Page:The council of seven.djvu/175

 opinions, gloss it over as one might, was simple murder.

"But does it kill people?" said Mrs. Carburton, with a slow and steady widening of fine gray eyes.

Was this real innocence? Or did she merely think him a fool? His stern eyes questioned her candid ones, but they told him nothing.

"In effect," said Saul Hartz brutally, "this Society is a murder club. Barely a fortnight ago the unfortunate Garland was done to death by it."

"A coroner's jury," said Rose Carburton, "declared William Garland's death to be from an unknown cause."

"The cause is not unknown to the Council of Seven."

"I do not belong to the Council," said Rose Carburton simply. "No woman does. But speaking as an ordinary member of society—we'll dispense with the 'the'—from the bottom of my heart I rejoice that a man so infamous as William Garland is no longer able to do harm to his fellow creatures."

"Infamous is a strong word."

"No man ever won a better right to it than William Garland."

"You can only know that by hearsay—even granting, as one may—that Garland was a thoroughly 'bad hat.'"

Rose Carburton smiled faintly and shook a mournful head. "On the contrary, William Garland had a trial long, full and fair, if ever man had. Evidence was collected and most carefully weighed, and it was proven beyond a doubt that Garland's aim was to set