I Forbid the Banns! — page 375: what you’re looking at

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

ON THE EMBANKMENT. 395 she would leave you, and thereby enable me to ask her to be my wife.’’ “Scoundrel!” cried Julian, “ you are the scoundrel—not I! Ican understand now how it is that men like you are sometimes found dead with a knife in their heart. You have taken her from me—you it was who urged her to leave me! But I shall find her and she shall return to me in spite of you; or if I fail to find her, I shall find you— you!” Not a muscle did Sir Ecroyd move while he was being treated as the villain in a melodrama is treated by the virtuous and suffering hero under a passing cloud. Charl- ton might as well have made his impassioned gesture in the face of a statue of Tiresias of Thebes. “T can understand how you feel, Mr. Charlton,” said the minister in precisely the tone that he would have employed in explaining the position occupied by the government in respect of a South Pacific protectorate. ‘You naturally feel piqued at having lost the influence which you once possessed over the lady to whom you refer. I can under- stand the feeling of a man in the position which you are unfortunate enough to occupy.” ‘“ And I understand how much of that misfortune is due to your villainy,” said Julian, turning upon Sir Ecroyd, when he had lifted his hat from the table where he had laid it. “I suspected you from the first moment I saw you. Now I know how well founded my suspicions were.” ‘‘Your suspicions were certainly correct, Mr. Charlton ; but I blush to say that I refrained from making any attempt to induce the lady of whom we have been speaking to leave you. My conscience has reproached me for not endeavor- ing to precipitate an occurrence that I knew was inevitable.” ‘ Your conscience !”’ “Yes. I must confess that the night before last my conscience smote me when I found that poor young thing CORnNIECLOOKS (E(0)