“John Doe,” said his honor, solemnly, “I have been informed by an old acquaintance of yours of your entire history. You are well born and well bred; you had promising prospects in life, and a family that you should have been proud of. But you gambled; you fell from bad to worse; and a bullet aimed at you by an officer of the law, in the discharge of his duty, struck and killed your loving, suffering wife. Such of your family as remains to you would honor any one, even the highest man in the land, and I am assured that you are sincerely desirous of forsaking evil courses and devoting your life to this—family. Old friends, classmates of yours, who are held in high respect wherever they are known, are ready and willing to assist you to regain your lost manhood; so, in consideration of your plea, your professions of penitence, and the responsibilities which your misdeeds have increased instead of lessened, I sentence you to confinement in the county jail for the shortest period allowed by the law covering your offence, to wit, six months. Sheriff, remove the prisoner.”
The prisoner bowed to the judge, and then looked toward Mr. Morton and Paul. He tried hard to preserve his composure as the sheriff led him through the lawyers’ circle and toward the judge’s door, but somehow his eyes filled with tears. Perhaps this was the reason that Paul, in spite of Mr. Morton’s hand on his arm, sprung from his chair, threw his arms around the prisoner’s neck, and exclaimed,
“Father!”
“FATHER!”
Chapter XII.
THE END OF IT.
SO Paul Grayson’s secret was out at last, and now the boys wished there never had been any secret at all.
“I’ve had lots of fun trying to puzzle it out,” said Ned Johnston to Napoleon Nott on the afternoon of the day of the trial, “but now I wish that I hadn’t. Think of poor Paul!”
“I wish he had been a prince in exile,” said Napoleon Nott, “for then he wouldn’t have had a chance to tell on himself. Princes’ sons never have their fathers tried for passing counterfeit money. But I’ll tell you what; the way that Paul looked when he said ‘Father!’ that day was just like a picture in a book I’ve got, named ‘Doomed to Death; or, the Pirate’s Protégé.’ I’ll bring it to school some day and show it to you all.”