s
swear my flesh don't crawl when I think o't!"

He thrust his hand into the boot and withdrew one of poor Thomasin's
precious guineas, piping hot. Wildeve had already placed a sovereign
on the stone. The game was then resumed. Wildeve won first, and
Christian ventured another, winning himself this time. The game
fluctuated, but the average was in Wildeve's favour. Both men became
so absorbed in the game that they took no heed of anything but the
pigmy objects immediately beneath their eyes, the flat stone, the open
lantern, the dice, and the few illuminated fern-leaves which lay under
the light, were the whole world to them.

At length Christian lost rapidly; and presently, to his horror, the
whole fifty guineas belonging to Thomasin had been handed over to his
adversary.

"I don't care--I don't care!" he moaned, and desperately set about
untying his left boot to get at the other fifty. "The devil will toss
me into the flames on his three-pronged fork for this night's work,
I know! But perhaps I shall win yet, and then I'll get a wife to sit
up with me o' nights, and I won't be afeard, I won't! Here's another
for'ee, my man!" He slapped another guinea down upon the stone, and
the dice-box was rattled again.

Time passed on. Wildeve began to be as excited as Christian himself.
When commencing the game his intention had been nothing further than
a bitter practical joke on Mrs. Yeobright. To win the money, fairly
or otherwise, and to hand it contemptuously to Thomasin in her aunt's
presence, had been the dim outline of his purpose. But men are drawn
from their intentions even in the course of carrying them out, and
it was extremely doubtful, by the time the twentieth guinea had been
reached, whether Wildeve was conscious of any other intention than
that of winning for his own personal benefit. Moreover, he was now no
longer gambling for his wife's money, but for Yeobright's; though of
this fact Christian, in his apprehensiveness, did not inform him till
afterwards.

It was nearly eleven o'clock, when, with almost a shriek, Christian
placed Yeobright's last gleaming guinea upon the stone. In thirty
seconds it had gone the way of its companions.

Christian turned and flung himself on the ferns in a convulsion of
remorse, "O, what shall I do with my wretched self?" he groaned.
"What shall I do? Will any good Heaven hae mercy upon my wicked
soul?"

"Do? Live on just the same."

"I won't live on just the same! I'll