thestory of a book he is writing. It is about a woman who leaves the
husband she has never loved for the man she adores; she goes away with
him, he marries her, and she sinks lower and lower, until she becomes
a common prostitute."

"You are quite mistaken. I am sure that when you see the missis--"

"My dear fellow, pray do not misunderstand me. I would not for worlds.
I am only telling you about a book, if you will only listen. I told
him that I thought the story would be ten times as interesting if,
instead of being degraded, the woman were raised by the love of the
man who took her away from her husband. He made the husband a
snivelling little creature, and the lover good-looking--that's the old
game. I would have made the lover insignificant and the husband good-
looking. Nevertheless she loved the lover better. I know of nothing
more noble than for a man to marry the woman he loves, and to raise
her by the force of his love; he could teach her, instruct her. Nellie
will never forget me. I gave her a religion, I taught her and
explained to her the whole of the Catholic faith--"

"I hope you won't try to convert my sisters."

"You do pull me up so! Don't you understand that I was very young
then? I was only twenty, not much more; besides, I was engaged to
Nellie."

"Come back to what we were talking about."

"Well, I have said that if you love her I believe you are quite right
to marry her. But do you love her?"