Her Faithful Knight — page 55: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

A Story of London. 51 ion different, and that I would not willingly give the for- mer to a man who did not love me well enough to make me his wife. Then I said that we had both been mis- taken, and that for my part, I should behave to him in future as if yesterday’s interview had never taken place. Only I would rather see as little of him as possible for the rest of the tour. “T was leaving the room as I finished speaking, very miserable and humiliated, and dreadfully excited, al- though my voice sounded quiet enough, when he flung himself between me and the door, and, going down on ~ his knees at my feet, swore that he had only talked in that way to try me and see what my affection was made of. He was a strict Roman Catholic, he declared, and it was against his most cherished convictions to marry a heretic; and, besides that, his mother and father, who were people in a magnificent position, had chosen a beautiful heiress for him to marry, and would disinherit him if he disobeyed them. ““The more reason,’ I cried, trying to wrench my hands from his clasp, ‘for parting at once. I certainly will not stand in the way of your fortune and _ your career.’ ““T love you better than fortune, career, or life itself!’ he exclaimed, covering my hands and the folds of my dress with kisses. ‘I will sacrifice everything for you, since you insist upon it. But if I do this, you must promise me faithfully to keep our engagement a solemn secret until such time as I can prepare my parents’ minds for the news. No one must know; it must be a precious secret between us; I will not have it shared by your sister.’ “In the end he wrung from me a reluctant consent. to this arrangement. I know you will say it was very wrong and silly of me, but you must remember that I COMmmcoooks (G) m