hey
were, who would not overlook them, and rejoice to have the power of
comforting such a penitent? Theresa Marstone, with a woman's latent love
of romance, was prime confidante to both, encouraged all, and delighted
in the prospect of being supreme in the Priory, and moulding the pattern
household of the pair formed and united under her auspices.

In the midst of such a dream as this, what chance had Lady Elizabeth
of convincing the friends that their penitent, scarcely persuaded to
relinquish plans of a hermitage, was a spendthrift adventurer, seeking
to repair his extravagance with the estates of Rickworth?

Emma shed indignant tears, and protested that it was cruel to bring up
his past faults; talked of the Christian duty of forgiving the returning
sinner; and when Lady Elizabeth showed that he had very recently
been engaged in his usual courses, Theresa, with a sensible face and
reasonable voice, argued that ordinary minds could not enter into the
power of the Church's work, and adduced many cases of equally sudden
change of life.

She did not mention whether there was always the heiress of ten thousand
a year ready as a reward.

The list of charges against Mark's character deepened every day, and
added to poor Lady Elizabeth's horror, but he always contrived to render
them as nothing to Emma. He had always confessed them beforehand, either
to her or to Theresa, with strong professions of sorrow, and so
softened and explained away, that they were ready to receive each
fresh accusation as an exaggeration of a fault long past, and deeply
regretted, and only admired their injured Mark the more. Lady Elizabeth
wrote to beg Violet to give her the clue which she had said Arthur
possessed to Mark's actual present character.

In much distress Violet wrote the letter, mentioning some disgraceful
transactions which she knew to have been taking place at the very time
when the good curate believed his friend sincerely repentant. She had
heard them, not from Arthur, but from Mrs Bryanstone, who always learnt
from her brother every such piece of gossip, but still, after what had
passed, and Lady Elizabeth's appeal direct to Arthur, she thought it
her duty to tell him before she sent the letter, and to ask if the facts
were correct.

It was a most unpleasant duty; but Arthur was not in such a mood as when
first she had mentioned the subject to him. He muttered something about
the intense folly of a woman who could believe