In view of later events it is evident that Kirschen was but a cog in the wheel of German 'rightfulness'; but at the time there was nothing in his demeanour or his expressions of opinion to cause one to suspect his genuineness. But it goes without saying that if M. de Leval had evinced the utmost determination to attend the trial, the Department of the Governor-General would have found means to prevent the presence of an unbiased spectator of their clandestine and insincere method of 'justice.'
V
THE SECRET TRIAL
The trial of Edith Cavell took place behind an almost impenetrable veil of secrecy. A fortnight after the execution of the victim certain German newspapers printed an account that was mainly a brief for the prosecution, while the accused were put in as unfavourable a light as possible. Fortunately an eye-witness afterwards afforded M. de Leval additional details, by which we are enabled to picture the scene with tolerable certainty; and surely never since Joan of Arc faced the corrupt Bishop of Beauvais has the light of heaven looked down on a more merciless and brutal caricature of law and justice.
The secret court-martial was held in the Brussels Senate House, where thirty-five persons were charged with similar offences. The judges' names were not made public. Of the accused, the principal were Edith Cavell and Princess Marie de Croy, the Comtesse de Belleville and Mademoiselle Thulier, and M. Philippe Bancq. Prince Reginald de Croy did not stand his trial, for the simple reason that the Germans had been unable to lay hands on him. Armed guards had escorted the prisoners to the court, where soldiers with fixed bayonets stood between them.
The court-martial was not likely to be a long and tedious affair, for the prisoners had been questioned and cross-examined ad nauseam long before this final stage, and in most cases the accused had signed depositions admitting their guilt.
The outstanding figure among the prisoners was Miss Cavell, the typical Red Cross nurse, whom sick soldiers love and reverence, whose incomparable devotion to duty places her in the forefront of the world's womanhood. She appeared in the uniform in which she had been arrested: the white cap covering the back of the head; the stiff collar around the neck; starched bow beneath the chin; and on her arm the Red Cross, the badge of her merciful mission.
Even in a British court of justice perfectly innocent people are overawed by their surroundings, causing them to be self-conscious, nervous, and distracted at a time when cool collectedness should be the first line of their defence. But Miss Cavell knew that she was arraigned before unjust judges, who lacked the virtues of charity, sincerity, humanity, and probity, without which the exercise of judgement is a mockery and a sham.