The Clerk hands General the paper and exit. The General hands it to his Adjutant.
GENERAL. Please read it.
ADJUTANT [reading] “These are my answers to the questions put to me, namely: (1) Why I do not take my oath. (2) Why I refuse to fulfil the demands of the Government. (3) What induced me to use words offensive not only to the army but also to the Highest Authorities. In reply to the first question: I cannot take the oath because I accept Christ's teaching, which directly and clearly forbids taking oaths, as in St. Matthew's Gospel, ch. 5 vv. 33–37, and in the Epistle of St. James, ch. 5 v. 12.”
GENERAL. Of course he must be arguing! Putting his own interpretations!
ADJUTANT [goes on reading] “The Gospel says: ‘Swear not at all, but let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay; and what is more than these is of the evil one!’ St. James's Epistle says: ‘Before all things, brethren, swear not by the heavens nor by the earth, nor by any other oath; but let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay, that ye fall not into temptation!’ But apart from the fact that the Bible gives us such clear injunctions not to swear—or even if it contained no such injunctions—I should still be unable to swear to obey the will of men, because as a Christian I must always obey the will of God, which does not always coincide with the will of men.”
GENERAL. He must be arguing! If I had my way, there would be none of this.
ADJUTANT [reading] “I refuse to fulfil the demands of men calling themselves the Government, because …”
GENERAL. What insolence!
ADJUTANT. “Because those demands are criminal and wicked. They demand of me that I should enter the army, and learn and prepare to commit murder, though this is forbidden both in the Old and the New Testaments, and above all by my conscience. To the third question …”
Enter Colonel followed by Clerk. The General shakes hands with Colonel.