ng round his
heart. These were bonds indeed; but they were bonds of such a nature
as to be capable of being rescinded and cut away altogether by
absolute bad conduct. If he could make it good to himself that in a
matter of such magnitude as the charge of his daughter she had been
untrue to him and had leagued herself against him, with an unworthy
lover, then, then--all bonds would be rescinded! Then would his wrath
be altogether justified! Then would it have been impossible that
he should have done aught else than cast her out! As he thought of
this he felt sure that she had betrayed him! How great would be the
ignominy to him should he be driven to own to himself that she had
not betrayed him! "There should not have been a moment," he said to
himself over and over again,--"not a moment!" Yes;--she certainly had
betrayed him.

There might still be safety for him in that confident assertion of
"not a moment;" but had there been anything of that conspiracy of
which he had certainly at first judged her to be guilty? She had told
her story, and had then appealed to Lady Mary for evidence. After
five minutes of perfect stillness,--but five minutes of misery, five
minutes during which great beads of perspiration broke out from him
and stood upon his brow, he had to confess to himself that he did not
want any evidence. He did believe her story. When he allowed himself
to think she had been in league with Tregear he had wronged her. He
wiped away the beads from his brow, and again repeated to himself
those words which were now his only comfort, "There should not have
been a moment;--not a moment!"

It was thus and only thus that he was enabled to assure himself that
there need be no acknowledgment of wrong done on his part. Having
settled this in his own mind he forced himself to attend a meeting
at which his assistance had been asked as to a complex question on
Law Reform. The Duke endeavoured to give himself up entirely to the
matter; but through it all there was the picture before him of Mrs.
Finn waiting for an answer to her letter. If he should confirm
himself in his opinion that he had been right, then would any answer
be necessary? He might just acknowledge the letter, after the fashion
which has come up in official life, than which silence is an insult
much more bearable. But he did not wish to insult, nor to punish her
further. He would willingly have withdrawn the punishment under which
she was groaning could he ha