Page:Gaskell--A dark night's work.djvu/182

Rh “That was all, you are sure?”

“Yes. He immediately applied the case to me—to ourselves.”

“And he never wanted to know what was the nature of the threatened disgrace?”

“Yes, he did.”

“And you told him?”

“No, not a word more. He referred to the subject again to-day, in the shrubbery; but I told him nothing more. You quite believe me, don’t you, papa?”

He pressed her to him, but did not speak. Then he took the note up again, and read it with as much care and attention as he could collect in his agitated state of mind.

“Nelly,” said he, at length, “he says true; he is not good enough for thee. He shrinks from the thought of the disgrace. Thou must stand alone, and bear the sins of thy father.”

He shook so much as he said this, that Ellinor had to put any suffering of her own on one side, and try to confine her thoughts to the necessity of getting her father immediately up to bed. She sat by him till he went to sleep, and she could leave him, and go to her own room, to forgetfulness and rest, if she could find those priceless blessings.