Show CAPTAIN HoWQATE emerges from his hiding place through a letter in which he says he will be on hand whenever his trial begins Were it not > for a threat conveyed in his letter let-ter nobody would make the slightest slight-est effort to believe what he says about coming into court and answering answer-ing the charge against him He is undoubtedly guilty of stealing a large sum of public money and to surrender himself would simply be to ask that he might reside in jail for many years Men are not patriotic patri-otic enough to do that sort of thing I and especially are not thieves like Howgate But his threat implies i that he may come back He says I he will astonish the nation by the revelation of corruption that he proposes to make and will ruin several high officials There is a widely extended belief that Captain Howgate had official pals in his II robberies and the impression is that Ito I-to those pals he owes his I I present freedom from prison He may believe that he can frighten his brother criminals into securing immunity from punishment for him when he can afford to comeback come-back and face the trial which under the circumstances will only be a farce His escape was disgraceful to somebody and if there be shrewdness shrewd-ness and power in the government to unearth him they should be exercised exer-cised whether he tells something or nothing |