The Argosy — page 231: what you’re looking at

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

214 A Free-Will Offering. left me since that day. It has rung in my ears day and night, and when I have closed my eyes I have seen you standing there, so beautiful and so mysterious, with all that passion in your voice, and that stillness on your face.” “Ah, don’t!” There was a startled, almost frightened look in the grey eyes into which he was now gazing as he leant towards her. But she could not stop him. It was too late. All the love that he had silently cherished for so long in his heart was now visible on his face and sounded in his quivering voice. He could no longer master himself, and he would not notice her appeal. ‘But I must, Sara. Don’t you see that I love you—that I have loved you ever since I first saw you? No—no,” interpreting her faint, distressful gesture: ‘* I know that there is no hope for me, but I must speak and tell you. I cannot help it any longer. You will say it is my own fault—that I knew all along that you were promised to another—that you loved another. So I did, but He broke off suddenly, for he saw that her eyes were full of tears, and her head sank. ‘" Dear!” he cried, touching her shoulder with his tren blind hand, all the passion gone anda great tenderness coming into his voice: “Dear! have I hurt you? I did not know; believe me, I did not know. I would never have spoken if I had. But,” breaking out again with sudden eagerness, ‘‘ must it be? Oh, why need it be? Must you sacrifice yourself? Sara, you shall not! If you have no pity on yourself you must have pity on me. You dare not ruin doth our lives.” But she was looking up again now, quite calm though her face was almost deadly in its pallor. ‘‘T shall not ruin both our lives,” she said, ‘“‘and I dare not even think,” her voice trembled somewhat, ‘‘ of what you have been saying. We have both our duty to fulfil. You are engaged, are you not?” She looked at him with her honest eyes, and though there was no: reproach in them the Major’s face crimsoned and he ground his teeth. ‘‘And so am I. And I think we have both been very wicked. Roger trusts me utterly, and he cannot do without me. EI promised him when I was very young that he never should have to. And I must keep my word. “You,” looking at him with a sweet, trembling smile, ‘‘ you are a soldier, and a brave man. You would not hurt the woman who trusts you.” She paused a minute and then rising said: ‘ Come, it is time we were going home.” They walked back in complete silence, but at the door she, woman-like, looked up and asked gently: “Do you not think me: right P” ‘“‘T cannot, I cannot,” he cried passionately, and hurried away. Gomicbooks.com