppressed, as if uttered by a woman before fainting. It is his sister!
Zeb Stump is officially directed to take his place in the witness-box.
The old hunter is called to tell what he knows of the affair.
I first heard of this ugly business on the second day after young Poindexter was missing. Heard there was a suspicion about the mustanger having committed the murder. I knew he wasnt the man to do such; but, to be satisfied, rode out to his hut to see him. He wasnt at home, though his man Phelim was; so scared about one thing and the other he could give no clear account of anything.
Well, while we were talking, in came the dog, with something tied round his neck the which, on being examined, proved to be the mustangers card. There were words on it; wrote in red ink, which I thought to be blood.
Those words told to whosoever should read them, where the young fellow was to be found.
I went there, taking Phelim and the hound along with me.
We got to the ground just in time to save the mustanger from the jaguar.
He was out of his senses. We took him home; and there he stayed, till the searchers came to the shanty and found him.
The witness gives a full and particular account of everything that occurred up to the time of the prisoner being incarcerated in the guard-house.
Now, says he, as soon as the cross-questioning comes to a close, since youve made me tell all I know about that part of the business, theres something you havent thought of asking, and the which Im bound to tell you.
Proceed, Mr Stump! says he of San Antonio.
Well, what Im going to say now hasnt so much to do with the prisoner at the bar, as with a man that in my opinion ought to be standing in his place. I wont say who that man is. Ill tell you what I know, and have found out, and then you of the jury may reckon it up for yourselves.
There is an impression that the old hunter can unravel the mystery of the murder. That of the Headless Horseman no longer needs unravelling.
Thinking as I did that the Irish was innocent, I became determined to discover the truth. And so I went to the prairie to have a squint[61] at the sign.
I knew there must be horse-tracks leading to the place, and horse tracks going from it; and there were too many of them, going everywhere.
But there was one particular set that I determined to follow up to the end.
They were the footmarks of an American horse, having one shoe[62] with a bit broken off the end of it. Heres the identical piece of iron!
The witness draws his hand from the pocket of his blanket coat, in which it has been some time buried. In the fingers are seen the shoe of a horse, only three quarters complete.
The horse that carried this shoe went across the prairie the same night that the murder was committed. He went after the man that was murdered, as well as him that stands there accused of it. He went right upon the track of both, and stopped short of the place where the crime was committed.
But the man that rode him didnt stop short. He kept on till he was close up to the bloody spot; and it was through him it afterwards became bloody. It was the third horse him with the broken shoe that carried the murderer!
The man Im speaking of took stand in the thicket, from which stand he fired the shot that killed poor young Poindexter.
What man? Who was it? Give his name! simultaneously interrogate twenty voices.
I reckon youll find it there.
Where?
Where! In that body as sits without a head!
The old hunter suggests taking out the bullet that is still inside the body.
Nobody objects. Two or three of the spectators Sam Manly one of them step forward; and proceed to remove the serape.
Around the waist twice twined around it is a piece of plaited rope. Before and behind, it is fastened to the projections of the saddle. By it is the body retained in its upright attitude. Everything as the accused has stated.
Two bullet holes are seen; one over the region of the heart; the other piercing the breast-bone just above the abdomen.
It, says Zeb Stump, pointing to the smaller, it signifies nothing. Its the bullet I fired myself. You observe theres no blood about it: which proves that it was a dead body when it entered. The other is different. It was the shot as killed him; and if Im not mistaken, youll find the bit of lead still inside of the corpse.
With respectful carefulness the body is laid at full length along the grass. The operators stoop silently over it Sam Manly acting as the chief.
A leaden bullet is extracted; and submitted to the examination of the jury.
There is still discernible the outlines of a stamped crescent, and the letters C.C.
Whats your explanation, Mr Stump? asks the counsel for the accused.
Dont need much, I reckon, is the reply. Its clear as the light of day, that young Poindexter was shot by that very bullet.
By whom?
Well; that appears to be equally clear. When a man signs his name to a message, theres no chance of mistaking who it comes from. Theres only the initials there; but theyre plain enough, I reckon, and speak for themselves.
I see nothing in all this, interposes the prosecuting counsel. Theres a marked bullet, it is true with a symbol and certain letters, which may, or may not, belong to a gentleman well known in the Settlement. For the sake of argument, let us suppose them to be his. What of that? It wouldnt be the first time that a murder has been committed by one who has first stolen his weapon, and then used it to accomplish the deed.
What do you call this? asks Stump, who has been impatiently awaiting the end of the lawyers speech.
Zeb takes from his pocket a piece of paper crumpled and scorched along the edges.
This I found, says he, stuck fast on the thorn of a tree. It came out of the same gun as discharged that bullet to which it had served for wadding. Theres a name on it, which has a curious corresponding with the initials on the bit of lead. The jury can read the name for themselves.
The foreman[63] takes the scrap of paper; and, smoothing it out, reads aloud
Captain Cassius Calhoun!
The announcement of the name produces a vivid impression upon the Court.
It is accompanied by a cry sent up by the spectators. It is not a cry of surprise. It has a double meaning: at once proclaiming the innocence of the accused, and the guilt of him who has been the most zealous amongst the accusers.
The scrap of paper is the last link in the chain of evidence; and, though the motive is an inconceivable mystery, there is now scarce any one who has a doubt about the doer of the deed.
After a short time spent in examining the envelope the witness who has hinted at having something more to tell, is directed to continue his narration.
He proceeds to give an account of his suspicions those that originally prompted him to seek for sign upon the prairie. He tells of the shot fired by Calhoun from the copse; and of the chase that succeeded. Last of all, he describes the scene in the chapparal, where the Headless Horseman has been caught giving this latest episode in all its details, with his own interpretation of it.
The eyes of the auditory are no longer fixed upon him.
Let the Irishman go he is innocent! We dont want any farther evidence. Were convinced of it. Let him go free!
Such is the talk that proceeds from the excited spectators.
Let Cassius Calhoun be arrested, and put upon his trial! Its he thats done the deed! Thats why hes shown so bitter against the other! If hes innocent, hell be able to prove it. Come, judge; order Mr Calhoun to be brought before the Court.
The judge dares not refuse compliance with a proposal so energetically urged: and, despite the informality, Cassius Calhoun is called upon to come before the Court.
The summons of the crier, thrice loudly pronounced, receives no response; and all eyes go in search of Calhoun.
The spectators catch sight of a man, moving among the horses that stand over the plain.
Proceeding stealthily, as if to avoid being observed, he moves at a rapid rate.
It is he! It is Calhoun! cries the voice of one who has recognised him.
Trying to steal off! proclaims another.
Follow him! shouts the judge. Follow, and bring him back!
Giving a wild glance backward, Calhoun heads his horse towards the prairie going off at a gallop.
Scores of men rush simultaneously towards their horses.
1) What did the footmarks that Zeb had found testify?
2) How many bullet holes were there in the corpse? Why?
3) What was inscribed on the bullet extracted from the body?
4) What was the last evidence against Cassius Calhoun? What effect did it produce?
Chapter Twenty-Six
The first use Maurice the mustanger makes of his liberty is to rush towards the horse late ridden by the headless rider as all know his own.
The animal recognises its master; proclaims it by giving utterance to a glad neigh.
In the next instant Maurice is on the back of the blood-bay, with the bridle in his grasp.
The spectators stand gazing after. There is no longer a doubt as to the result. The wish, almost universal, has become a universal belief. God has decided that the assassin shall not escape; but that he will be overtaken, captured, and brought back before the tribunal by the man, so near suffering death through his perjured testimony.[64]
A lady strains her eyes through the curtains of a carriage her glance telling of a thought different that felt by the common spectators.
In her eye, still showing sadness, there is a gleam of triumph as it follows the pursuer tempered with mercy, as it falls upon the pursued.