heart turn
cold; a disreputable air of license, as if he had been indulging
himself in spite of strong pledges given, and in disregard of gentle
influences that were trying to deter him. And when he had not been on
excursions, Dolly often knew that he had found his favourite beverage
somewhere and was a trifle the worse for it. What could she do? she
asked herself with a feeling almost of desperation. She had done all
she knew; what remained? Her father was well aware how she felt. Yet
no! not that. He could not have the faintest conception of the torture
he gave his daughter by making her ashamed of him, nor of the fearful
dread which lay upon her of what his habit of indulgence might end in.
If he _had_, Mr. Copley could not, at this stage of things at least,
have borne it. He must have yielded up anything or borne anything,
rather than that she should bear this. But he was a man, and could not
guess it; if he had been told, he would not have understood it; so he
had his pleasure, and his child's heart was torn with sorrow and shame.

There came a day at last when in their lodgings Mr. Copley called for a
bottle of wine at dinner. Dolly's heart gave a great jump.

"O father, we do not want wine!" she cried pleadingly.

"I do," said Mr. Copley, "and St. Leger does. Nonsense, my dear! no
gentleman takes his dinner without his wine. Isn't it so, Lawrence?"

And the wine was brought, and the two gentlemen helped themselves. Mrs.
Copley accepted a little; Rupert,--Dolly looked to see what he would
do,--Rupert quietly put it by.

So it had come to this again. Not all her prayers and tears and known
wishes could hold her father back from his desire. The desire must
already be very strong! Dolly kept her composure with difficulty. She
ate no more dinner. And it was a relief to thoughts she could scarcely
bear, when Rupert in the evening asked her to go out and take a row on
the water.

Such an evening as it was! Dolly ran gladly down the rocky steps which
led to the shore, and eagerly followed Rupert into the boat. She
thought to escape from her trouble for a while. Instead of that, when
the boat got away from the shore, and Dolly was floating on the crimson
and purple sea, with a flush of crimson and purple sent down upon her
from the clouds, and everything in the world glowing with colour or
tipped with gold,--her face as she gazed into the glory took such an
expression of wan despair, that Rupert forgot where he was.