The silence was broken by a Babel of voices all raised to concert pitch, all going together, and all discussing volubly the events of the morning.
The public pulse stood at fever height, and public opinion, with its usual consistency, was veering round in favour of Vladimir Mellikoff. Miss Hildreth had been chief favourite when the inquiry opened, but Miss Hildreth's chances for keeping that position looked scarcely favourable now, judging from public expressions.
The refreshment hour passed all too quickly, and with the prompt return of Judge Anstice, the crowd settled itself down, re-nerved and fortified, for the long afternoon's work that evidently lay before it.
Once more Miss Hildreth took her place within the railed-off space, and those nearest to her were quick to perceive the additional pallor of her face, and the troubled look in her dark blue eyes.
Almost imperceptibly the modus operandi of this informal inquiry had assumed the proportions and importance of a legal trial; and so exceptional and perplexing were the circumstances surrounding the case, the usual manner of procedure was tacitly waived, and the investigation carried on on broader lines. The dramatic element so predominated, it insensibly bore both the Bench and the crowd along with it, breaking down all ordinary barriers of legal treatment.
The stipulated point at issue was of course the examination of the warrant papers, and if Judge Anstice stretched the cordon in this respect it was scarcely to be wondered at. The case virtually had no precedent; it was only in deference to that unwritten code of the courtesy of common law between nations that any such inquiry took place at all, and had the charge been a less grave one than that of murder, no proceedings would have been entered upon. But, as has been said, exceptional cases demand exceptional remedies, and since an arrest and inquiry had been granted, the lines for the carrying out of the latter could not be too broad and comprehensive.
Mr. Munger reappeared like a giant refreshed, and immediately called up Mrs. Newbold as his next ally. Esther's fair, pretty face, flushed and anxious, looked as much out of keeping with its surroundings as did her costume of lace and muslin. She glanced appealingly at Miss Hildreth before speaking, and that silent appeal called up a ghost of a smile to Patricia's lips.
Despite the soft prettiness of her blonde colouring, however, Mrs. Newbold could lay claim to plenty of self-possession, and Mr. Munger found her not quite so malleable as he had imagined. She answered any question put directly to her as briefly as possible, but she would not advance any detail or explanation. Notwithstanding the neutrality of her replies, however, her evidence was gravely important, for it established beyond question the fact that Miss Hildreth and Marianne's governess, known at the Folly as Adèle Lamien, were one and the same person. Esther did not attempt to deny this, nor did she vouchsafe any explanation concerning it. When asked if she had always been cognisant of this fact, she answered, simply:
"Yes."
"Had she then assisted Miss Hildreth in the deception?"