The Man in Possession — page 135: what you’re looking at

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

130 THE MAN IN POSSESSION. you to answer me one question, if it be your power. Was he of whom you speak only what he pretended to be?” ‘‘You ask me of anothers life. Now I may not read it, unless I read it as I have read yours. This only I can see—there is no shame attached to your interest in his welfare ; nor, be it ever so hopeless, or so mad,—or so misjudged, need you blush to own it to yourself.” ‘“You speak strangely,” said Kate, ‘‘and you speak of what I myselt am hardly conscious of. If I say it is false, that the lines you have read have not told a true story ——” ‘* You still would only attest what your heart will one day deny,” the wizard answered; and with a gesture of his hand he seemed to announce that the audience was over. Kate left the chamber of mystery, feeling strangely perplexed and annoyed ; conscious too of an inward sense of indignation that any second person could have pretended to know her better than she knew herself. Of course it was allnonsense, and of course she did not believe in palmistry or thought-reading any more than any other enlightened person believed in it ; but all the same she felt curiously uncomfortable. She was also conscious of a disinclination to face Tom Rivers, and be questioned by him as to what the mysterious prophet had said to her. She took refuge in the drawing-room, and made a pretence of listening to the noisy and unmelodi- ous rhapsody, which a long-haired foreign pianist, with a distinguished reputation and a name some- COMicloe (Sri C(O)