s, Brook!" exclaimed Sir Adam, for the third time that
morning.

"It's all very well to tell me not to be an ass," answered the young
man gravely. "I can't mend matters now, and I don't blame her for
refusing me. It isn't much more than two weeks since that night. I can't
tell her the truth--I wouldn't tell it to you, though I can't prevent
your telling it to me, since you've guessed it. She thinks I betrayed
Mrs. Crosby, and left her--like the merest cad, you know. What am I to
do? I won't say anything against Mrs. Crosby for anything--and if I were
low enough to do that I couldn't say it to Miss Bowring. I told her that
I'd marry her in spite of herself--carry her off--anything! But of
course I couldn't. I lost my head, and talked like a fool."

"She won't think the worse of you for that," observed the old man. "But
you can't tell her--the rest. Of course not! I'll see what I can do,
Brook. I don't believe it's hopeless at all. I've watched Miss Bowring,
ever since we first met you two, coming up the hill. I'll try
something--"

"Don't speak to her about Mrs. Crosby, at all events!"

"I don't think I should do anything you wouldn't do yourself, boy," said
Sir Adam, with a shade of reproval in his tone. "All I say is that the
case isn't so hopeless as you seem to think. Of course you are heavily
handicapped, and you are a dog with a bad name, and all the rest of it.
The young lady won't change her mind to-day, nor to-morrow either,
perhaps. But she wouldn't be a human woman if she never changed it at
all."

"You don't know her!" Brook shook his head and began to refill his
refractory pipe. "And I don't believe you know her mother either, though
you were married to her once. If she is at all what I think she is, she
won't let her daughter marry your son. It's not as though anything could
happen now to change the situation. It's an old one--it's old, and set,
and hard, like a cast. You can't run it into a new mould and make
anything else of it. Not even you, Governor--and you are as clever as
anybody I know. It's a sheer question of humanity, without any possible
outside incident. I've got two things against me which are about as
serious as anything can be--the mother's prejudice against you, and the
daughter's prejudice against me--both deuced well founded, it seems to
me."

"You forget one thing, Brook," said Sir Adam, thoughtfully.

"What's that?"

"Women forgive."

Neither spoke for some time.

"You oug