P.—You see that you hoped to meet no one?
A.—Pardon me, I did not say so. To expect is not the same as to hope.
P.—Why, then did you take such pains to explain your being there?
A.—I gave no explanations. Young Ribot first told me, laughingly, where he was going, and then I told him that I was going to Brechy.
P.—You told him, also, that you were going through the marshes to shoot birds, and, at the same time you showed him your gun?
A.—That may be. But is that any proof against me? I think just the contrary. If I had had such criminal intentions as the prosecution suggests, I should certainly have gone back after meeting people, knowing that I was exposed to great danger. But I was only going to see my friend, the priest.
P.—And for such a visit you took your gun?
A.—My land lies in the woods and marshes, and there was not a day when I did not bag a rabbit or a waterfowl. Everybody in the neighborhood will tell you that I never went out without a gun.
P.—And on your return, why did you go through the forest of Rochepommier?
A.—Because, from the place where I was on the road, it was probably the shortest way to Boiscoran. I say probably, because just then I did not think much about that. A man who is taking a walk would be very much embarrassed, in the majority of cases, if he had to give a precise account why he took one road rather than another.