They faced the wonderful glory of the moon. Her hand was on the bar at
first, and his beside it. After a moment he glanced at the tempting
nearness, and put his in the pocket of his jacket. Then he turned his
back upon the moon, and leaned on the railing by her, facing the lesser
splendor that was to him as dazzling.

"Will you for-rgive me if I spoil the beauty of this per-rfect night by
speaking to you a little about--myself?"

His voice was serious. Sydney looked at him and turned away her head.
Her lips trembled.

"I have not the r-right to force upon you a subject so unwor-rthy. But
I think it is just that you should know--that all my friends should
know--what work I am going to tr-ry now to do to retr-rieve myself. Ah,
you make the little gesture that means 'Say not that word.' But you
will let me say just this one time ever-ything I want to, if you
please. When I say 'retr-rieve myself,' I understand well that nothing
can destr-roy the fact that my name is wr-ritten on those books over
there,"--he waved his hand in the direction of Asheville,--"and I know
well that for my fault all my life I shall suffer in one way or
another. But I can tr-ruly say, in God's sight,"--he stood bareheaded,
and faced again the heaven's pomp,--"that I have r-repented my weakness
most bitterly, both for what it did lead me to, and because such
weakness in itself is shameful."

Sydney lifted to his her eyes blurred with tears.

"Don't," she whispered, hoarsely.

"_Ach_, Heaven help me, look not at me like that," he cried; "I cannot
bear ever-ything!"

Silence lay between them after this cry of pain. Friedrich began again,
very low.

"I see now clearly what I saw not at the time,--that my weakness came
upon me fr-rom my own lack of str-rength to make an effort. I was
cr-rushed by a gr-rief when I left my land to come to America. I
allowed it to paralyze my will. I let myself dr-rift, not caring enough
about what became of me to exert myself to ward off poverty. Poverty
never had been mine,--I did not r-realize it, but I did know well the
meaning of self-r-respect and honor, and it was base of me to permit my
will so to sink."

Again he paused.

"I tire you? You let me go on?"

Sydney's face looked white in the moonlight. She assented by a motion
of the head.

"Even when I knew--you--"

Sydney gazed down at the scintillant water. Von Rittenheim did not turn
to her, and went on, steadily,--

"--and admired your beau