d that any life, however hard, would be preferable to
the present one. He could not stay here and be slandered by Etta and
bullied by Giles. He seemed very unhappy, and once he put down his head
upon his arms and groaned. It was just then that I heard a slight
movement outside the door, and opened it just in time to see Leah gliding
round the corner. Ursula, she had heard every word that my poor boy had
said, and it is Leah's evidence that has helped to criminate him.'

'Yes, I see. But did you not put your brother on his guard?'

'No,' she returned sadly, 'I made the grievous mistake of keeping Leah's
eavesdropping to myself. I thought Eric had enough to trouble him,
without adding to his discomfort. I would give much now to have done
otherwise.

'I stayed up late with him, and did not leave him until he had promised
to go to bed. Giles was still in the study when I went to my room, but he
came up shortly afterwards, for I could hear his footsteps distinctly
passing my door. He must have passed Leah in the passage, for I heard him
say, "You are up late to-night, Leah," but her answer escaped me.

'I can tell you no more on my own evidence; but Eric's account, which I
believe as surely as I am holding your hand now, is this:

'He heard Giles come up to bed, and a sudden impulse prompted him to go
down to the study and place his letter on Giles's desk. It was a very
wild, foolish letter, written under strong excitement. I saw it
afterwards, and felt that it had better not have been written. Among
other things, he informed Giles that he would sooner destroy himself than
go into Armstrong's office, and that he (Giles) had made his life so
bitter to him that he thought he might as well do it: oh, Ursula, of
course it was wrong of him, but indeed he had had terrible provocation.
He had made up his mind to put this letter on Giles's desk before he
slept: so he slipped off his boots, that I might not hear him pass my
door, and crept down to the study. He had his chamber candlestick, as he
feared that he might have some difficulty with the fastenings, for he had
heard Giles put up the chain and bell. All our doors on that floor have
chains and bells; it is one of Giles's fads. To his great surprise,
the door was ajar, and when he put down the candle on the table he had
a passing fancy that the thick curtains that were drawn over one of the
windows moved slightly, as though from a draught of air. He blamed
himself afterwards