Page:Meda - a tale of the future.djvu/292

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288
MEDA:

defence. I stood up and said, that no one could be more grieved at what had taken place than I was, no one could be more cast down than I was, no one was more desirous to make reparation for my unconscious mistake, my unknown sin, than I was. If there had been any means of making this reparation I would make any sacrifice even with my life, to restore Meda to the happiness that she had enjoyed before she knew me. I expressed my gratitude to the Recorder for the kind and moderate way in which he had stated his case against me. But, I said, I would not be honest if I allowed the court to think that I was not conscious that it was against the laws of this country for a man to marry a second time. I had heard that such was the law from the Recorder or some one else. "But, at the same time," I said, "I feel perfectly innocent of having done anything wrong, as when wooing and gaining the affections of this gentleman's daughter, I was for the time oblivious of all my previous life's history. I forgot that I had existed before; I