The Witness for the Defence

A.E.W. Mason

Love–lost, found and lost again. Considered one of Mason's best, it was adapted by the author from his 1911 stage play of the same name. In 1919 it was made into an American silent film The Witness for the Defense directed by George Fitzmaurice.

Uncertain of a family inheritance, Henry Thresk commits himself to a legal career. His focus is unwavering, as a man of modest means, it must be. Even when he meets Stella, a captivating young woman, he dismisses the idea of love and marriage, determined to stay true to the path he has chosen.

Eight years later, on a solicitor call to Bombay, Henry encounters a photograph of his long-lost love. Stella is now married to Captain Ballantyne, an older man skilled in politics and languages, who is revealed to be a brutal tyrant. Henry resolves to rescue Stella, but before he can put his plan into action, the captain is found shot to death with his wife's rifle. As a respected member of the legal profession, Henry is called to testify as a witness for the defence–just the first of many unexpected turns in this intricately woven mystery. If his instincts are wrong, he will sacrifice his life and career for a woman he hardly knows.