XII THE HALLS OF JUSTICE 247 



right to issue special permits for scientific purposes, and 

 produced letters from the authorities of the British Museum 

 asking me to collect specimens for them. As regarded what 

 prevented me from doing the dirty tricks the prosecutor had 

 hinted at, I said that there was one thing which would 

 prevent my ever committing them, and although it was no 

 uncommon thing, still it was something which this man had 

 clearly shown himself utterly unable to appreciate or under- 

 stand, and that was simply the word of honour of an English 

 gentleman. I believe that he thought I was going to throw 

 myself on the mercy of the court. But, continuing my 

 address, I detailed how this man had seized my private 

 papers, how he had opened a letter lying in my tent 

 addressed to a friend, how he had accepted a post of trust to 

 bring a letter from Hanbury to me, and had then opened 

 and read that letter, which he still had in his possession, and 

 how finally he had the audacity to tell me that he found the 

 duty of arresting gentlemen for breaking the game laws 

 repugnant to him. 



I concluded with these words : "It appears to me that a 

 man who can stoop to such measures to obtain evidence, and 

 adopt means which I verily believe the lowest street car 

 ' spotter ' in New York, or detective on the track of a 

 criminal in my own country, would hesitate to employ, can 

 find nothing on God's earth which would be repugnant to 

 his nature. And furthermore, if he could produce anything 

 in the shape of evidence to show that I have in the slightest 

 degree infringed the laws of this country, or abused the 

 courtesy extended to me by the authorities at Washington, 

 then it is not before such a court as this that I ought to be 

 standing, but rather before a court de lunatico inquirendo, for 

 I should fear that my sanity must be very much in danger." 



