FROME. And when did you last see him?
RUTH. The day he was taken away, sir. It was the day we were to have started.
FROME. Oh, yes, the morning of the arrest. Well, did you see him at all between the Friday and that morning? [RUTH nods] What was his manner then?
RUTH. Dumb—like—sometimes he didn't seem able to say a word.
FROME. As if something unusual had happened to him?
RUTH. Yes.
FROME. Painful, or pleasant, or what?
RUTH. Like a fate hanging over him.
FROME. [Hesitating] Tell me, did you love the prisoner very much?
RUTH. [Bowing her head] Yes.