I Forbid the Banns! — page 369: what you’re looking at

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

ON THE BEGINNING OF A QUEST. 359 “T never thought of that; I never thought of that,” he muttered. “My beloved—my beloved—away from me! Oh, Mr. Hardy, I must find her—I must find her! I con- fess that I was mistaken in you frem the first. I did not think that you cattld understand us as xP show you have understood us.’ ““T am not such a fool as that brass plate on the gate outside would suggest,” said Mr. Hardy. ‘“ My wife hasa thousand a year of her own, and if I prefer observing a peculiar class of men from the low standpoint suggested by that brass plate, that is my own business. Some people fancy that democracy is to become the most powerful ele- ment in society. They are wrong. The faddist is bound to become surpreme. Good-day to you, Mr. Charlton. There is a good deal of humor to be got out of observing men and women, particularly those men and women who fancy they are taking part in a tragedy, when all the time they are acting a comedy. You suppose that you are the hero of a tragedy, I dare say—ah, good-day to you.” Julian Charlton was standing outside the gate with the brass plate before he succeeded in comprehending the general drift of Mr. Hardy’s words. Gomicbooks (E(o)