leaving a sting behind. When a man's love goes well with
him,--so well as to be in some degree oppressive to him even by
its prosperity,--when the young lady has jumped into his arms and
the father and mother have been quite willing, then he wants no
confidant. He does not care to speak very much of the matter which
among his friends is apt to become a subject for raillery. When
you call a man Benedick he does not come to you with ecstatic
descriptions of the beauty and the wit of his Beatrice. But no one
was likely to call him Benedick in reference to Lady Mary.

In spite of his manner, in spite of his apparent self-sufficiency,
this man was very soft within. Less than two years back he had been
willing to sacrifice all the world for his cousin Mabel, and his
cousin Mabel had told him that he was wrong. "It does not pay to
sacrifice the world for love." So cousin Mabel had said, and had
added something as to its being necessary that she should marry a
rich man, and expedient that he should marry a rich woman. He had
thought much about it, and had declared to himself that on no account
would he marry a woman for her money. Then he had encountered Lady
Mary Palliser. There had been no doubt, no resolution after that,
no thinking about it;--but downright love. There was nothing left
of real regret for his cousin in his bosom. She had been right.
That love had been impossible. But this would be possible,--ah, so
deliciously possible,--if only her father and mother would assist!
The mother, imprudent in this as in all things, had assented. The
reader knows the rest.

It was in every way possible. "She will have money enough," the
Duchess had said, "if only her father can be brought to give it you."
So Tregear had set his heart upon it, and had said to himself that
the thing was to be done. Then his friend the Duchess had died, and
the real difficulties had commenced. From that day he had not seen
his love, or heard from her. How was he to know whether she would be
true to him? And where was he to seek for that sympathy which he felt
to be so necessary to him? A wild idea had come into his head that
Mrs. Finn would be his friend;--but she had repudiated him.

He went straight home and at once wrote to the girl. The letter was
a simple love-letter, and as such need not be given here. In what
sweetest language he could find he assured her that even though he
should never be allowed to see her or to hear from her, that stil