"Poor thing!" said Mrs. Furnival, the feelings of whose heart were
quite changed as regarded Lady Mason.

"I never knew a woman so badly treated." Sophia had her own reasons
for wishing to make the best of Lady Mason's case. "And for myself
I do not see why Sir Peregrine should not have married her if he
pleased."

"He is rather old, my dear."

"People don't think so much about that now-a-days as they used. If he
liked it, and she too, who had a right to say anything? My idea is
that a man with any spirit would have turned Lord Alston out of the
house. What business had he to interfere?"

"But about the trial, Sophia?"

"That will go on. There's no doubt about that. But they all say that
it's the most unjust thing in the world, and that she must be proved
innocent. I heard the judge say so myself."

"But why are they allowed to try her then?"

"Oh, papa will tell you that."

"I never like to bother your papa about law business." Particularly
not, Mrs. Furnival, when he has a pretty woman for his client!

"My wonder is that she should make herself so unhappy about it,"
continued Sophia. "It seems that she is quite broken down."

"But won't she have to go and sit in the court,--with all the people
staring at her?"

"That won't kill her," said Sophia, who felt that she herself would
not perish under any such process. "If I was sure that I was in the
right, I think that I could hold up my head against all that. But
they say that she is crushed to the earth."

"Poor thing!" said Mrs. Furnival. "I wish that I could do anything
for her." And in this way they talked the matter over very
comfortably.

Two or three days after this Sophia Furnival was sitting alone in the
drawing-room in Harley Street, when Spooner answered a double knock
at the door, and Lucius Mason was shown up stairs. Mrs. Furnival had
gone to make her peace in Red Lion Square, and there may perhaps
be ground for supposing that Lucius had cause to expect that Miss
Furnival might be seen at this hour without interruption. Be that
as it may, she was found alone, and he was permitted to declare his
purpose unmolested by father, mother, or family friends.

"You remember how we parted at Noningsby," said he, when their first
greetings were well over.

"Oh, yes; I remember it very well. I do not easily forget words such
as were spoken then."

"You said that you would never turn away from me."

"Nor will I;--that is with reference to the matter