eft by the lawyer to
obtain further information from her husband. Ah, who can tell how
terrible were the scenes between that poor pair of wretches, as the
wife endeavoured to learn the truth from her miserable, half-maddened
husband! That her husband had been honest throughout, she had not
any shadow of doubt. She did not doubt that to her at least he
endeavoured to tell the truth, as far as his poor racked imperfect
memory would allow him to remember what was true and what was not
true. The upshot of it all was that the husband declared that he
still believed that the money had come to him from the dean. He had
kept it by him, not wishing to use it if he could help it. He had
forgotten it,--so he said at times,--having understood from Arabin
that he was to have fifty pounds, and having received more. If it had
not come to him from the dean, then it had been sent to him by the
Prince of Evil for his utter undoing; and there were times in which
he seemed to think that such had been the manner in which the fatal
cheque had reached him. In all that he said he was terribly confused,
contradictory, unintelligible,--speaking almost as a madman might
speak,--ending always in declaring that the cruelty of the world had
been too much for him, that the waters were meeting over his head,
and praying to God's mercy to remove him from the world. It need
hardly be said that his poor wife in these days had a burden on her
shoulders that was more than enough to crush any woman.

She at last acknowledged to Mr. Walker that she could not account for
the twenty pounds. She herself would write again to the dean about
it, but she hardly hoped for any further assistance there. "The
dean's answer is very plain," said Mr. Walker. "He says that he gave
Mr. Crawley five ten-pound notes, and those five notes we have traced
to Mr. Crawley's hands." Then Mrs. Crawley could say nothing further
beyond making protestations of her husband's innocence.

CHAPTER II

By Heavens He Had Better Not!

I must ask the reader to make the acquaintance of Major Grantly of
Cosby Lodge, before he is introduced to the family of Mr. Crawley, at
their parsonage in Hogglestock. It has been said that Major Grantly
had thrown a favourable eye on Grace Crawley,--by which report
occasion was given to all men and women in those parts to hint that
the Crawleys, with all their piety and humility, were very cunning,
and that one of the Grantlys was,--to say the lea