hop and his wife in
which the poor bishop had been so cruelly misused. But to Mr. Crawley
the thing which he himself had seen under such circumstances was as
sacred as though it had come to him under the seal of confession. In
speaking of the bishop and Mrs. Proudie,--nay, as far as was possible
in thinking of them,--he was bound to speak and to think as though he
had not witnessed that scene in the palace study.

"I don't suppose that there is much doubt about her real character,"
said Robarts. "But you and I need not discuss that."

"By no means. Such discussion would be both useless and unseemly."

"And just at present there is something else that I specially want
to say to you. Indeed, I went to Silverbridge on the same subject
yesterday, and have come here expressly to have a little conversation
with you."

"If it be about affairs of mine, Mr. Robarts, I am indeed troubled in
spirit that so great labour should have fallen upon you."

"Never mind my labour. Indeed your saying that is a nuisance to me,
because I hoped that by this time you would have understood that I
regard you as a friend, and that I think nothing any trouble that
I do for a friend. You position just now is so peculiar that it
requires a great deal of care."

"No care can be of any avail to me."

"There I disagree with you. You must excuse me, but I do; and so does
Dr. Tempest. We think that you have been a little too much in a hurry
since he communicated to you the result of our first meeting."

"As how, sir?"

"It is, perhaps, hardly worth while for us to go into the whole
question; but that man, Thumble, must not come here on next Sunday."

"I cannot say, Mr. Robarts, that the Reverend Mr. Thumble has
recommended himself to me strongly either by his outward symbols of
manhood or by such manifestation of his inward mental gifts as I have
succeeded in obtaining. But my knowledge of him has been so slight,
and has been acquired in a manner so likely to bias me prejudicially
against him, that I am inclined to think my opinion should go for
nothing. It is, however, the fact that the bishop has nominated him
to this duty; and that, as I have myself simply notified my desire
to be relieved from the care of the parish, on account of certain
unfitness of my own, I am the last man who should interfere with the
bishop in the choice of my temporary successor.

"It was her choice, not his."

"Excuse me, Mr. Robarts, but I cannot allow that ass