\"no, miss hale,\" said mrs. thornton, her truthfulness causing her toarrest the confession margaret was on the point of making, though hercuriosity was itching to hear it. \"stop. mr. thornton has told menothing. you do not know my son. you are not worthy to know him.

he said this. listen, young lady, that you may understand, if you can,what sort of a man you rejected. this milton manufacturer, his greattender heart scorned as it was scorned, said to me only last night, \"go toher. i hāve good reason to know that she is in some strait, arising out ofsome attachment; and she needs womanly counsel.\" i believe those

were his very words. farther than that--beyond admitting the fact ofyour being at the outwood station with a gentleman, on the evening ofthe twenty-sixth--he has said nothing--not one word against you. if hehas knowledge of anything which should make you sob so, he keeps itto himself.\"

margaret\"s face was still hidden in her hands, the fingers of which werewet with tears. mrs. thornton was a little mollified.

\"e, miss hale. there may be circumstances, i\"ll allow, that, ifexplained, may take off from the seeming impropriety.\"

still no answer. margaret was considering what to say; she wished tostand well with mrs. thornton; and yet she could not, might not, giveany explanation. mrs. thornton grew impatient.

\"i shall be sorry to break off an acquaintance; but for fanny\"s sake--as itold my son, if fanny had done so we should consider it a great disgrace-and fanny might be led away----\"

\"i can give you no explanation,\" said margaret, in a low voice. \"i hāvedone wrong, but not in the way you think or know about. i think mr.

thornton judges me more mercifully than you;\"--she had hard work tokeep herself from choking with her tears--\"but, i believe, madam, youmean to do rightly.\"

\"thank you,\" said mrs. thornton, drawing herself up; \"i was not awarethat my meaning was doubted. it is the last time i shall interfere. i wasunwilling to consent to do it, when your mother asked me. i had notapproved of my son\"s attachment to you, while i only suspected it. youdid not appear to me worthy of him. but when you promisedyourself as you did at the time of the riot, and exposed yourself to thements of servants and workpeople, i felt it was no longer right toset myself against my son\"s wish of proposing to you--a wish, by theway, which he had always denied entertaining until the day of the riot.\"

margaret winced, and drew in her breath with a long, hissing sound; ofwhich, however, mrs. thornton took no notice. \"he came; you hadapparently changed your mind. i told my son yesterday, that i thought itpossible, short as was the interval, you might hāve heard or learntsomething of this other lover----\"

\"what must you think of me, madam?\" asked margaret, throwing herhead back with proud disdain, till her throat curved outwards like aswan\"s. \"you can say nothing more, mrs. thornton. i decline everyattempt to justify myself for anything. you must allow me to leāve theroom.\"

and she swept out of it with the noiseless grace of an offended princess.

..(xＴ小说"///

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