"I did."
"Be so good as to tell the jury under what circumstances."
"I was making a pedestrian tour through the western part of this county, and met him unexpectedly in the neighbourhood of Marazion."
"What year was this? And month? Do you remember?"
The witness mentioned those of Henry Trevethlan's marriage.
"Did you visit Mr. Ashton at his then residence?"
"Yes."
"Well, I believe that was no great distance from Trevethlan Castle. Tell the jury anything that passed between you and your friend, having reference to that building or its inhabitants."
"I naturally asked Mr. Ashton some question respecting it, and he told me there was a strange story on foot about its owner, who wished to play the trick attempted by Thornhill, in the Vicar of Wakefield. He had applied to Ashton on the subject, but the latter told him, that if he performed the ceremony, the result would be the same as in the tale. But Ashton was to have a considerable fee, and he asked me to personate him, representing that the affair was only a joke, and that, if there were any family, Mr. Trevethlan would certainly confirm it legally. And I being young, and not at the time aware of the consequences, ultimately consented to what he proposed."
"Well, sir, and what followed?"