no!\" said mrs. thornton. \"i am happy to say, i did not promise kindnessand gentleness, for i felt at the time that it might be out of my power torender these to one of miss hale\"s character and disposition. i promisedcounsel and advice, such as i would give to my own daughter; i shallspeak to her as i would do to fanny, if she had gone gallivanting with ayoung man in the dusk. i shall speak with relation to the circumstances iknow, without being influenced either one way or another by the\"strong reasons\" which you will not confide to me. then i shall hāvefulfilled my promise, and done my duty.\"

\"she will never bear it,\" said he passionately.

\"she will hāve to bear it, if i speak in her dead mother\"s name.\"

\"well!\" said he, breaking away, \"don\"t tell me any more about it. i cannotendure to think of it. it will be better that you should speak to her anyway, than that she should not be spoken to at all.--oh! that look oflove!\" continued he, between his teeth, as he bolted himself into his ownprivate room. \"and that cursed lie; which showed some terrible shamein the background, to be kept from the light in which i thought she livedperpetually! oh, margaret, margaret! mother, how you hāve torturedme! oh! margaret, could you not hāve loved me? i am but uncouth andhard, but i would never hāve led you into any falsehood for me.\"

the more mrs. thornton thought over what her son had said, inpleading for a merciful judgment for margaret\"s indiscretion, the morebitterly she felt inclined towards her. she took a sāvage pleasure in theidea of \"speaking her mind\" to her, in the guise of fulfilment of a duty.

she enjoyed the thought of showing herself untouched by the \"glamour,\"

which she was well aware margaret had the power of throwing overmany people. she snorted scornfully over the picture of the beauty ofher victim; her jet black hair, her clear smooth skin, her lucid eyeswould not help to sāve her one word of the just and stern reproachwhich mrs. thornton spent half the night in preparing to her mind.

\"is miss hale within?\" she knew she was, for she had seen her at thewindow, and she had her feet inside the little hall before martha hadhalf answered her question.

margaret was sitting alone, writing to edith, and giving her manyparticulars of her mother\"s last days. it was a softening employment,and she had to brush away the unbidden tears as mrs. thornton wasannounced.

she was so gentle and ladylike in her mode of reception that her visitorwas somewhat daunted; and it became impossible to utter the speech, soeasy of arrangement with no one to address it to. margaret\"s low richvoice was softer than usual; her manner more gracious, because in herheart she was feeling very grateful to mrs. thornton for the courteousattention of her call. she exerted herself to find subjects of interest forconversation; praised martha, the servant whom mrs. thornton hadfound for them; had asked edith for a little greek air, about which shehad spoken to miss thornton. mrs. thornton was fairly disfited.

。=xt!!

0 0