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212 "Do you think," cried Walter, "that I could keep it, after to-night? I would not, for twice his wealth, live with a man I so utterly scorn!" "But you lose," said she, "his interest; and he has it in his power to do so much for you!" "I could not submit to an obligation from Sir George Kingston!" "I admit that you are right," replied Lavinia, slowly; "but I feel an unaccountable reluctance that you should interfere in this matter." "Listen to me for a moment," said Walter, "and seriously. Sir Jasper Meredith was my first and my best friend. If I possess the talents that have placed me in the very situation that I hold, I owe their cultivation to him. To what use have I turned them? to destroy the happiness of the being dearest to him upon earth! For his sake alone, I would lay down my life to restore those letters!" "Poor, kind, old man that he was," said