"
"You counsel what I can never perform, honourable Sir," replied Aveline;
"and were he even branded like Cain, I could not shut my heart towards
him. Nothing can make me forget that I am his daughter. That his
offence will be dreadfully expiated, I do not doubt; but if I can
alleviate his sufferings in any way, I will do so; and I will never
cease to plead for mercy for him. And O, honourable Sir! you regard his
offence in a darker light than it deserves. You treat him as if he had
actually accomplished the direful purpose attributed to him; whereas,
nothing has been proven against him beyond the possession of a weapon,
which he might keep about his person for self-defence."
"The plea you urge is futile, maiden," rejoined Sir Thomas; "he is
judged out of his own mouth, for his own lips have avowed his criminal
intention."
"Still, it was but the intention, honourable Sir!"
"In such cases, the intention is equal to the crime--at least in the
eyes of law and justice. No plea will save Hugh Calveley. Of that rest
assured."
"One plea may be urged for him, which, whether it avail or not, is the
truth, and shall be made. It is painful to speak of my father as I must
now do; but there is no help for it. Of late years he has been subject
to strange mental hallucinations, which have bordered close upon
madness, if they have not reached that terrible point. Nocturnal vigils,
fastings, and prayers have affected his health. He has denied himself
sufficient rest, and has only partaken of food barely sufficient to
sustain nature, and no more.
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