A Parisian Romance — page 246: what you’re looking at

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

A PARISIAN ROMANCE. 237 Doctor Chesnel sighed deeply. “1 do not know,” he admitted. “I understand _ Henri’s feelings. Perhaps it would be better not to receive her at all. It would be an impossible life for you all.” “Nevertheless, I shall make one more effort.” — And she moved toward the place where Henri sat motionless, with bowed head. “Henri,” she said, and the young man raised his face, all drawn with suffering. “Henri, it is not for me to blame you. Ihave not the right to do so; for my first thought, when I heard just now of the return of this unhappy girl, was one of hatred, savage, criminal hatred. One is not always master of one’s first impulses. Butitisour duty to stifle these first cries of passion and selfishness, and to appeal to higher inspirations to govern our conduct. You know this as well as I, my boy, you who have already sacrificed all that you had in the world to the demands of justice. But there is, Henri, some- thing higher than even justice, there isa duty,a virtue more worthy still a soul like yours—I mean, forgiveness. Forgive her!” Henri rose to his feet. There was evidently a violent struggle going on within him. “No,” he said, at last. “No, I cannot. Thereisa specter between us, that tenor. I am not a saint. Tama man. And I cannot, I will not, receive as my wife Juliani’s mistress!” For a second, after these words, there was silence; Gomicbookssco