“That is true, and, in the open country, I should certainly have seen the fire; but I was in a dense wood: the trees cut off all view.”
“And these same trees prevented the sound of the two shots fired at Count Claudieuse from reaching your ear?”
“They might have helped to prevent it; but there was no need for that. I was walking against the wind, which was very high; and it is an established fact, that, under such circumstances, the sound of a gun is not heard beyond fifty yards.”
M. Magloire once more could hardly restrain his impatience; and, utterly unconscious that he was even harsher than the magistrate, he said,—
“And you think your statement explains every thing?”
“I believe that my statement, which is founded upon the most exact truth, explains the charges brought against me by M. Galpin. It explains how I tried to keep my visit to Valpinson secret; how I was met in going and in coming back, and at hours which correspond with the time of the fire. It explains, finally, how I came at first to deny. It explains how one of my cartridge-cases was found near the ruins, and why I had to wash my hands when I reached home.”
Nothing seemed to be able to shake the lawyer’s conviction. He asked,—
“And the day after, when they came to arrest you, what was your first impression?”
“I thought at once of Valpinson.”
“And when you were told that a crime had been committed?”