Page 70 of The Heroic Mr Darcy's Bad Manners
“I did not. I supposed it was irrelevant which kind of counterfeiting we discovered as long as we found proof to support the assertion.”
“’Tis cause coining’s treason. Ye wanted ’er to ’ang!” someone shouted from the upper tier.
The judge quieted the shouting and gestured for Lord Matlock to continue his narrative.
“The lady returned twenty minutes later. We tied her hands and searched the contents of her reticule. We found two good shillings and a good half-crown immediately, but after ripping out the lining, we found a bad sixpence.”
“Did anything at all pass between you and Lady Campbell that could possibly induce her to hope that if she told the truth, it would be better for her. Even a means of escaping?”
“No. I guarded her against it. The first question she asked me was what I thought they would do to her. I replied that it was impossible for me to answer such a question and that it was a pity that she, as a lady, would give way to such business as coining.”
“Did she ever deny the accusations?”
“Yes. She pleaded her innocence and said she had never been concerned in any kind of counterfeit. I showed her the scarab that Lord Carnarvon had purchased at Robert Romani’s hosier shop in Friday Street, Cheapside. The signature on the receipt proved that the scarab had come from Lady Campbell. She denied any knowledge, and that was nearly all the conversation we had.”
Mr Castleton, the magistrate at the time, had long since passed, and a summary from his testimony in 1789 was read by a barrister. It coincided with Lord Matlock’s rendition of events.
“How long would you say it took from the magistrate’s arrival before the search of Lady Campbell’s suite commenced?” Lord Matlock was asked.
“I would say about an hour.”
“Would you deem that enough time to move the items you discovered into the accused’s quarters?”
“Perhaps, but we only postponed the search because we were waiting for the lady to arrive home.”
“Yet, you did not wait until she returned.”
Lord Matlock looked uncomfortable. “No. I believe the magistrate wanted to be finished with it to allow him to return home before nightfall.”
“You may step down, Lord Matlock.”
Four witnesses were called who all gave Lady Campbell a good character.
The judge rubbed his chin and appeared impatient to finish this postmortem conundrum.
“Miss Alcorn’s testimony would have saved Lady Campbell from her death sentence, but it does not prove her innocence. Her husband, Sir Arthur Campbell, died in May 1811 and cannot be questioned. I have a scarab delivered from a gentleman who prefers to remain anonymous. He asserts in his letter that it was purchased from the Campbells only five years ago, but without his testimony I cannot change the verdict.”
A gentleman rose to Elizabeth’s left. “It was I,” rang out a deep and familiar baritone voice.
“Step forwards, Mr Darcy.”
The gentleman was sworn in before the questions proceeded.
Elizabeth stared at Mr Darcy, unabashed. His back was turned, so she was safe from notice though not unaware of the telling glance that passed between her sister and grandmother. It had been months since they had last been together at Darcy House, and she believed he had avoided her company because of the scandal. So why was he here? What could he mean by it?
“Inform the jury how you came to be in possession of this scarab,” Lord Glentworth’s barrister implored.
“It was part of a shipment about to set sail from Stonehaven Harbour—”
“I thought the port was destroyed by a storm?” Lord Matlock’s barrister interrupted.
“It was, but not in its entirety. You can dock small vessels on what is left, which is where my ship was when Campbell’s sailors dropped a crate, and that scarab was one of the items that fell out when it broke. It was slightly damaged in the accident. As you can see, there is a chip on the left side. Sir Arthur offered it to me for a pittance of what it was worth. At the time I reckoned it was due to the damage. Not before this winter, when rumours began circulating about counterfeited Egyptian artefacts, did I begin to suspect foul play.
“My conscience demanded that I investigate my suspicions. First, I searched for and found Lady Campbell’s lady’s maid. Because of my recent purchase I had reason to believe that the forgery had continued long after Lady Campbell’s unfortunate demise. I understand that she was tried in September 1789, after only five months of marriage. She could not, within that abbreviated time span, have made all the items that I have since discovered to have been shipped from Stonehaven Harbour to the port of Le Havre. To be certain, I enquired of Miss Alcorn how much luggage Lady Campbell had brought to Dollar upon her marriage, and it was not substantial beyond her wardrobe and personal items. My conclusion was that Lady Campbell was innocent.”
It seemed to Elizabeth that Mr Darcy had gone to a great deal of trouble to find a lady’s maid twenty-three years after her last known position and discover the smuggling route of seasoned contrabandists.The task must have occupied him for… Good gracious! This is why he left town so abruptly after the disastrous dinner at his house. Colonel Fitzwilliam said he had travelled to one of his lesser estates to resolve a problem. But why had he not said so?Elizabeth answered her own question:Because if Lord Matlock had known, he would surely have done everything in his power to stop him…
“Do you know how many shipments have been sent to France?”
