The jury scan
his hang-dog countenance upon which guilt is plainly written.
They contrast his appearance with that of the honest Jones.
They know he has been accused, held by a magistrate, indicted
by a grand jury, and that his case, after careful scrutiny,
has been pressed for trial by the public prosecutor. Do they
really presume him innocent? Of course not. They presume him
guilty. "So soon as I see him come through dot leetle door in
the back of the room, then I know he's guilty!" as the foreman
said in the old story. What good does the presumption of
innocence, so called, do for the miserable Robinson? None
whatever--save perhaps to console him in the long days pending
his trial. But such a legal hypocrisy could never have
deceived anybody. How much better it would be to cast aside
all such cant and frankly admit that the attitude of the
continental law toward the man under arrest is founded upon
common sense and the experience of mankind. If he is the
wrong man it should not be difficult for him to demonstrate
the fact.
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