“My natural love of such sights would have led me to follow him, when one more act of Heaven (I dare not ascribe the inspiration to my poor unaided soul) suddenly put an exceedingly valuable thought into my mind. I addressed the judge in a loud voice, complaining in the matter of my horse. At first he was disturbed and inclined to silence me, not understanding what plea I could have in this particular case; but I made bold to arrest his attention and told him that the evidence I had chanced to hear proved clearly that the horse on which the unfortunate young man had tried to escape was one stolen from me but a few hours before. This I was prepared to prove. The officers of the court were examined and admitted my description to be exact as to the horse, and, what was a clinching piece of evidence, as to the details of the saddle, the workmanship of which they had noted.
“I informed the judge further that I had ridden into the town the evening before. I was prepared to bring witnesses from the guard at the gate who had seen me pass. And when these were summoned they agreed that I had entered riding a horse of the description I had just given. I could see that the judge inclined to the justice of my plea; the officers of the court naturally fell in with his mood; I made him, I think, the more gracious by my assurance that I would not dream of making too exact a claim. If the animal were but restored to me I should be satisfied, nor would I ask anything for dilapidation or loss of time. I was only too glad (I said) to have been of the most insignificant service to the court.
“The judge now smiled upon me with evident approval, and was further confirmed in his decision by remembering that even if I claimed any compensation it would not come out of his pocket but the public’s; and I have no doubt that this argument, though not explicitly put forward, was present in the minds of all the officers of the court as well. The judge therefore ordered that the animal should be restored to me, and was pleased to use the following words. They are not my own. I am not responsible for them. But I am glad that he used them.
“‘This honest merchant,’ said he, ‘who has given a very clear account of his movements, we are in some fashion beholden to, on account of the temporary loss which he has suffered in the filching of his mount by the criminal with whom we have just dealt. He was indirectly the cause of that criminal’s arrest. The least we can do, therefore, is to give him his property back with the least possible delay. I order that the animal with all his accoutrements, having first been properly fed and groomed, shall be restored to him.’
“I very humbly bowed and thanked the court for its just decision. But a new complication arose.
“The chief officer of the court, the captain of those who had arrested the young man (he had by this time lost his head, so that there was no trouble to be feared from that side), conferred with his colleagues and then prostrated himself upon the earth before the judge, begging to be allowed an explanation. The judge assumed a disturbed expression and bade him be brief. He arose and admitted with evident grief that the horse, in the excitement of the arrest, and in the darkness of the moment (for all this had passed in the night), had got loose and was lost.
“Seeing the rising anger of the judge I hastily intervened. I said that I yielded to no one in my admiration for the Mounted Police of the Anti-Date force, the renown of whose efficiency had reached me even in my own distant land. I said that I would be the last to cause the least injustice or even pain. I begged that his Importance (for such was the simple title of a judge in that country) would overlook the unfortunate accident whereby my horse had been lost. I concluded by saying that I would be perfectly content with what we merchants called ‘a minimum valuation,’ that is, a payment of the price the horse would have fetched from what we merchants also call ‘a willing seller.’ In a phrase of which I confess I was secretly proud, I hinted that the doing of justice in this matter would not only be of no charge to the court, but even of some profit to them, seeing that there were certain to be fees of transfer, registration, and what not. As a layman I was ignorant of their amount, but I knew them to be attached to such affairs—all out of the taxes.
“The judge, the officers of the court, and every lawyer present, the very sweepers were moved to action. Sundry papers were signed (to which I put the name of Ali—it was the first that occurred to me). I was paid the sum of thirty pieces of gold, and after profound obeisances to all present, and especially to my benefactor the judge, I left the court, yet richer than I had entered it.
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