She stretched her little frail hands out yearningly to me, as she
lay in Dermody's arms. "Good-by, dear," she said, faintly. I saw
her head sink on her father's bosom as I was dragged to the door.
In my helpless rage and misery, I struggled against the cruel
hands that had got me with all the strength I had left. I cried
out to her, "I love you, Mary! I will come back to you, Mary! I
will never marry any one but you!" Step by step, I was forced
further and further away. The last I saw of her, my darling's
head was still resting on Dermody's breast. Her grandmother stood
near, and shook her withered hands at my father, and shrieked her
terrible prophecy, in the hysteric frenzy that possessed her when
she saw the separation accomplished. "Go!--you go to your ruin!
you go to your death!" While her voice still rang in my ears, the
cottage door was opened and closed again. It was all over. The
modest world of my boyish love and my boyish joy disappeared like
the vision of a dream. The empty outer wilderness, which was my
father's world, opened before me void of love and void of joy.
God forgive me--how I hated him at that moment!

CHAPTER IV.

THE CURTAIN FALLS.

FOR the rest of the day, and through the night, I was kept a
close prisoner in my room, watched by a man on whose fidelity my
father could depend.

The next morning I made an effort to escape, and was discovered
before I had got free of the house. Confined again to my room, I
contrived to write to Mary, and to slip my note into the willing