I commend his action. He erred, if at all, on the side
of leniency; for we really cannot have a pack of raving wolves at large
here. It is different in Russia. You can go mad there--indeed that
country, with its vast plains and trackless forests, seems to have been
especially created for the purpose of running amok. But this island is
really too small; there are so many glass windows and babies
about--don't you think so, gentlemen?"
"Nepenthe is certainly a small place, Mr. Keith."
"Note, now, how differently he treats Miss Wilberforce, who not only
never killed three school-children but has never, to the best of my
knowledge, injured a living creature. I am informed on good authority
that, after spending a tumultuous night in gaol, she has already
regained her liberty. And this, if I am not mistaken, is the second or
third occasion at least on which our judge has behaved in a similar
manner towards her. Once more I commend his action. Why has Signor
Malipizzo set the lady free? Because, unlike a modern philanthropist,
he is aware of the wider issues involved; he acts not with the severity
of a fanatic, but with the understanding, the tolerance, the mellow
sympathy of a man of the world.
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