nt on. "What I want is motive power; given that, I can
conquer anything. Well, I will do this; say yes, and from this time
forward I will never touch it again--never, never!"

"If a thing is an evil, if it is a wrong," she said, "a man should fight
it because it is wrong. If a habit has mastered you, you should fight
it, and conquer it--because of your respect of--your own manhood."

"You ask too much," he said. "No man can do and be without a sufficient
motive. Take you out of my life, and what motive have I?"

"The belief in your own manhood."

"Why should I believe in that? If you refuse me, what have I to live
for? Yes, I fight for a position which at heart I despise. I become a
member of the British Parliament; many who have not the brains of a
rabbit, nor the ideals of a low tavern-keeper, occupy that position.
Faith in God and man! I can only think of them through you."

She felt the unworthiness of his position. She knew that her ideal man
must always be strong and brave, whatever the circumstances of his life
might be, and, so far, Leicester had disappointed her. Nevertheless,
there was in his words a subtle flattery which appeals to every woman.
She was, humanly speaking, the saving power of his life. The destiny of
this strong man was in her hands. What might he not do and be if he were
inspired by great hopes and lofty ambitions? His name could be a
household word in the land. Millions of struggling, starving people
would have cause to bless his name. And she, she could be the means used
by God whereby all that was best and noblest in this man could be
realised. For she, like all who knew him, felt the wondrous
possibilities of his life. It might seem like boasting when he said that
with her by his side he could do anything, but she felt sure it was
true.

Besides, Leicester appealed to her woman's pride. Every woman longs for
strength, masterfulness in the man she loves; she would rather be
mastered by a strong man, than be master of a weak man. At that moment
she forgot Leicester's cynicism, his professed scorn for all she held
most dear; she thought of him as the man he could be.

Behind all that was unworthy, the real man lay strong and brave. He
might become a Cabinet Minister, Prime Minister! He had power which
could fit him even for this. The sphere of such a man's influence was
simply boundless. He could uplift the whole tone of the nation. And
then, more than all, he loved her! This was not t