The question touched him in a sensitive spot, and he writhed
under his feelings; but, accustomed to command himself before the public
eye, and alive to the pride of manhood, his mighty effort to suppress the
agony that loaded his heart was rewarded with success.
"Sorrow for my unoffending child; sorrow for him who had forgotten his
faith; and sorrow for them who have been at the root of this bitter
wrong," was the answer.
"This man has been accustomed to hear forgiveness preached to the
criminal, and he turns his schooling to good account," whispered the wary
judge to those near him. "We must try his guilt by other means. He may be
readier in reply than steady in his nerves."
Signing to the assistants, the Valaisan now quietly awaited the effect of
a new experiment. The pall was removed, and the body of Jacques Colis
exposed. He was seated as in life, on the table in front of the grand
altar.
"The innocent have no dread of those whose spirits have deserted the
flesh," continued the chatelain, "but God often sorely pricks the
consciences of the guilty, when they are made to see the works of their
own cruel hands.
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