A Struggle for a Ring — page 169: what you’re looking at

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

A STRANGE PARTING. 165 see him until her whole heart and soul had become one grand wish—she saw that he cared less about meeting her, less about leaving her, than if she had been the gréatest stranger to him. His indifference pained her more than severe anger or contempt could have done. One sorrowful look on his face, one half-sad word from his lips, and even in the anguish of losing him she would have been happy. But that word did not come. She saw an expression of weariness in his eyes; he did not seem in any way to look upon her as one apart from the rest of her family. Looking at him, she felt that she could hardly bear the hot pain that burned her heart away. She went from the room where he sat and sought her own; she could kear it no longer—the anguish, the keen pain, the bitter heart- ache. ‘The hot briny tears seemed to burn her eyes, yet she dared not let them fall. After these hours, days, and weeks of longing, it seemed so unutterably hard, so terribly hard, so unendurable. She had made such pictures to herself—she had fancied that as he was going away, he would clasp her in his arms, he would kiss her face, he would say at least, ‘‘I am sorry to leave you, Ailie”—he would show some sign of regret such as she longed for with all her heart and soul. But there was none; he was simply unutterably indifferent, and it was the indifference that killed her. While Lord Carsdale sat fuming with impatience, the small, gloomy house, the untidy room, the commonplace parents, the unrefined brother and sister, the general sur- roundings, disgusted him as they had never done before. Frank seemed an unendurable hobbledehoy, Harriet rude beyond bearing; Rose was the only one who was in the least degree bearable. The drawling manner of the dancing- master annoyed him beyond all bounds, the languid in- (E(0) Al G ole) SS) (Eo)