eart even as you hear my words,
you are unfit to find shelter beneath my roof."

Having so spoken, waiting to see the effect of his indignation, the
priest went out, and got upon his horse, and went away upon his journey.
The young lord knew that he had been insulted, was aware that words had
been said to him so severe that one man, in his rank of life, rarely
utters them to another; and he had stood the while with his face turned
to the wall speechless and sobbing! The priest had gone, telling him
to leave the house because his presence disgraced it; and he had made
no answer. Yet he was the Earl of Scroope,--the thirteenth Earl of
Scroope,--a man in his own country full of honours. Why had he come
there to be called a villain? And why was the world so hard upon him
that on hearing himself so called he could only weep like a girl? Had he
done worse than other men? Was he not willing to make any retribution
for his fault,--except by doing that which he had been taught to think
would be a greater fault? As he left the house he tried to harden his
heart against Kate O'Hara. The priest had lied to him about her father.
They must have known that the man was alive. They had caught him among
them, and the priest's anger was a part of the net with which they had
intended to surround him. The stake for which they had played had been
very great. To be Countess of Scroope was indeed a chance worth some
risk. Then, as he breasted the hill up towards the burial ground, he
tried to strengthen his courage by realizing the magnitude of his own
position. He bade himself remember that he was among people who were his
inferiors in rank, education, wealth, manners, religion and nationality.
He had committed an error. Of course he had been in fault. Did he wish
to escape the consequences of his own misdoing? Was not his presence
there so soon after the assumption of his family honours sufficient
evidence of his generous admission of the claims to which he was
subject? Had he not offered to sacrifice himself as no other man would
have done? But they were still playing for the high stakes. They
were determined that the girl should be Countess of Scroope. He was
determined that she should not be Countess of Scroope. He was still
willing to sacrifice himself, but his family honours he would not
pollute.

And then as he made his way past the burial ground and on towards the
cliff there crept over him a feeling as to the girl very different fro