Richard began his speech.
He had kept Adela's warning in mind, and determined to be calmly
dignified in his refutal of the charges brought against him. For
five minutes he impressed his hearers. He had never spoken better.
In the beginning he briefly referred to the facts of his life, spoke
of the use he had made of wealth when he possessed it, demanded if
it was likely that he should join with swindlers to rob the very
class to which he himself was proud to belong, and for which he had
toiled unceasingly. He spoke of Rodman, and denied that he had ever
known of this man's connection with the Company--a man who was his
worst enemy. He it was, this Rodman, who doubtless had written the
letter which first directed suspicion in the wrong quarter; it was
an act such as Rodman would be capable of, for the sake of
gratifying his enmity. And how had that enmity arisen? He told the
story of the lawsuit; showed how, in that matter, he had stood up
for common honesty, though at the time Rodman was his friend. Then
he passed to the subject of his stewardship. Why had he put that
trust money into a concern without sufficient investigation? He
could make but one straightforward answer: he had believed that the
Company was sound, and he bought shares because the dividends
promised to be large, and it was his first desire to do the very
best he could for those who had laid their hard-earned savings in
his hands.
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