The Man in Possession — page 188: what you’re looking at

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

THE MAN IN POSSESSION. 183 to be grateful for. I hardly like to ask you a ques- tion. You may think me curious or impertinent, but I should like to know—why—-you are going to marry Sir Wilfred ! ” Kate was silent fora moment. She felt a curious leaning to confidence, a desire to unburden her over- strained heart, but yet she shrank from putting into words the real reason of her present situation. ‘“‘T am not at all offended,” she said presently, ‘but I can only tell you I am going to marry him to please himself, and to please my father, and—and because I suppose I shall have to marry some day, and—well, that is all, I think.” ‘‘The reasons are about as unsatisfactory as—the man,” said Mrs. Lafaye frankly. ‘‘You are victim- ising yourself for other people. I can see that: you can resent, you can struggle, but you see in the end you must give in. I’m afraid you'll be sorry, and unhappy, too. You're made for something better.” ‘‘Oh, no,” said Kate bitterly, ‘‘I’m only a poor nobody, and my father is in the happy position of most Irish landed proprietors. There's no help for it! I've gone through a liberal education in the way of debt and difficulty. I am sick to death of it all. Mere poverty is bad enough, but genteel poverty, with appearances to keep up, is ten times worse.” ‘‘ My dear, I know all that. I’ve been through the mill myself,” said the little American softly. ‘‘I did just the thing youre going to ¢.—married to escape it.” . ‘*Did you—escape it ?” ‘The poverty, and shifts, and troubles, oh, yes. COMicloe (Sri C(O)