of utter surprise in his eyes, and therefore quickly
added--

"You will, I know, consider me the most heartless woman in the world
because I can talk to a stranger like this; but is not in your country
loss of honour regarded as worse than death?"

"Under certain circumstances--yes; but your husband's position is not,
I hope, to be viewed in this tragic light. Judging from the impression
that Captain McGregor's personality has made upon me, I should say
that he is not the man to drive Mr. Irwin to take an extreme course on
account of a recklessly incurred debt at cards."

"Oh no! you judge of that honourable man quite correctly. He would
be best pleased to forego the whole amount, and with the intention of
bringing about such an arrangement he called here this afternoon. But
the foolish pride and unbounded vanity of Irwin brought all his good
intentions to naught. The result of McGregor's well-meant endeavours
was only a violent scene, which made matters a thousand times worse. My
husband is determined to pay his debt at any price."

"And--pardon me the indiscreet question--is he capable of doing so?"

"If he uses my fortune for the purpose--certainly! and I have at once
placed it at his disposal; and I further told him that he could take
everything, even the last penny, if this sacrifice on my part would
suffice to get rid of him for ever."

Heideck could scarcely believe his ears. He was prepared for anything on
earth except to hear such confessions. He began to doubt this woman, who
hitherto had seemed to him to be the paragon of all feminine virtues,
and he sought an opportunity of escaping from further confessions of the
kind, which, as he told himself, she would repent of in the course of an
hour or so.

"Nobody can expect of you, Mrs. Irwin, that for a criminal recklessness,
a hasty action on the part of your husband, who was probably deep in his
cups, you should make such a tremendous sacrifice; but, as you have now
done me the honour to consult me on these matters, it is perhaps not
unbecoming on my part if I tell you that your husband should, in my
opinion, be forced to bear the consequences of his action. You need not
be at all apprehensive that these consequences will be very serious.
McGregor will certainly not press him; and as we seem to be on the
threshold of a war, his superior officers are not likely to be too
severe upon him in this matter. He will, perhaps, either find an
opportunity to reha