Under Fire: A Tale of the Shenandoah Valley — page 35: what you’re looking at

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

28 WHAT THE MOON SAW ON THE OLD STONE PIKE. The wronged woman, who was not prepared. for this sudden change of front, regarded him with great surprise. “Why should there be a feud and hatred between us?’ he continued. ‘‘You once loved me.’ ‘“‘T did, and your perfidy has wrecked ie hearts of my parents, and sent my brother from home, Heaven knows where.’’ “Vou have asked me to repair this wrong,’’ he said, in a sanctimonious tone, ‘‘so far as to protect our child.’’ The last word seemed to choke him, but his acting was so natural that it passed for an excess of emotion. “Tam willing to do more. I will take you this very night to my mother’s, acknowledge in her pres- ence your rights as my wife and the mother of ‘my— child, and claim for you her protection, until we shall have been united by a minister of the gospel.”’ .**You will do this—to-night?’’ said Mary, a gleam of pleasure in her eyes. “T will.. If you do not wish to live with me, at least our son will be formally recognized, and I will _ settle sufficient money upon you both to provide for your maintenance and his education.”’ ‘‘Are you really speakirg the truth—or am I , dreaming ’ ?”? she said. ‘‘IT mean exactly what I say. ' | ‘‘Oh, man—man, do not deceive me in this, as you value your soul’s salvation. Think for a moment what I have suffered! Try to realize the horror of my abandoned situation! Then you may understand _ why I hesitate in accepting too quickly this gleam of happiness—the first in many months. Swear to me, in the name of your Creator, that this is the truth! I>? “T swear!’ said Ezra Trafton. But he shivered as he took the unhallowed oath. ‘Then I believe you. I will try to forgive you. _ Indeed, I will, for the sake of our child,” EComichoc see KS: (Ele)