h. Magdalen approached him again, and tried to speak.
He solemnly motioned her back with another dreary wave of his hand.

"No carneying!" said old Mazey; "I'm bad enough already, without that.
It's my duty to make my report to his honor the admiral, and I
_will_ make it. But if you like to give the house the slip before the
burglary's reported, and the court of inquiry begins, I'll disgrace
myself by letting you go. It's market morning at Ossory, and Dawkes will
be driving the light cart over in a quarter of an hour's time. Dawkes
will take you if I ask him. I know my duty--my duty is to turn the key
on you, and see Dawkes damned first. But I can't find it in my heart to
be hard on a fine girl like you. It's bred in the bone, and it wunt come
out of the flesh. More shame for me, I tell you again--more shame for
me!"

The proposal thus strangely and suddenly presented to her took Magdalen
completely by surprise. She had been far too seriously shaken by the
events of the night to be capable of deciding on any subject at a
moment's notice. "You are very good to me, Mr. Mazey," she said. "May I
have a minute by myself to think?"

"Yes, you may," replied the veteran, facing about forthwith and leaving
the room. "They're all alike," proceeded old Mazey, with his head still
running on the sex. "Whatever you offer 'em, they always want something
more. Tall and short, native and foreign, sweethearts and wives, they're
all alike!"

Left by herself, Magdalen reached her decision with far less difficulty
than she had anticipated.

If she remained in the house, there were only two courses before
her--to charge old Mazey with speaking under the influence of a drunken
delusion, or to submit to circumstances. Though she owed to the old
sailor her defeat in the very hour of success, his consideration for
her at that moment forbade the idea of defending herself at his
expense--even supposing, what was in the last degree improbable, that
the defense would be credited. In the second of the two cases (the
case of submission to circumstances), but one result could be
expected--instant dismissal, and perhaps discovery as well. What object
was to be gained by braving that degradation--by leaving the house
publicly disgraced in the eyes of the servants who had hated and
distrusted her from the first? The accident which had literally
snatched the Trust from her possession when she had it in her hand was
irreparable. The one apparent compe