There was not a particle of truth in the accusation; _her_ husband would never so demean himself.
Lady Wilde's disdainful speeches seemed to persuade the populace, but had small effect on the jury, and still less on the judge.
When she was asked if she hated Miss Travers, she replied that she did not hate anyone, but she had to admit that she disliked Miss Travers' methods of action.
"Why did you not answer Miss Travers when she wrote telling you of your husband's attempt on her virtue ?" "I took no interest in the matter," was the astounding reply.
The defence made an even worse mistake than this.

When the time came, Sir William Wilde was not called.
In his speech for Miss Travers, Mr.Butt made the most of this omission.

He declared that the refusal of Sir William Wilde to go into the witness box was an admission of guilt; an admission that Miss Travers' story of her betrayal was true and could not be contradicted.
But the refusal of Sir William Wilde to go into the box was not, he insisted, the worst point in the defence.

He reminded the jury that he had asked Lady Wilde why she had not answered Miss Travers when she wrote to her.

He recalled Lady Wilde's reply: "I took no interest in the matter." Every woman would be interested in such a thing, he declared, even a stranger; but Lady Wilde hated her husband's victim and took no interest in her seduction beyond writing a bitter, vindictive and libellous letter to the girl's father....
The speech was regarded as a masterpiece and enhanced the already great reputation of the man who was afterwards to become the Home Rule Leader.
It only remained for the judge to sum up, for everyone was getting impatient to hear the verdict.