Viner himself proved the finding of the body; the
divisional surgeon spoke as to the cause of death; the dead man's
solicitor testified to his identity and swore positively as to the ring;
the pawnbroker gave evidence as to the prisoner's attempt to pawn or sell
the ring that morning. Finally, the police proved that on searching the
prisoner after his arrest, a knife was found in his hip-pocket which, in
the opinion of the divisional surgeon, would have caused the wound found
in the dead man's body. From a superficial aspect, no case could have
seemed clearer.
But in Viner's reckoning of things there was mystery. Two episodes
occurred during the comparatively brief proceedings which made him
certain that all was not being brought out. The first was when he himself
went into the witness-box to prove his discovery of the body and to swear
that the prisoner was the man he had seen running away from the passage.
The accused glanced at him with evident curiosity as he came forward; on
hearing Viner's name, he looked at him in a strange manner, changed
colour and turned his head away. But when a certain question was put to
Viner, he looked round again, evidently anxious to hear the answer.
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