A Present to His Royal Highness - The Prince of Wales — Page 69
69 the missionaries, sent for him and himself recorded his statement. The man stood so much in fear of the missionaries that he again repeated the same statement which he had made before the District Magistrate. On being assured, however, that he would not be sent back to the missionaries, he fell to weeping and confessed that his statement had been extorted from him by the missionaries, under threat of a prosecution, and that the accused was wholly innocent and had never talked to him. At last, as had been foretold, he was acquitted with honour, and the District Magistrate told him that he was at liberty to prosecute the witnesses if he so desired, but he replied that he desired to prosecute nobody and forgave them. The leaders of other religions also tried their utmost to secure his conviction in this case, but they were utterly confounded. On the contrary, his righteousness shone forth still clearer, for not only was he acquitted as he had prophesied, but people were also impressed by his magnanimity. He forgave those who had persecuted him, and forbade his counsel to put a question in cross- examination to one of the prosecution witnesses who was also a big priest, which related to the mother of the witness and the answer to which would have humiliated him. “For,” said he “I do not desire to put shame on him. ” This endeared him still more to the people. After failing in this case, his enemies instituted several cases against him one after the other, in some of which he was put to great trouble and inconvenience owing to the hostility of the presiding Magistrates. He had to stand for hours in Court, in spite of his age and infirmities, and on