But if she be innocent, as I hope she is, it would be doing a cruel wrong to accuse her.

I have thought the matter over according to my lights before I spoke to you; and if I have taken a liberty, sir, I am truly sorry." "No liberty in the world, Daw," I said warmly, for the man's courage and honesty and consideration compelled respect.

"I am glad you have spoken to me so frankly.

We both want to find out the truth; and there is so much about this case that is strange--so strange as to go beyond all experiences--that to aim at truth is our only chance of making anything clear in the long-run--no matter what our views are, or what object we wish to achieve ultimately!" The Sergeant looked pleased as he went on: "I thought, therefore, that if you had it once in your mind that somebody else held to such a possibility, you would by degrees get proof; or at any rate such ideas as would convince yourself, either for or against it.

Then we would come to some conclusion; or at any rate we should so exhaust all other possibilities that the most likely one would remain as the nearest thing to proof, or strong suspicion, that we could get.