you, if he knew about it already. It seems to me----"

"He didn't know about it," said Cornelia. "I haven't told him yet."

"Why, Cornelia!"

The reproachful superiority in Charmian's tone was bitter to Cornelia,
but she did not even attempt to resent it. She said meekly, "I did try
to tell him. I wanted to tell him the very first thing, but he wouldn't
let me, then; and then--I couldn't."

Charmian's superiority melted into sympathy: "Of course," she said.

"And now, I never can tell him," Cornelia desperately concluded.

"Never!" Charmian assented. The gleam of common-sense which had visited
her for an instant, was lost in the lime-light of romance, which her
fancy cast upon the situation. "And what are you going to do?" she
asked, enraptured by its hopeless gloom.

"Nothing. What can I do?"

"No. You can do nothing." She started, as with a sudden inspiration.
"Why, look here, Cornelia! Why wouldn't this do?"

She stopped so long that Cornelia asked, somewhat crossly, "Well?"

"I don't know whether I'd better tell you. But I know it would be the
very thing. Do you want me to tell you?"

"Oh, it makes no difference," said Cornelia, hopelessly.

Charmian went on tentatively, "Why, it's this. I've often heard of such
things: Me to pretend that _I_ wrote this horrid Dickerson letter, and
there isn't any such person; but I did it just for a joke, or wanted to
break off the engagement because I couldn't bear to give you up. Don't
you see? It's like lots of things on the stage, and I've read of them,
I'd be perfectly willing to sacrifice myself in such a cause, and I
should have to, for after I said I had done such a thing as that, he
would never let you speak to me again, or look at me, even. But I
should die happy----" She stopped, frozen to silence, by the scornful
rejection in Cornelia's look. "Oh, no, no! It wouldn't do! I see it
wouldn't! Don't speak! But there's nothing else left, that I know of."
She added, by another inspiration, "Or, yes! Now--_now_--we can live
for each other, Cornelia. You will outlive this. You will be terribly
changed, of course; and perhaps your health may be affected; but I
shall always be with you from this on. I have loved you more truly than
he ever did, if he can throw you over for a little thing like that. If
I were a man I should exult to ignore such a thing. Oh, if men could
only be what girls would be if they were men! But now you must begin to
forget him from this instan