Goguet, the smiling clerk, alone found the scene amusing.
XI
The governor of the Depot, a functionary who had gained the reputation
of an oracle by twenty years' experience in prisons and with
prisoners--a man whom it was most difficult to deceive--had advised the
magistrate to surround himself with every precaution before examining
the prisoner, May.
And yet this man, characterized as a most dangerous criminal, and the
very announcement of whose coming had made the clerk turn pale, had
proved to be a practical, harmless, and jovial philosopher, vain of his
eloquence, a bohemian whose existence depended upon his ability to turn
a compliment; in short, a somewhat erratic genius.
This was certainly strange, but the seeming contradiction did not cause
M. Segmuller to abandon the theory propounded by Lecoq. On the contrary,
he was more than ever convinced of its truth. If he remained silent,
with his elbows leaning on the desk, and his hands clasped over his
eyes, it was only that he might gain time for reflection.
The prisoner's attitude and manner were remarkable. When his English
harangue was finished, he remained standing in the centre of the room, a
half-pleased, half-anxious expression on his face. Still, he was as much
at ease as if he had been on the platform outside some stroller's booth,
where, if one could believe his story, he had passed the greater part of
his life. It was in vain that the magistrate sought for some indication
of weakness on his features, which in their mobility were more
enigmatical than the lineaments of the Sphinx.
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