his feeling. 'In the time of the French Revolution, Pariseau, a
ballet-master, was beheaded by mistake for Parisot, a captain of
the King's Guard. I wish there was another "E. Swancourt" in the
neighbourhood. Look at this.'

He handed her the letter she had written and left on the table at Mrs.
Jethway's. She looked over it vacantly.

'It is not so much as it seems!' she pleaded. 'It seems wickedly
deceptive to look at now, but it had a much more natural origin than you
think. My sole wish was not to endanger our love. O Harry! that was all
my idea. It was not much harm.'

'Yes, yes; but independently of the poor miserable creature's remarks,
it seems to imply--something wrong.'

'What remarks?'

'Those she wrote me--now torn to pieces. Elfride, DID you run away
with a man you loved?--that was the damnable statement. Has such an
accusation life in it--really, truly, Elfride?'

'Yes,' she whispered.

Knight's countenance sank. 'To be married to him?' came huskily from his
lips.

'Yes. Oh, forgive me! I had never seen you, Harry.'

'To London?'

'Yes; but I----'

'Answer my questions; say nothing else, Elfride Did you ever
deliberately try to marry him in secret?'

'No; not deliberately.'

'But did you do it?'

A feeble red passed over her face.

'Yes,' she said.

'And after that--did you--write to him as your husband; and did he
address you as his wife?'

'Listen, listen! It was----'

'Do answer me; only answer me!'

'Then, yes, we did.' Her lips shook; but it was with some little dignity
that she continued: 'I would gladly have told you; for I knew and know I
had done wrong. But I dared not; I loved you too well. Oh, so well! You
have been everything in the world to me--and you are now. Will you not
forgive me?'

It is a melancholy thought, that men who at first will not allow the
verdict of perfection they pronounce upon their sweethearts or wives
to be disturbed by God's own testimony to the contrary, will, once
suspecting their purity, morally hang them upon evidence they would be
ashamed to admit in judging a dog.

The reluctance to tell, which arose from Elfride's simplicity in
thinking herself so much more culpable than she really was, had been
doing fatal work in Knight's mind. The man of many ideas, now that
his first dream of impossible things was over, vibrated too far in
the contrary direction; and her every movement of feature--every
tremor--every confused word--was taken as s