e romantic part of the story
had drawn the attention of the county and the whole local gentry upon
the character of Edward Nicholas, they could not but affect his
pretensions very disadvantageously with all Miss Walladmor's
connexions. With the sincerity of real love, Captain Nicholas had not
concealed from Miss Walladmor the circumstances of his early education
amongst smugglers and sea-rovers: but these she justly regarded as the
palliations of any youthful levities he might have committed, and as
his great misfortune, and not as any part of his offences. Neither had
he concealed the obscurity of his birth; so that, with regard to that,
she had nothing to learn. The worst part of the charges, as it soon
came out, were easily repelled by the mere dates of the transactions to
which they referred: of all the cruel and bloody part every man, who
knew his nature, acquitted him; for, howsoever he may choose to talk
ferociously since he has become desperate, he has nothing cruel in his
disposition. But, when these were disposed of, there still remained
many wild infractions of law which left a taint behind, such as ought
not to attach to the name of him who was a candidate for Miss
Walladmor's hand. If Miss Walladmor in the tenderness of her affection
steadily refused to believe these stories, others (she saw) did not.
Something was due to her family; and to Sir Morgan, the head of it,
more especially, from the unlimited confidence he had reposed in her
discretion. However it were palliated by his extreme youth and the
connexions upon which his misfortunes had thrown him, still some part
of what had been alleged against Captain Nicholas appeared to be true:
for even, with such an interest at stake, the nobility of his mind
would not stoop to the meanness of falsehood. Miss Walladmor was
greatly shocked; suffered much in mind and in health; and discovered in
her countenance the agitations to which she was now a prey. She knew,
she could not but know, that she was consigning him to despair: her
woman's heart relented again and again in behalf of the man who had
loved her so long and so fervently: but at length she told him calmly
and yet firmly that it was necessary they should part. Whatever she
could do by tenderness of manner to mitigate the bitterness of this
parting--she did; her affections, there was no need to tell him, were
wholly his: and she assured him that, if he would in any way efface the
stains upon his name, her