The story begins with an account of the crime: In the midst of a performance, Han, a young Chinese juggler, severs his wife's carotid artery with one of his knives. The young woman dies instantly, and Han is arrested.

The body of the story consists of the judge's questioning the owner-manager of the circus troupe, the Chinese stagehand, and finally Han himself. In questioning the three men, the judge attempts to decide whether Han's wife's death was premeditated murder or manslaughter.

The owner-manager tells the judge that Han's act is very difficult and requires steady nerves and complete concentration as well as intuition. He does not know whether the killing was intentional or accidental.

The Chinese stagehand testifies that Han and his wife were kind and gentle people who treated friends and acquaintances well and never argued with others. Han had become a Christian the previous...