f faith only by her moans and the inept wringing
of her hands.

Mr. Landale opened the bag, tossed with cynical contempt upon the flat
tombstone, sundry precious relics of the mouldering bones within, and
discovered at length in an inner pocket a dainty flower-scented note.
Then he flung down the bag and proceeded with the same deliberation to
open the letter and peruse its delicate flowing handwriting.

"Upon my word," he vowed, "I think this is the prettiest she has
written yet! What a sweet soul it is! Listen, Sophia: 'You praise me
for my trust in you--but, Jack, dear love, my trust is so much a part
of my love that the one would not exist without the other. Therefore,
do not give me any credit, for you know I could not help loving you.'
Poor heart! poor confiding child! Oh!" ejaculated Mr. Landale as if to
himself, carefully proceeding the while with his former manoeuvres
to end by placing the violated missive, to all appearance intact,
beside its fellow, "we have here a rank fellow, a foul traitor to deal
with!"

Then, wheeling round to his sister, and fixing her with piercing eyes:
"Sophia," he exclaimed, in tones of sternest rebuke, "I am surprised
at you. I am, indeed!"

Miss Landale raised mesmerised, horror-stricken eyes upon him; his
dark utterances had already filled her foolish soul with blind dread.
He sat down beside her, and once more enclosed the thin arm in his
light but warning grasp.

"Sophia," he said solemnly, "you little guess the magnitude of the
harm you have been doing; the frightful fate you have been preparing
for an innocent and trusting girl; the depth of the villainy you are
aiding and abetting. You have been acting, as I say, in ignorance,
without realising the awful consequences of your folly and duplicity.
But that you should have chosen _this_ sacred place for such illicit
and reprehensible behaviour; that by the grave of this worthy man who
loved you, by the stones chosen and paid for by my fraternal
affection, you should plot and scheme to deceive your family, and
help to lead a confiding and beautiful creature to ruin, I should
never have expected from _you_, Sophia--Sophia!"

Miss Landale collapsed into copious weeping.

"I am sure, brother," she sobbed, "I never meant any harm. I am sure
nobody loves the dear girl better than I do. I am sure I never wished
to hide anything from you!--Only--they told me--they trusted me--they
made me promise--Oh brother, what terrible thi