Page:The centurion's story (IA centurionsstory00macf).pdf/20

 man and said: "If I have spoken falsely, testify to it; but if truly, why do you strike me?" The man slunk from before him and Annas, seeing he could make nothing of him, bound him over to Caiaphas, his dear, sweet son-in-law, a hungrier wolf than old Annas even, if hungrier there be. This meeting at the house of Caiaphas was more public. The rumour that the prophet was in custody had spread like wildfire through the city and many of the Scribes and Pharisees and elders among the people were present. I could not make sense out of it myself, for such things are irksome to me, but I could see that they were all lying like Greek traders, and that with all their lying, he came squarely off triumphant. I wish, Marcus, you could have seen him, wearing a fine sort of dignity that was almost contempt and yet not quite, for in his face was more a look of patience and forbearance. You know our Roman contempt for weakness; and sometimes we regard forbearance as weakness, but I swear to you, this man was patient and stronger than a rock at the same time. I am not given to superstition. I have seen the inside of every priestly game that ever religious rascal has played, and my good sword has searched the heart of a trickster or two of them, but yet I grew to believe in this man as I looked at him. "Whatever else," said I to myself, "the man is no mere magician." I remembered what happened in the garden on the mountain and, by Zeus, I think he had it in his power to strike every accusing eye blind and every lying tongue dumb and yet he bided his time till the examination was almost concluded, when Caiaphas let fly some kind of question that stirred him deeply, and quick as a flash he answered something about the Son of Man and