me. Finally he realized that all were
waiting for him, and thought sprang, strong and powerful, to his face.

"Dr. Kemp," he began, "I have something to say to you,--to you in
particular, and to my daughter Ruth. My wife and nephew know in brief
what I have to say; therefore I need not dwell on the painful event
that happened here last September; you will pardon me, when you see the
necessity, for my reverting to it at all."

Every one's eyes rested upon him,--that is, all but Arnold's,
which seemed holding some secret communion with the cupids on the
ceiling,--and the look of convulsive agony that swept across Ruth's face
was unnoticed.

"In all my long, diversified life," he went on, "I had never suffered as
I did after she told me her decision,--for in all those years no one
had ever been made to suffer through me; that is, so far as I knew.
Unconsciously, or in anger, I may have hurt many, but never, as in
this case, with knowledge aforethought,--when the blow fell upon my own
child. You will understand, and perhaps forgive, when I say I gave no
thought to you. She came to me with her sweet, renunciating hands held
out, and with a smile of self-forgetfulness, said, 'Father, you are
right; I could not be happy with this man.' At the moment I believed
her, thinking she had adopted my views; but with all her bravery, her
real feelings conquered her, and I saw. Not that she had spoken untruly,
but she had implied the truth only in part, I knew my child loved me,
and she meant honestly that my pain would rob her of perfect happiness
with you,--my pain would form an eclipse strong enough to darken
everything. Do you think this knowledge made me glad or proud? Do you
know how love, that in the withholding justifies itself, suffers from
the pain inflicted? But I said, 'After all, it is as I think; she
will thank me for it some day.' I was not altogether selfish, please
remember. Then, as I saw her silent wrestling, came distrust of myself;
I remembered I was pitted against two, younger and no more fallible than
myself. As soon as doubt of myself attacked me, I strove to look on
the other side; I strove to rid myself of the old prejudices, the old
superstitions, the old narrowness of faith; it was useless,--I was too
old, and my prejudices had become part of me. It was in this state of
perturbation that I had gone one day up to the top floor of the Palace
Hotel. Thank you, Doctor."

The latter had quietly risen and admin