The Opposite House: A Novel — page 91: what you’re looking at

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

86 Lhe Opposite flouse. love of industry. But I attacked him with weapons which even these virtue-mailed walls could not withstand, and having taken advantage of a few op- portune moments, spoken a few words at the right time, I had the pleasure of seeing one barrier fall after another, and was finally clasped to his heart as a friend; the main point was to induce him to trust me. Since then my position has been secure. I often make him feel my superiority in a useful way, and endeavor to strengthen my hold in all di- rections, in order to have complete carte blanche and at last be able to influence him. It is a difficult task to manage him successfully—one must touch so many strings at once! His temperament is high- strung; he has a great deal of family pride; his nature is still comparatively uncorrupted, a fact which, with his past, amazed me; he is animated by the best intentions—and is in love.” “What? In love? With whom?’ exclaimed Heloise. Two steps brought her directly in front of him, and fixing her flashing eyes on his pale face, she exclaimed: ‘And you tell me this now for the first time ?” “That I don’t know,” replied Brand. “ Pshaw! What does it matter? Some insignificant beauty, whom he will forget as quickly as he admired her.” “No, the fancy must go deeper, if he forgot me for it,” answered Heloise, proudly. “ Never mind; CoMmiclbooOoks.c©