Page:Eminent Authors of Contemporary Japan, volume 2.pdf/171

Rh chance entered my mind. I was aware that everyone knew of my Christian faith, so I thought that a pretence of prayer would well fit the occasion.”

“Did it occur to you at all that you had intentionally killed her?”

“Yes, sir, and so I thought that I must make some pretence that it had been involuntary homicide.”

“But what made you think it was intentional murder?”

“My frightened state of mind, sir.”

“And you thought you had succeeded in cheating your audience, didn’t you?”

“When I thought about it afterwards I shuddered, sir. It is true that I had pretended to be amazed, but to some extent I lost my head because I was truly sorry for what I had done. But if there had been a single person of keen perception among the onlookers, he would of course have noticed that I was feigning a little. But afterwards I shuddered with shame.

“I made up my mind that night that I would use every power that was in me to declare myself innocent of the charge. The thought that there was no disputable evidence whatever regarding the murder, made me feel easier in mind. Of course every member of our troupe knew of the discord which existed between my wife and me, so it was natural to some extent that I should be suspected of having committeedcommitted [sic] intentional homicide. But I felt sure that if I insisted with all my power that it had been a mere accident, that’s all there would be to it.