A Struggle for a Ring — page 182: what you’re looking at

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

178: MADAME ROUBART’S PUPIL. CHAPTER XXV. MADAME ROUBART’S PUPIL. Three weeks had passed since Lord Carsdale went away, leaving his fair young wife without one word of farewell or comfort. Fora long time Alice had hoped against hope. - She had expected a letter saying that he was sorry to have forgotten her, sorry not to have bidden her a most affec- tionate farewell: For many days she waited for that letter, but it never came; and then she knew that the matter of bidding her farewell was so entirely indifferent to him, he did not even remember that he had not madeit. It was almost like a death-blow to her, this certain conviction of his utter indifference. She could never quite realize that only a keen sense of honor had made him marry her; that was beyond her; there must have been a little love, she said to herself. Now she realized the truth in all its _ ‘deformity; she understood that she was indeed a barrier between her husband and the full enjoyment of his life. Slowly, surely, fatally the truth dawned upon her. What should she do? More than once she wished, dearly as she loved him, that she could die—die, and leave him free —die, that he might forget all this shadow darkening his life, and perhaps marry again, some one in his own rank of life, with whom he might be happy. Then, when her thoughts reached this climax, she abruptly dismissed them. This would not do; he did not love her, but she could not endure the thought that he should love any one else. No, she would not kill herself; she must do something else. What should she do? For long days she lay think- ek: , | 3 , Eomicbooks.