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"Sit down, and let us hear," said Betty kindly, pushing a chair towards hilass of wine He sank into the first, but waved aside the second, beco to hold the wine to his lips saying: "Drink, boy, I say!"

"Not unless you forgive ive! Of course, I forgive, if you have done no wrong by my child I see, I see, 'tis not wilfully You have been hurt in her defence"

"Not exactly," he said: "I have much to tell," but the words came slowly, and there was a dazed weariness about his eye that made Betty say, in spite of her anxiety--"You cannot till you have eaten and rested If only one word to say where she is!"

"Oh! that I could! My hope was to find her here," and he was choked by a great strangling sob, which his youthful ht to restrain

Betty perceived that he was far fro recovered from the injury he had suffered, and did her best to restrain her own and her father's anxiety till she had persuaded him to s soht of a guest To her father's questions meantio, but he could not wait, he had posted down as soon as he could ht to sleep before you tell us farther," said the Major, speaking fro sense of the duties of a host; but he was relieved when the youth answered, "You are very good, sir, but I could not sleep till you know all"

"Speak, then," said the Major, "I cannot look at your honest young countenance and think you guilty of more than disobedient folly; but I fear it may have cost my poor child very dear! Is it your mother that you dread?"

"I would be thankful even to know her in !" he said

"Is there no hter, Mrs Arden, saw her at Brentford, safe and bloo"

"Oh, that was before--before--" said Sir Amyas, "the day before she fled from my mother at Bowstead, and has been seen no more"

He put his hand over his face, and bowed it on the table in such overpowering grief as checked the exclamations of horror and dis to the lips of his auditors, and they only looked at one another in speechless sorrow Presently he recovered enough to say, "Have patience with me, and I will try to explain all My cousin, Miss Delavie, knows that I loved her sweet sister from the moment I saw her, and that I hurried to London in the hope ofher atit vain to deny all knowledge of her, ledladies' school with my little sisters I lived on the vain hope of the holidays, and e whichabsolutely made by the two ladies, the ainst my protest I was to be cajoled or else persecuted into it--sold, in fact, that ht be paid before her husband's return! I knew h he had never acted further than by affixing his signature when needed I ought to have gone long before to see him, but as I now understand, obstacles had been purposely placed in ed It was in the forlorn hope of finding in him a resource that took me to Bowstead at last, and then it was that I learnt how far my mother could carry deception There I found my sisters, and learnt that my oeetest life had been placed there likewise She was that afternoon visiting so her could only cause her trouble and lead to her being reement in London that it would have been fatal to break, but I ca sworn e of the darkness of his cha voice He pro the hateful Aresfield engagement, and he obtained the assistance of an old friend in uardianship, and likewise of a letter iven me leave to show a part of it to you, sir," he added, "you will see that ed in the matter of the estates, and declared that he had hoped to hters and edabout such a match between one of your children andin the strictest obedience You shall see the letter at once, if Imy pocket-book from my valise"