His Grace — page 147: what you’re looking at

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

HIS GRACE. he we must endeavor between us to bear the brunt of his grief and displeasure.” Lady Deverell shook her head. “ We are approach- ing the season of Lent,” she remarked. “Have you in your neighborhood any properly qualified priest to whom Nora can make her confession, as we all ee to do before Ash Wednesday ? ” “We are without that privilege,” I answered; “ we have no priest within hail of Hurstbourne Castle only an old-fashioned country parson, who would be fright- ened out of his five wits if any lady offered to confess her sinsto him, Letus trust that Nora has not a great many deadly sins toavow. If she has, I can’t see any- thing for it but that Mr. Burgess should undertake a journey to the north and give or refuse absolution, as may seem expedient to him.” Lady Deverell, whose eyes were at that moment fixed sternly upon the little group at,the other end of the room, cannot, I presume, have heard what I said ; for she rejoined quite irrelevantly, “ Well, it makes no dif- ference to me, because we shall leave the day after to-morrow. Don’t say that I didn’t warn you, that’s all.’’ I assured her that I would bring no such unjust ac- cusation against her, and, further, that I should not in the least mind if her sense of duty should lead her to convey a warning to Mr. Burgess into the bargain. I did not understand atthe time why it was that she tried to look indignant, yet could not altogether banish an incipient grin of satisfaction from her hard-featured countenance. Afterwards I realized that she might not be unwilling to do what she could towards promot- ing a flirtation between the Duke of Hurstbourne and comicboo cS (E(0) m