"I am much afraid," added the Colonel, looking over the papers, "that it

explains the marriage--and then Keith did not allow her as much as she

expected."

"Oh, Colonel Keith, don't!" cried Rachel; "it is just the one thing

where I could not bear to believe Alick. She was so dear and beautiful,

and spoke so rightly."

"To believe Alick!" repeated the Colonel, as Rachel's voice broke down.

"I thought--I ought not to have thought--he was hard upon her--but

he knew better," said Rachel, "of course he did not know of all this

dreadful business!"

"Assuredly not," said the Colonel, "that is self-evident, but as you

say, I am afraid he did know his poor sister's character better than we

did, when he came to warn me against the marriage."

"Did he? Oh how much it must have cost him."

"I am afraid I did not make it cost him less. I thought he judged her

harshly, and that his illness had made him magnify trifles, but though

our interference would have been perfectly useless, he was quite right

in his warning. Now that, poor thing, she is no longer here to enchant

us with her witcheries, I see that my brother greatly suffered from

being kept away from home, and detained in this place, and that she left

him far more alone than she ought to have done."

"Yes, Alick thought so, but she had such good reasons, I am sure she

believed them herself."

"If she had not believed them, she could not have had such perfect

sincerity of manner," said the Colonel; "she must have persuaded at

least one half of herself that she was acting for every one's good

except her own."

"And Mr. Clare, whom Alick always thought she neglected, never felt it.

Alick says he was too unselfish to claim attention."

"I never doubted her for one moment till I came home, on that unhappy

day, and found how ill Keith was. I did think then, that considering

how much she had seen of Alick while the splinters were working out,

she ought to have known better than to talk of sciatica; but she made

me quite believe in her extreme anxiety, and that she was only going

out because it was necessary for her to take care of you on your first

appearance. How bright she looked, and how little I thought I should

never see her again!"

"Oh, she meant what she said! She always was kind to me! Most kind!"

repeated Rachel; "so considerate about all the dreadful spring--not one

word did she say to vex me about the past! I am sure she did go out on

that day as much to shelter me as for anything else. I can't bear to

think all this--here in this pretty room that she had such pleasure

in; where she made me so welcome, after all my disagreeableness and

foolishness."




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