THE gentlemen of the jury retired to consider their verdict.

Their foreman was a person doubly distinguished among his
colleagues. He had the clearest head, and the readiest tongue.
For once the right man was in the right place.

Of the eleven jurymen, four showed their characters on the
surface. They were:

The hungry juryman, who wanted his dinner.

The inattentive juryman, who drew pictures on his blotting paper.

The nervous juryman, who suffered from fidgets.

The silent juryman, who decided the verdict.

Of the seven remaining members, one was a little drowsy man who
gave no trouble; one was an irritable invalid who served under
protest; and five represented that vast majority of the
population--easily governed, tranquilly happy--which has no
opinion of its own.



The foreman took his place at the head of the table. His
colleagues seated themselves on either side of him. Then there
fell upon that assembly of men a silence, never known among an
assembly of women--the silence which proceeds from a general