The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 342: what you’re looking at

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CHAPTER XXX FRESH SCENES AT THE JETTY THE Earl of Curzon and Colonel Malpas were sipping their wine at the Hotel Royal, between eight and nine o’clock, and discoursing on the object of their revisit to Geneva, and though there was evidently a forced familiarity sub- ‘sisting between them, instead of the intimacy of friendship, they nevertheless were opening their minds pretty freely to each other. “ Well, but about this pretty Genevese girl of whom we were talking just now,’’ said Malpas, after a brief pause in the discourse, ‘‘ what do you propose doing with regard to her?.”’ “T will go and see her-to-morrow,” answered the earl, ‘ond no doubt shall have a pretty scene of weeping and bitterness and reproaches and so forth. But I must make up my mind to endure all that, and when the first ebullition of feeling has subsided, I shall enter upon the business part of the matter and propose a little annuity or something of the sort.”’ “ Or else find some needy young fellow,’ observed Malpas, with a laugh, ‘‘ who, for a certain sum of money paid down, will take the girl altogether off your hands and father the child when it is born.” “Well, perhaps I may do something in that way,” re- joined Curzon, carelessly. ‘“‘ But the worst of it is, the girl is rather sentimentally inclined and not mercenary. She is one of those tender-hearted creatures who will persist in loving when they themselves are no longer loved, and who cannot see or will not understand that they were taken for aught save the playthings of the moment.”’ But this heartless speech, so well worthy of an English 3 320 EOMIGIOOKS (SO) mM