They Hanged My Saintly Billy (56 page)
Upon
Newton's
testifying
that
the
Doctor
asked
him
one
day to
describe
the
effect
of
strychnine
on
a
dog
and
say
wheth
er
its presence
in
the
stomach
could
afterwards
be
detected—though having
himself,
as
the
Prosecution
showed,
a
precise
knowledge of
poisons,
whereas
Newton
was
young
and
ignorant—Serjeant She
e,
who
should
have
rejected
this
as
an
improbable
fiction, made
the
mistake
of
accepting
it
in
support
of
hi
s
case.
The Prosecution
had
called
George
Bate
(despite
Serjeant
Shee's
protests
against
the
irrelevance
of
the
matter)
to
give
evidence
about Dr
Palmer's
attempted
insurance
of
his
life
for
twenty
-five
thousand
pounds.
With
this
witness
in
the
box,
Serjeant
She
e
now contended
that
the
strychnia
was
bought
at
Hawkins's
shop
to
poison
certain
dogs
which,
as
Bate
knew
very
well,
had
been worrying
the
Doctor's
broodmares.
However,
Bate
(or
so
Inspector
Field
has
privately
assured
us)
bore
a
grudge
against
Dr Palmer
for
having
plotted
his
death;
and
though
forced
to
admit that
The
Duchess
of
Kent
had
slipped
her
foal,
pretended
ignorance
that
the
same
th
ing
had
also
happened
to
Goldfinder
ten days
before.
He
would
give
only
artful
and
evasive
answers
to any
of
the
questions
put
by
Serjeant
Shee,
though
he
had
been
in charge
of
the
Doctor
’
s
stables
at
the
time
of
these
mischances.
Here is
a
sample
of
the
cross-examination:
Serjeant shee
.
Can
you
give
me
any
notion
of
these
mares'
value?
bate
.
I
don't
pretend
to
tell
the
value
of
the
stock.
Serjeant shee
.
Do
you
know
that
one
of
them
sold
for
eight
hundred
guineas
?
bate
.
I
have
heard
so.
Serjeant shee
.
Were
any
of
them
in
foal
shortl
y
before
or
at
the
beginning
of
November
?
bate
.
I
cannot
say.
I
should
suppose
there
were
some
in
foal.
A
witness
who
behaved
in
this
sullen
way
would
have
been sternly
rebuked
by
most
judges
and
ordered
to
give
fair
and proper
answers.
But
the
Lord
Chief
Justice
was
seen
to
smile;
and his
smile
widened
as
Bate
adroitly
parried
Serjeant
Shee's
subsequent
questions.
Serjeant shee
.
Had
any
complaint
been
made
about
the
dogs
going
into
the
paddock?
bate
.
I
think
I
once
said
to
Harry
Cockayne:
"The
turf
seems
a
good
deal
cut
up
here;
how
is
it?'
Serjeant shee
.
What
did
you
see
on
the
turf
that
induced
you
to
make
that
observation
?
bate
.
I
saw
it
cut
up,
which
I
supposed
to
be
the
horses'
feet,
for
they
couldn't
cut
it
up
without
they
galloped.
Serjeant shee
.
Did
you
attribute
that
to
anything
?
bate
.
Why,
yes,
I
attributed
it
to
the
mares'
galloping
about.
[Laughter.]
Serjeant shee
.
Had
you
any
reason
to
think
they
had
been
run
by dogs?
bate
.
I
never
saw
any
dog
run
them.
This
was
no
answer
to
the
question,
but
it
much
amused
the Lord
Chief
Justice.
The
exchange
continued:
S
erjeant shee
.
Did
Harry
Cockayne
keep
a
gun
in
the
stable?
bate
.
I
have
seen
one
there.
S
erjeant shee
.
Did
he
keep
a
gun,
which
belonged
to
his
master,
for
any
purpose?
bate
.
I
have
seen
a
gun
at
the
paddock.
S
erjeant shee
.
Did
it
belong
to
the
master?
bate
.
I
cannot
say.
S
erjeant shee
.
Did
you
ever
see
it
used?
bate.
N
o.
S
erjeant shee
.
Was
it
in
a
condition
to
be
used?
bate
.
I
never
had
it
in
my
hands
to
examine
it.
In
the
end,
Bate
stood
down
without
admitting
that
Dr
Palmer had
complained
about
the
hounds,
or
threatened
to
poison
them, or
ordered
Harry
Cockayne
to
use
the
gun.
According
to
Harry's belief,
Bate
had
himself
revengefully
introduced
hounds
into
the paddock;
and
Harry,
if
called,
could
at
least
have
testified
to the
hounds
and
the
gun.
His
sworn
deposition
concerning
them, made
at
the
inquest,
lay
before
both
the
Lord
Chief
Justice
and
the Attorney-General.
But
though
Serjeant
Shee
counted
on
cross-examining
Harry,
whom
the
Prosecution
had
subpoenaed
as
a witness,
he
found
himself
checkmated.
The
Crown
lawyers
kept Harry
under
their
thumb,
yet
never
put
him
in
the
witness
box; and,
as
soon
as
the
case
for
the
Prosecution
was
over,
smuggled him
out
of
Court
and
away
to
Staffordshire,
where
Captain
Hatton told
him
to
fie
low
if
he
knew
what
was
for
his
advantage.