want of admirers--oh! no--she has had her full share of these,
but she is too, too difficult to please. I think, however, she would
fall before a _great and good_ man." And she looked hard at Theobald,
who blushed; but the days went by and still he did not propose.

Another time Theobald actually took Mrs Cowey into his confidence, and
the reader may guess what account of Christina he got from her. Mrs
Cowey tried the jealousy manoeuvre and hinted at a possible rival.
Theobald was, or pretended to be, very much alarmed; a little rudimentary
pang of jealousy shot across his bosom and he began to believe with pride
that he was not only in love, but desperately in love or he would never
feel so jealous. Nevertheless, day after day still went by and he did
not propose.

The Allabys behaved with great judgement. They humoured him till his
retreat was practically cut off, though he still flattered himself that
it was open. One day about six months after Theobald had become an
almost daily visitor at the Rectory the conversation happened to turn
upon long engagements. "I don't like long engagements, Mr Allaby, do
you?" said Theobald imprudently. "No," said Mr Allaby in a pointed tone,
"nor long courtships," and he gave Theobald a look which he could not
pretend to misunderstand. He went back to Cambridge as fast as he could
go, and in dread of the conversation with Mr Allaby which he felt to be
impending, composed the following letter which he despatched that same
afternoon by a private messenger to Crampsford. The letter was as
follows:--

"Dearest Miss Christina,--I do not know whether you have guessed the
feelings that I have long entertained for you--feelings which I have
concealed as much as I could through fear of drawing you into an
engagement which, if you enter into it, must be prolonged for a
considerable time, but, however this may be, it is out of my power to
conceal them longer; I love you, ardently, devotedly, and send these
few lines asking you to be my wife, because I dare not trust my tongue
to give adequate expression to the magnitude of my affection for you.

"I cannot pretend to offer you a heart which has never known either
love or disappointment. I have loved already, and my heart was years
in recovering from the grief I felt at seeing her become another's.
That, however, is over, and having seen yourself I rejoice over a
disappointment which I thought