for his treatment of Madame Danterre. Sometimes a man is haunted by
wrong-doing in the past until it prevents his understanding the point of
view of anybody but the victim of the old haunting sin. Remorse is very
exclusive, Sir Edmund. In such a state of mind he would hardly think of
Lady Rose enough to realise the bearing of his words. 'Forgive as you
too hope to be forgiven' would be an appeal wrung out from him by sheer
suffering. It is a possible cry from any human being to another. Then as
to the ring and the photograph, we have no proof that he put them in the
envelope. They may have been found on him and put into the envelope by
the same hand that addressed it. I quite grant you that those few words
are extraordinary, but they can be explained. But even if it were
obvious that they were intended for somebody else, you cannot deduce
from that, that another letter, intended for Lady Rose and containing a
will, was sent elsewhere."

But Sir Edmund was obstinate. The piece of paper had been intended for
Madame Danterre, together with the ring and the photograph--things
belonging to Sir David's early life, to the days when he most probably
loved this other woman; he even went so far as to maintain that the lady
in Florence had given Sir David the ring.

"After all," said Mr. Murray, "what can you do? You could only raise
hopes that won't be fulfilled."

"I think myself that my explanation would calm my cousin's mind; the
possibility that she was not Sir David's wife is, I am convinced, the
most painful part of the trial to her. I shall write it to her, but I
shall also tell her that there is no hope whatever of proving what I
believe to be the truth."