Octavia's Pride; or, The Missing Witness — page 229: what you’re looking at

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

OOTAVIA’S PRIDE 219 He put her in the midst of a group of ladies who occu- pied one corner of the reception-room, and went out to pur- chase tickets. Mathew Merle saw him, and nodded grimly. Maurice, sauntering idly along, presently came up’to him. ‘«¢ Ah, good-day, sir. Perhaps you are going up with this train. Would you mind taking a seat in the carriage with me? My wife won’t be any interruption; she always goes to sleep when she is in a rail-carriage.” «Your wife! Oh, yes, you came in with a lady. Per- haps she is solacing herself with grand visions connected with Wainwright Slope. Humph! Thank you. I’m not going to take this train.” «Yon won't fail of your appointment? I shall see my father to-day.” «<1 told you before I shouldn’t fail,” he answered, glumly, bending forward to examine a group just entering the building. ‘‘ Are you looking for any one?” asked Maurice, with the most innocent air possible. ‘‘Humph!” said Mathew Merle, whirling around on his heel. Maurice shrugged his ahouliters, and walked back to the ladies’ room. Lhe pale face under Mrs. Grey’s jaunty hat alarmed him. ‘< Pray, save yourself so much alarm,” he said, in a low voice. ‘‘I have been talking with him, and I am sure he is entirely unsuspicious of your identity. I told him my wife was here, even invited him to get a seat in the same carriage, but he is not going in this train.” “But I must walk down the platform there, and go up into the carriage before him. Oh, those terrible eyes of if riccieigie Only a few moments more, and we shall whirl away from him. I shall shield you as much as possible, comicboo CS (E (0 }