But when he asked the Chief Warder's opinion, Sir Wilfred was not really seeking advice. He liked to emphasize in his own mind, and perhaps that of the prisoner's, the difference between the official view and his own. 'What would you say was the most significant part of the evidence? he asked.
The Chief Warder considered. 'I think whore of Babylon, on the whole, sir.
Sir Wilfred smiled as a conjurer may who has forced the right card.
'Now I, he said, 'am of different opinion. It may surprise you, but I should say that the significant thing about this case was the fact that the prisoner held a piece of the stool.
'Destruction of prison property, said the Chief Warder. 'Yes, that's pretty bad.
'Now what was your profession before conviction? asked the Governor, turning to the prisoner.
'Carpenter, sir.
'I knew it, said the Governor triumphantly. 'We have another case of the frustrated creative urge. Now listen, my man. It is very wrong of you to insult the officer, who is clearly none of the things you mentioned. He symbolizes the just disapproval of society and is, like all the prison staff, a member of the Church of England. But I understand your difficulty. You have been used to creative craftsmanship, have you not, and you find prison life deprives you of the means of self‑expression, and your energies find vent in these foolish outbursts? I will see to it that a bench and a set of carpenter's tools are provided for you. The first thing you shall do is to mend the piece of furniture you so wantonly destroyed. After that we will find other work for you in your old trade. You may go. Get to the cause of the trouble, Sir Wilfred added when the prisoner was led away; 'your Standing Orders may repress the symptoms; they do not probe to the underlying cause.
* * *
Two days later the prison was in a state of intense excitement. Something had happened. Paul woke as the bell rang at the usual time, but it was nearly half an hour before the doors were unlocked. He heard the warder's 'Slops outside! getting nearer and nearer, interjected with an occasional 'Don't ask questions, 'Mind your own business, or a sinister 'You'll know soon enough, in reply to the prisoner's questions. They, too, had sensed something unusual. Perhaps it was an outbreak of some disease ‑ spotted fever, Paul thought, or a national disaster in the world outside ‑ a war or revolution. In their enforced silence the nerves of all the men were tightened to an acuteness of perception. Paul read wholesale massacres in the warder's face.