When I heard of Father Peter's find I was glad, and no suspicion entered my mind; when I came home a day or two later and discovered that my own money was gone I still did not suspect until three circumstances connected with Father Peter's good fortune struck me as being singular coincidences.
Q.Pray name them.
A.Father Peter had found his money in a path--I had found mine in a road.Father Peter's find consisted exclusively of gold ducats--mine also.Father Peter found eleven hundred and seven ducats--I exactly the same.
This closed his evidence, and certainly it made a strong impression on the house; one could see that.
Wilhelm Meidling asked him some questions, then called us boys, and we told our tale.It made the people laugh, and we were ashamed.We were feeling pretty badly, anyhow, because Wilhelm was hopeless, and showed it.He was doing as well as he could, poor young fellow, but nothing was in his favor, and such sympathy as there was was now plainly not with his client.It might be difficult for court and people to believe the astrologer's story, considering his character, but it was almost impossible to believe Father Peter's.We were already feeling badly enough, but when the astrologer's lawyer said he believed he would not ask us any questions--for our story was a little delicate and it would be cruel for him to put any strain upon it--everybody tittered, and it was almost more than we could bear.Then he made a sarcastic little speech, and got so much fun out of our tale, and it seemed so ridiculous and childish and every way impossible and foolish, that it made everybody laugh till the tears came; and at last Marget could not keep up her courage any longer, but broke down and cried, and I was so sorry for her.
Now I noticed something that braced me up.It was Satan standing alongside of Wilhelm! And there was such a contrast! --Satan looked so confident, had such a spirit in his eyes and face, and Wilhelm looked so depressed and despondent.We two were comfortable now, and judged that he would testify and persuade the bench and the people that black was white and white black, or any other color he wanted it.We glanced around to see what the strangers in the house thought of him, for he was beautiful, you know--stunning, in fact--but no one was noticing him; so we knew by that that he was invisible.
The lawyer was saying his last words; and while he was saying them Satan began to melt into Wilhelm.He melted into him and disappeared; and then there was a change, when his spirit began to look out of Wilhelm's eyes.
That lawyer finished quite seriously, and with dignity.He pointed to the money, and said:
"The love of it is the root of all evil.There it lies, the ancient tempter, newly red with the shame of its latest victory--the dishonor of a priest of God and his two poor juvenile helpers in crime.If it could but speak, let us hope that it would be constrained to confess that of all its conquests this was the basest and the most pathetic."He sat down.Wilhelm rose and said:
"From the testimony of the accuser I gather that he found this money in a road more than two years ago.Correct me, sir, if I misunderstood you."The astrologer said his understanding of it was correct.
"And the money so found was never out of his hands thenceforth up to a certain definite date--the last day of last year.Correct me, sir, if Iam wrong."
The astrologer nodded his head.Wilhelm turned to the bench and said:
"If I prove that this money here was not that money, then it is not his?""Certainly not; but this is irregular.If you had such a witness it was your duty to give proper notice of it and have him here to--" He broke off and began to consult with the other judges.Meantime that other lawyer got up excited and began to protest against allowing new witnesses to be brought into the case at this late stage.
The judges decided that his contention was just and must be allowed.
"But this is not a new witness," said Wilhelm."It has already been partly examined.I speak of the coin.""The coin? What can the coin say?"
"It can say it is not the coin that the astrologer once possessed.It can say it was not in existence last December.By its date it can say this."And it was so! There was the greatest excitement in the court while that lawyer and the judges were reaching for coins and examining them and exclaiming.And everybody was full of admiration of Wilhelm's brightness in happening to think of that neat idea.At last order was called and the court said:
"All of the coins but four are of the date of the present year.The court tenders its sincere sympathy to the accused, and its deep regret that he, an innocent man, through an unfortunate mistake, has suffered the undeserved humiliation of imprisonment and trial.The case is dismissed."So the money could speak, after all, though that lawyer thought it couldn't.The court rose, and almost everybody came forward to shake hands with Marget and congratulate her, and then to shake with Wilhelm and praise him; and Satan had stepped out of Wilhelm and was standing around looking on full of interest, and people walking through him every which way, not knowing he was there.And Wilhelm could not explain why he only thought of the date on the coins at the last moment, instead of earlier; he said it just occurred to him, all of a sudden, like an inspiration, and he brought it right out without any hesitation, for, although he didn't examine the coins, he seemed, somehow, to know it was true.That was honest of him, and like him; another would have pretended he had thought of it earlier, and was keeping it back for a surprise.