rong desire that was in me to trust my secret to you, but I could
resist it no longer when I saw you to-night at the ball; the phantom
seemed to draw me on to you as you stood alone in the quiet room. Tell
me more of that idea of yours about finding the place where the duel was
fought. If I set out to-morrow to seek for it myself, where must I go
to first? where?" He stopped; his strength was evidently becoming
exhausted, and his mind was growing confused. "What am I to do? I can't
remember. You know everything--will you not help me? My misery has made
me unable to help myself."

He stopped, murmured something about failing if he went to the frontier
alone, and spoke confusedly of delays that might be fatal, then tried to
utter the name of "Ada"; but, in pronouncing the first letter, his voice
faltered, and, turning abruptly from me, he burst into tears.

My pity for him got the better of my prudence at that moment, and
without thinking of responsibilities, I promised at once to do for him
whatever he asked. The wild triumph in his expression as he started up
and seized my hand showed me that I had better have been more cautious;
but it was too late now to retract what I had said. The next best thing
to do was to try if I could not induce him to compose himself a little,
and then to go away and think coolly over the whole affair by myself.

"Yes, yes," he rejoined, in answer to the few words I now spoke to try
and calm him, "don't be afraid about me. After what you have said, I'll
answer for my own coolness and composure under all emergencies. I have
been so long used to the apparition that I hardly feel its presence at
all except on rare occasions. Besides, I have here in this little packet
of letters the medicine for every malady of the sick heart. They are
Ada's letters; I read them to calm me whenever my misfortune seems to
get the better of my endurance. I wanted that half hour to read them in
to-night before you came, to make myself fit to see you, and I shall go
through them again after you are gone; so, once more, don't be afraid
about me. I know I shall succeed with your help, and Ada shall thank you
as you deserve to be thanked when we get back to England. If you hear
the fools at Naples talk about my being mad, don't trouble yourself
to contradict them; the scandal is so contemptible that it must end by
contradicting itself."

I left him, promising to return early the next day.

When I got back to my hote