to his voice, nor her
heart sensitive to his words.

"He died, and I was younger than he, but stronger, and more like my
father. I was put in his place, and was called by his name. I grew up
proud of what I thought my aristocratic birth! I resolved to become the
most famous of mankind, and I found an angel and was going to marry her.
But the evil began to come with the good: it began long ago, and in many
ways, and I tried to overcome it, or provide against it, one way or
another. You benevolent people had led me into a battle-field, unarmed,
and then left me to fight my way through; and I should have done it,
too, but at the last I had myself to fight against, and then _I_ gave
in. Why, _I_ had been dead and buried more than twenty years--why don't
you laugh at that?--and had been imposed upon all that time by this
miserable nameless outcast, myself! whose father's name was Adultery and
his mother's Sin. That was a parentage to be proud of, wasn't it? And
yet, I swear before God, I'm better contented it should be so, than to
be the son of an honest marriage, with such a woman as you for my
mother."

As he loosened the hold of one hand, to emphasize this oath, the
senseless body, which he had been upholding, swung round, and swayed,
toward the floor. He dropped the arm which remained in his grasp, and
the red flush on his cheek and forehead died away into pallor, as he
looked down at the dark heap of clothes lying at his feet. Finally he
stooped down, and lifted her on to the sofa.

"She's not dead," muttered he, after scrutinizing the woman's face for a
moment; "she has her punishment, though, like the rest of us."

He wrote an address on a couple of pieces of paper which he found in the
drawer of the table, and fastened them to the box and trunk with some
mucilage. Then he took his fur cap, and having banged on the fat Irish
servant-girl's door, and told her that her mistress was lying insensible
in his study, he left the house without delay. It wanted still an hour
to the time for the earliest morning train to New York, and, as the
young man did not care to subject himself to questions and remarks from
the officials at the village depot, he determined to walk down the
track, a distance of between four and five miles, to the station below.
Off he started accordingly, and, arriving there in ample time, was able
to eat a good breakfast of cold meat, hard-boiled eggs, and
crackers--all the solid contents of the refr