Page 106 of An Eye for an Eye

‘Agreed,’ said Miles, ‘but there is someone who can.’

‘Rosenberg?’ said Booth Watson.

‘No, I’m convinced the professor knows only too well the letter wasn’t written by Thomas Jefferson but has abandoned scholarship for country. However, there’s someone else who can prove it’s a forgery and his word wouldn’t be questioned.’

‘Namely?’

‘Simon Hartley,’ said Miles, a note of triumph in his voice. ‘When he sees the letter he’ll know immediately it’s a fake and will be left with no choice but to admit it.’

‘Why?’ demanded Booth Watson.

‘You clearly haven’t read theNew York Timesthis morning, BW, because if you had,’ said Miles, handing over his copy, ‘you would have realized that Jefferson couldn’t have written the letter that FBI guy read out at the auction.’

Booth Watson took his time reading the article in theNew York Times, and although he didn’t shout, ‘Gotcha!’, a smile appeared on his face. ‘I’ll call Special Agent Buchanan and demand a meeting with the bureau’s lawyers this morning.’

‘And if he doesn’t agree?’ said Miles.

‘I’ll call theNew York Timesand explain to the editor the difference between “y” and “i”.’

•••

Three men were seated on one side of the long oak table, representing the Americans. Two sat on the other side, on behalf of the British. In medieval times, the rivals would have sat on horses, carried lances, and worn helmets displaying feathers revealing their allegiances. In the twenty-first century, they sat in comfortable leather chairs, wore tailored suits, carried fountain pens and sported old school ties. They still faced each other, prepared to do battle, but in this case a battle of words.

One of them raised his visor and said, ‘My name is Casper Shaw. I’m the senior partner of Shaw, Renwick and Kline. I am joined this morning by a partner, Andrew Renwick,’ he glanced to his right, ‘who specializes in litigation. We are also assisted by Special Agent Buchanan who represents our clients, the FBI.’

Not for much longer, thought Booth Watson, but kept his counsel.

Shaw looked across at his opponents and waited for them to raise their visors.

‘My name is Booth Watson. I am a Queen’s Counsel, and a bencher of Middle Temple. I’m accompanied today by my distinguished client, Mr Miles Faulkner, who I’ve had the privilege of representing for many years. Mr Faulkner is a leading businessman who is well known throughout the British Isles for his philanthropic work supporting many worthy causes, including the Fitzmolean Museum, to whom he hasgiven several major works over the years, including a Rubens and a Rembrandt. Indeed more recently, he donated a quarter of a million pounds, making it possible for the museum to acquireJacob Wrestling with the Angel, one of Rembrandt’s most iconic works. May I open proceedings by saying how much we appreciate you agreeing to thiswithout prejudicemeeting at such short notice, but as we all know a great deal is at stake.’

‘And not just money,’ suggested Shaw, re-entering the fray, ‘because on this occasion our firm has the privilege of representing the American government and its legitimate claim to the ownership of an historic document that clearly belonged to the third President of the United States. We are also in possession of a letter written by Thomas Jefferson that proves that the Fair Copy was his by right,’ he paused before adding, ‘beyond reasonable doubt, to quote a legal maxim your countryman will be well acquainted with.’

‘Nevertheless,’ came back Booth Watson, ‘my client disputes your claim and asserts that the letter is a forgery. I must, therefore, inform you that we will be issuing a writ against your government for the amount of forty million dollars plus expenses in compensation.’

The expression on Special Agent Buchanan’s face gave nothing away.

‘We do not dispute the fact,’ continued Booth Watson, ‘that the paper on which the letter was written may well have been produced in the late eighteenth century, along with an envelope and a quill pen from that same period. But we maintain that the letter itself is a fiction – a forgery. Nothing more and nothing less, and perhaps, more important, we will supply evidence that even Professor Rosenberg will be unable to refute.’

‘We will, of course, be happy to accept your writ on behalf of our client,’ said Shaw, ‘but should the matter come to court, we will defend the action vigorously with the complete confidence that a jury will find in our favour, not least because it will be twelve God-fearing American citizens who are asked to choose between the word of a three-times convicted criminal and the opinion of the nation’s leading authority on the constitution.’

Booth Watson accepted the battle lines had been drawn, and the visors were back in place.

‘We acknowledge without question that my client purchased the Declaration from Lady Hartley,’ said Booth Watson. ‘In fact, it is proof that Mr Faulkner is the legitimate owner of the Fair Copy. She also gave my client five letters that Thomas Jefferson wrote to her husband’s distinguished ancestor, but these were a gift.’

‘It may interest you to know,’ interrupted Shaw, ‘that earlier this morning I contacted our Ambassador in London, who confirmed that Lord Hartley, a distinguished member of Her Majesty’s Privy Council, had made an appointment to see him for the sole purpose of returning the Declaration to the American people.’

‘But unfortunately for you, that meeting never took place,’ came back Booth Watson, ‘so in the end it will be the facts that matter, and the fact is that Lady Hartley sold the Declaration to my client in good faith, proving there can be no dispute that Mr Faulkner is the lawful owner of said document.’

‘But this letter,’ said Shaw, holding it up once again, ‘proves beyond question that Lady Hartley did not have the authority to sell your client the Fair Copy.’

Booth Watson took his time opening his Gladstone bag and rummaging around in it, before extracting three copiesofMonticello, two of which he handed to Shaw and one to Buchanan. ‘May I suggest you open the Pulitzer Prize-winning book at page 171, where you will find another letter written by Thomas Jefferson, the authenticity of which we accept without question.’

Shaw and Buchanan reluctantly turned to page 171.

‘If you study the words of that particular letter carefully,’ continued Booth Watson, ‘you will find that Jefferson spells the name of Franklin not with an “i” but with a “y”. This would only be of academic interest had Professor Rosenberg not stated unequivocally that this was the first time Jefferson wrote to Franklin, and theonlyoccasion on which he misspelt Franklin’s name; indeed, if you turn the page, you will discover that Benjamin Franklin later chastised his friend for the error, which I would suggest was why a man of his intelligence would never have made the same mistake again. And perhaps more damning,’ said Booth Watson, ‘if you read the other five letters that came up for auction yesterday, Jefferson spells the name Franklin with an “i” not a “y”, rather proving that he had learnt his lesson.’

Shaw and Buchanan took their time checking both letters, but didn’t offer an opinion.

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