X + 

The Trial + 

To fathom the mind of the Woman of Gratz is no easy task, and one not to be lightly undertaken. Remembering her obscure beginning, the bare-legged child drinking in revolutionary talk in the Transylvanian kitchen, and the development of her intellect along unconventional linesвБ†вАФremembering, also, that early in life she made acquaintance with the extreme problems of life and death in their least attractive forms, and that the proportion of things had been grossly distorted by her teachers, you may arrive at a point where your vacillating judgment hesitates between blame and pity. + 

I would believe that the power of introspection had no real place in her mental equipment, else how can we explain her attitude towards the man whom she had once defied and reconcile those outbursts of hers, wherein she called for his death, for his terrible punishment, wherein, too, she allowed herself the rare luxury of unrestrained speech, how can we reconcile these tantrums with the fact that this manвАЩs voice filled her thoughts day and night, the recollection of this manвАЩs eyes through his mask followed her every movement, till the image of him became an obsession? + 

It may be that I have no knowledge of women and their ways (there is no subtle smugness in the doubt I express) and that her inconsistency was general to her sex. It must not be imagined that she had spared either trouble or money to secure the extermination of her enemies, and the enemies of the Red Hundred. She had described them, as well as she could, after her first meeting, and the sketches made under her instruction had been circulated by the officers of the Reds. + 

Sitting near the window of her house, she mused, lulled by the ceaseless hum of traffic in the street below, and half dozing. + 

The turning of the door-handle woke her from her dreams. + 

It was Schmidt, the unspeakable Schmidt, all perspiration and excitement. His round coarse face glowed with it, and he could scarcely bring his voice to tell the news. + 

вАЬWe have him! we have him!вАЭ he cried in glee, and snapped his fingers. вАЬOh, the good news!вБ†вАФI am the first! Nobody has been, Little Friend? I have run and have taken taxisвБ†вАФвАЭ + 

вАЬYou haveвБ†вАФwhom?вАЭ she asked. + 

вАЬThe manвБ†вАФone of the men,вАЭ he said, вАЬwho killed Starque and Fran√Іois, andвБ†вАФвАЭ + 

вАЬWhichвБ†вАФwhich man?вАЭ she said harshly. + 

He fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a discoloured sketch. + 

вАЬOh!вАЭ she said, it could not be the man whom she had defied. вАЬWhy, why?вАЭ she asked stormily, вАЬwhy only this man? Why not the othersвБ†вАФwhy not the leader?вБ†вАФhave they caught him and lost him?вАЭ + 

Chagrin and astonishment sat on SchmidtвАЩs round face. His disappointment was almost comic. + 

вАЬBut, Little Mother!вАЭ he said, crestfallen and bewildered, вАЬthis is oneвБ†вАФwe did not hope even for one andвБ†вАФвАЭ + 

The storm passed over. + 

вАЬYes, yes,вАЭ she said wearily, вАЬoneвБ†вАФeven one is good. They shall learn that the Red Hundred can still strikeвБ†вАФthis leader shall knowвБ†вАФThis man shall have a death,вАЭ she said, looking at Schmidt, вАЬworthy of his importance. Tell me how he was captured.вАЭ + 

вАЬIt was the picture,вАЭ said the eager Schmidt, вАЬthe picture you had drawn. One of our comrades thought he recognized him and followed him to his house.вАЭ + 

вАЬHe shall be triedвБ†вАФtonight,вАЭ and she spent the day anticipating her triumph. + 

Conspirators do not always choose dark arches for their plottings. The Red Hundred especially were notorious for the likeliness of their rendezvous. They went to nature for a precedent, and as she endows the tiger with stripes that are undistinguishable from the jungle grass, so the Red Hundred would choose for their meetings such a place where meetings were usually held. + 

It was in the Lodge Room of the Pride of Millwall, A.O.S.A.вБ†вАФwhich may be amplified as the Associated Order of the Sons of AbstinenceвБ†вАФthat the trial took place. The financial position of the Pride of Millwall was not strong. An unusual epidemic of temperate seafaring men had called the Lodge into being, the influx of capital from eccentric bequests had built the tiny hall, and since the fiasco attending the first meeting of the League of London, much of its public business had been skilfully conducted in these riverside premises. It had been raided by the police during the days of terror, but nothing of an incriminating character had been discovered. Because of the success with which the open policy had been pursued the Woman of Gratz preferred to take the risk of an open trial in a hall liable to police raid. + 

The man must be so guarded that escape was impossible. Messengers sped in every direction to carry out her instructions. There was a rapid summoning of leaders of the movement, the choice of the place of trial, the preparation for a ceremony which was governed by well-established precedent, and the arrangement of the properties which played so effective a part in the trials of the Hundred. + 

In the black-draped chamber of trial the Woman of Gratz found a full company. Maliscrivona, Tchezki, Vellantini, De¬†Romans, to name a few who were there sitting altogether side by side on the low forms, and they buzzed a welcome as she walked into the room and took her seat at the higher place. She glanced round the faces, bestowing a nod here and a glance of recognition there. She remembered the last time she had made an appearance before the rank and file of the movement. She missed many faces that had turned to her in those days: Starque, Fran√Іois, KitsingerвБ†вАФdead at the hands of the Four Just Men. It fitted her mood to remember that tonight she would judge one who had at least helped in the slaying of Starque. + 

Abruptly she rose. Lately she had had few opportunities for the display of that oratory which was once her sole title to consideration in the councils of the Red Hundred. Her powers of organization had come to be respected later. She felt the want of practice as she began speaking. She found herself hesitating for words, and once she felt her illustrations were crude. But she gathered confidence as she proceeded and she felt the responsive thrill of a fascinated audience. + 

It was the story of the campaign that she told. Much of it we know; the story from the point of view of the Reds may be guessed. She finished her speech by recounting the capture of the enemy. + 

вАЬTonight we aim a blow at these enemies of progress; if they have been merciless, let us show them that the Red Hundred is not to be outdone in ferocity. As they struck, so let us strikeвБ†вАФand, in striking, read a lesson to the men who killed our comrades, that they, nor the world, will ever forget.вАЭ + 

There was no cheering as she finishedвБ†вАФthat had been the orderвБ†вАФbut a hum of words as they flung their tributes of words at her feetвБ†вАФa ruck of incoherent phrases of praise and adoration. + 

Then two men led in the prisoner. + 

He was calm and interested, throwing out his square chin resolutely when the first words of the charge were called and twiddling the fingers of his bound hands absently. + 

He met the scowling faces turned to him serenely, but as they proceeded with the indictment, he grew attentive, bending his head to catch the words. + 

Once he interrupted. + 

вАЬI cannot quite understand that,вАЭ he said in fluent Russian, вАЬmy knowledge of German is limited.вАЭ + 

вАЬWhat is your nationality?вАЭ demanded the woman. + 

вАЬEnglish,вАЭ he replied. + 

вАЬDo you speak French?вАЭ she asked. + 

вАЬI am learning,вАЭ he said naively, and smiled. + 

вАЬYou speak Russian,вАЭ she said. Her conversation was carried on in that tongue. + 

вАЬYes,вАЭ he said simply; вАЬI was there for many years.вАЭ + 

After this, the sum of his transgressions were pronounced in a language he understood. Once or twice as the reader proceededвБ†вАФit was Ivan Oranvitch who readвБ†вАФthe man smiled. + 

The Woman of Gratz recognized him instantly as the fourth of the party that gathered about her door the day Bartholomew was murdered. Formally she asked him what he had to say before he was condemned. + 

He smiled again. + 

вАЬI am not one of the Four Just Men,вАЭ he said; вАЬwhoever says I amвБ†вАФlies.вАЭ + 

вАЬAnd is that all you have to say?вАЭ she asked scornfully. + 

вАЬThat is all,вАЭ was his calm reply. + 

вАЬDo you deny that you helped slay our comrade Starque?вАЭ + 

вАЬI do not deny it,вАЭ he said easily, вАЬI did not helpвБ†вАФI killed him.вАЭ + 

вАЬAh!вАЭ the exclamation came simultaneously from every throat. + 

вАЬDo you deny that you have killed many of the Red Hundred?вАЭ + 

He paused before he answered. + 

вАЬAs to the Red HundredвБ†вАФI do not know; but I have killed many people.вАЭ He spoke with the grave air of a man filled with a sense of responsibility, and again the exclamatory hum ran through the hall. Yet, the Woman of Gratz had a growing sense of unrest in spite of the success of the examination. + 

вАЬYou have said you were in RussiaвБ†вАФdid men fall to your hand there?вАЭ + 

He nodded. + 

вАЬAnd in England?вАЭ + 

вАЬAlso in England,вАЭ he said. + 

вАЬWhat is your name?вАЭ she asked. By an oversight it was a question she had not put before. + 

The man shrugged his shoulders. + 

вАЬDoes it matter?вАЭ he asked. A thought struck her. In the hall she had seen Magnus the Jew. He had lived for many years in England, and she beckoned him. + 

вАЬOf what class is this man?вАЭ she asked in a whisper. + 

вАЬOf the lower orders,вАЭ he replied; вАЬit is astoundingвБ†вАФdid you not notice whenвБ†вАФno, you did not see his capture. But he spoke like a man of the streets, dropping his aspirates.вАЭ + 

He saw she looked puzzled and explained. + 

вАЬIt is a trick of the orderвБ†вАФjust as the Muzhik says.вБ†вАКвБ†вА¶вАЭ he treated her to a specimen of colloquial Russian. + 

вАЬWhat is your name?вАЭ she asked again. + 

He looked at her slyly. + 

вАЬIn Russia they called me Father Kopab.вАЭ + 

The majority of those who were present were Russian, and at the word they sprang to their feet, shrinking back with ashen faces, as though they feared contact with the man who stood bound and helpless in the middle of the room. + 

The Woman of Gratz had risen with the rest. Her lips quivered and her wide open eyes spoke her momentary terror. + 

вАЬI killed Starque,вАЭ he went on, вАЬby authority. Fran√Іois also. Some dayвАЭвБ†вАФhe looked leisurely about the roomвБ†вАФвАЬI shall alsoвБ†вАФвАЭ + 

вАЬStop!вАЭ she cried, and then: + 

вАЬRelease him,вАЭ she said, and, wonderingly, Schmidt cut the bonds that bound him. He stretched himself. + 

вАЬWhen you took me,вАЭ he said, вАЬI had a book; you will understand that here in England I findвБ†вАФforgetfulness in booksвБ†вАФand I, who have seen so much suffering and want caused through departure from the law, am striving as hard for the regeneration of mankind as youвБ†вАФbut differently.вАЭ + 

Somebody handed him a book. + 

He looked at it, nodded, and slipped it into his pocket. + 

вАЬFarewell,вАЭ he said as he turned to the open door. + 

вАЬIn GodвАЩs name!вАЭ said the Woman of Gratz, trembling, вАЬgo in peace, Little Father.вАЭ + 

And the man Jessen, sometime headsman to the Supreme Council, and latterly public executioner of England, walked out, no man barring his exit. + 

The power of the Red Hundred was broken. This much Falmouth knew. He kept an ever-vigilant band of men on duty at the great termini of London, and to these were attached the members of a dozen secret police forces of Europe. Day by day, there was the same report to make. Such and such a man, whose very presence in London had been unsuspected, had left via Harwich. So-and-so, surprisingly sprung from nowhere, had gone by the eleven oвАЩclock train from Victoria; by the Hull and Stockholm route twenty had gone in one day, and there were others who made Liverpool, Glasgow, and Newcastle their port of embarkation. + 

I think that it was only then that Scotland Yard realized the strength of the force that had lain inert in the metropolis, or appreciated the possibilities for destruction that had been to hand in the days of the Terror. + 

Certainly every batch of names that appeared on the commissionerвАЩs desk made him more thoughtful than ever. + 

вАЬArrest them!вАЭ he said in horror when the suggestion was made. вАЬArrest them! Look here, have you ever seen driver ants attack a house in Africa? Marching in, in endless battalions at midnight and clearing out everything living from chickens to beetles? Have you ever seen them reform in the morning and go marching home again? You wouldnвАЩt think of arresting вАЩem, would you? No, youвАЩd just sit down quietly out of their reach and be happy when the last little red leg has disappeared round the corner!вАЭ + 

Those who knew the Red Hundred best were heartily in accord with his philosophy. + 

вАЬThey caught Jessen,вАЭ reported Falmouth. + 

вАЬOh!вАЭ said the Commissioner. + 

вАЬWhen he disclosed his identity, they got rid of him quick.вАЭ + 

вАЬIвАЩve often wondered why the Four Just Men didnвАЩt do the business of Starque themselves,вАЭ mused the Commissioner. + 

вАЬIt was rather rum,вАЭ admitted Falmouth, вАЬbut Starque was a man under sentence, as also was Fran√Іois. By some means they got hold of the original warrants, and it was on these that JessenвБ†вАФdid what he did.вАЭ + 

The commissioner nodded. + 

вАЬAnd now,вАЭ he asked, вАЬwhat about them?вАЭ + 

Falmouth had expected this question sooner or later. + 

вАЬDo you suggest that we should catch them, sir?вАЭ he asked with thinly veiled sarcasm; вАЬbecause if you do, sir, I have only to remind you that weвАЩve been trying to do that for some years.вАЭ + 

The chief commissioner frowned. + 

вАЬItвАЩs a remarkable thing,вАЭ he said, вАЬthat as soon as we get a situation such asвБ†вАФthe Red Hundred scare and the Four Just Men scare, for instance, weвАЩre completely at sea, and thatвАЩs what the papers will say. It doesnвАЩt sound creditable, but itвАЩs so.вАЭ + 

I place the superintendentвАЩs defence of Scotland Yard on record in extenso. + 

вАЬWhat the papers say,вАЭ said Falmouth, вАЬnever keeps me awake at night. NobodyвАЩs quite got the hang of the police force in this countryвБ†вАФcertainly the writing people havenвАЩt. + 

вАЬThere are two ways of writing about the police, sir. One way is to deal with them in the newspaper fashion with the headline вАШAnother Police BlunderвАЩ or вАШThe Police and The Public,вАЩ and the other way is to deal with them in the magazine style, which is to show them as softies on the wrong scent, whilst an ornamental civilian is showing them their business, or as mysterious people with false beards who pop up at the psychological moment, and say, in a loud voice, вАШIn the name of the Law, I arrest you!вАЩ + 

вАЬWell, I donвАЩt mind admitting that I know neither kind. IвАЩve been a police officer for twenty-three years, and the only assistance IвАЩve had from a civilian was from a man named Blackie, who helped me to find the body of a woman that had disappeared. I was rather prejudiced against him, but I donвАЩt mind admitting that he was pretty smart and followed his clues with remarkable ingenuity. + 

вАЬThe day we found the body I said to him: + 

вАЬвАКвАШMr.¬†Blackie, you have given me a great deal of information about this womanвАЩs movementsвБ†вАФin fact, you know a great deal more than you ought to knowвБ†вАФso I shall take you into custody on the suspicion of having caused her death.вАЩ + 

вАЬBefore he died he made a full confession, and ever since then I have always been pleased to take as much advice and help from outside as I could get. + 

вАЬWhen people sometimes ask me about the cleverness of Scotland Yard, I canвАЩt tell вАЩem tales such as you read about. IвАЩve had murderers, anarchists, burglars, and average low-down people to deal with, but they have mostly done their work in a commonplace way and bolted. And as soon as they have bolted, weвАЩve employed fairly commonplace methods and brought вАЩem back. + 

вАЬIf you ask me whether IвАЩve been in dreadful danger, when arresting desperate murderers and criminals, I say вАШNo.вАЩ + 

вАЬWhen your average criminal finds himself cornered, he says, вАШAll right, Mr.¬†Falmouth; itвАЩs a cop,вАЩ and goes quietly. + 

вАЬCrime and criminals run in grooves. TheyвАЩre hardy annuals with perennial methods. Extraordinary circumstances baffle the police as they baffle other folks. You canвАЩt run a business on business lines and be absolutely prepared for anything that turns up. WhiteleyвАЩs will supply you with a flea or an elephant, but if a woman asked a shopgirl to hold her baby whilst she went into the tinned meat department, the girl and the manager and the whole system would be floored, because there is no provision for holding babies. And if a Manchester goods merchant, unrolling his stuff, came upon a snake lying all snug in the bale, heвАЩd be floored too, because natural history isnвАЩt part of their business training, and they wouldnвАЩt be quite sure whether it was a big worm or a boa constrictor.вАЭ + 

The Commissioner was amused. + 

вАЬYouвАЩve an altogether unexpected sense of humor,вАЭ he said, вАЬand the moral isвБ†вАФвАЭ + 

вАЬThat the unexpected always floors you, whether itвАЩs humour or crime,вАЭ said Falmouth, and went away fairly pleased with himself. + 

In his room he found a waiting messenger. + 

вАЬA lady to see you, sir.вАЭ + 

вАЬWho is it?вАЭ he asked in surprise. + 

The messenger handed him a slip of paper and when he read it whistled. + 

вАЬThe unexpected, byвБ†вАФ! Show her up.вАЭ + 

On the paper was writtenвБ†вАФвАЬThe Woman of Gratz.вАЭ + 