"There"s nought so finely spunBut it cometh to the sun."
Mr. Thornton sate on and on. He felt that his company gave pleasure toMr. Hale; and was touched by the half-spoken wishful entreaty that hewould remain a little longer--the plaintive "Don"t go yet," which his poorfriend put forth from time to time. He wondered Margaret did notreturn; but it was with no view of seeing her that he lingered. For thehour--and in the presence of one who was so thoroughly feeling thenothingness of earth--he was reasonable and self-controlled. He wasdeeply interested in all her father said"Of death, and of the heavy lull,And of the brain that has grown dull."
It was curious how the presence of Mr. Thornton had power over Mr.
Hale to make him unlock the secret thoughts which he kept shut upeven from Margaret. Whether it was that her sympathy would be sokeen, and show itself in so lively a manner, that he was afraid of thereaction upon himself, or whether it was that to his speculative mind allkinds of doubts presented themselves at such a time, pleading andcrying aloud to be resolved into certainties, and that he knew she wouldhave shrunk from the expression of any such doubts--nay, from himhimself as capable of conceiving them--whatever was the reason, hecould unburden himself better to Mr. Thornton than to her of all thethoughts and fancies and fears that had been frost-bound in his brain tillnow. Mr. Thornton said very little; but every sentence he uttered addedto Mr. Hale"s reliance and regard for him. Was it that he paused in theexpression of some remembered agony, Mr. Thornton"s two or threewords would complete the sentence, and show how deeply its meaningwas entered into. Was it a doubt--a fear--a wandering uncertaintyseeking rest, but finding none--so tear-blinded were its eyes--Mr.
Thornton, instead of being shocked, seemed to have passed through thatvery stage of thought himself, and could suggest where the exact ray oflight was to be found, which should make the dark places plain. Man ofaction as he was, busy in the world"s great battle, there was a deeperreligion binding him to God in his heart, in spite of his strongwilfulness, through all his mistakes, than Mr. Hale had ever dreamed.
They never spoke of such things again, as it happened; but this oneconversation made them peculiar people to each other; knit themtogether, in a way which no loose indiscriminate talking about sacredthings can ever accomplish. When all are admitted, how can there be aHoly of Holies?
And all this while, Margaret lay as still and white as death on the studyfloor! She had sunk under her burden. It had been heavy in weight andlong carried; and she had been very meek and patient, till all at once herfaith had given way, and she had groped in vain for help! There was apitiful contraction of suffering upon her beautiful brows, although therewas no other sign of consciousness remaining. The mouth--a little whileago, so sullenly projected in defiance--was relaxed and livid.
"E par che de la sua labbia si movaUno spirto soave e pien d"amore,Chi va dicendo a l"anima: sospira!"
The first symptom of returning life was a quivering about the lips--alittle mute soundless attempt at speech; but the eyes were still closed;and the quivering sank into stillness. Then, feebly leaning on her armsfor an instant to steady herself, Margaret gathered herself up, and rose.
Her comb had fallen out of her hair; and with an intuitive desire toefface the traces of weakness, and bring herself into order again, shesought for it, although from time to time, in the course of the search,she had to sit down and recover strength. Her head drooped forwards-herhands meekly laid one upon the other--she tried to recall the force ofher temptation, by endeavouring to remember the details which hadthrown her into such deadly fright; but she could not. She onlyunderstood two facts--that Frederick had been in danger of beingpursued and detected in London, as not only guilty of manslaughter, butas the more unpardonable leader of the mutiny, and that she had lied tosave him. There was one comfort; her lie had saved him, if only bygaining some additional time. If the inspector came again to-morrow,after she had received the letter she longed for to assure her of herbrother"s safety, she would brave shame, and stand in her bitter penance-she, the lofty Margaret--acknowledging before a crowded justice-room,if need were, that she had been as "a dog, and done this thing." But if hecame before she heard from Frederick; if he returned, as he had halfthreatened, in a few hours, why! she would tell that lie again; though how the words would come out, after all this terrible pause forreflection and self-reproach, without betraying her falsehood, she didnot know, she could not tell. But her repetition of it would gain time-timefor Frederick.
She was roused by Dixon"s entrance into the room; she had just beenletting out Mr. Thornton.
He had hardly gone ten steps in the street, before a passing omnibusstopped close by him, and a man got down, and came up to him,touching his hat as he did so. It was the police-inspector.
Mr. Thornton had obtained for him his first situation in the police, andhad heard from time to time of the progress of his protege, but they hadnot often met, and at first Mr. Thornton did not remember him.
"My name is Watson--George Watson, sir, that you got----"
"Ah, yes! I recollect. Why you are getting on famously, I hear."
"Yes, sir. I ought to thank you, sir. But it is on a little matter of businessI made so bold as to speak to you now. I believe you were themagistrate who attended to take down the deposition of a poor man whodied in the Infirmary last night."
"Yes," replied Mr. Thornton. "I went and heard some kind of a ramblingstatement, which the clerk said was of no great use. I"m afraid he wasbut a drunken fellow, though there is no doubt he came to his death byviolence at last. One of my mother"s servants was engaged to him, Ibelieve, and she is in great distress to-day. What about him?"
"Why, sir, his death is oddly mixed up with somebody in the house Isaw you coming out of just now; it was a Mr. Hale"s, I believe."
"Yes!" said Mr. Thornton, turning sharp round and looking into theinspector"s face with sudden interest. "What about it?"
