"They did not deceive me, then, when they told me that this army of
rebels had a chaplain! Ah! Monsieur, you should sink to the earth with
shame. You, a priest, mingle with such scoundrels as these--with these
enemies of our good King and of our holy religion! Do not deny this!
Your haggard features, your swollen eyes, your disordered attire soiled
with dust and mud betray your guilt. Must I, a soldier, remind you of
what is due your sacred calling? Hold your peace, Monsieur, and depart!"
The counsel for the prisoner sprang up.
"We demand," they cried, "that this witness be heard. He must be heard!
Military commissions are not above the laws that regulate ordinary
tribunals."
"If I do not speak the truth," resumed the abbe, "I am a perjured
witness, worse yet, an accomplice. It is your duty, in that case, to
have me arrested."
The duke's face expressed a hypocritical compassion.
"No, Monsieur le Cure," said he, "I shall not arrest you. I would avert
the scandal which you are trying to cause. We will show your priestly
garb the respect the wearer does not deserve.
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