Mollybegan。Hervoicesoundedhighandunnaturaltoherself，asifsomeoneelsewasspeaking，butshemadeherwordsclear。Thesquiredidnotattempttolisten，atfirst，atanyrate。’OnedaywhenIwashere，atthetimeofMrsHamley’slastillness’（thesquireherecheckedhisconvulsivebreathing），’Iwasinthelibrary，andOsbornecamein。Hesaidhehadonlycomeinforabook，andthatIwasnottomindhim，soIwentonreading。Presently，Rogercamealongtheflaggedgarden—pathjustoutsidethewindow（whichwasopen）。HedidnotseemeinthecornerwhereIwassitting，andsaidtoOsborne，"Here’saletterfromyourwife！"’Nowthesquirewasallattention；forthefirsttimehistear—swolleneyesmettheeyesofanother，andhelookedatMollywithsearchinganxiety，asherepeated，’Hiswife！Osbornemarried！’Mollywenton，—’OsbornewasangrywithRogerforspeakingoutbeforeme，andtheymademepromisenevertomentionittoanyone；ortoalludetoittoeitherofthemagain。Inevernamedittopapatilllastnight。’’Goon，’saidMrGibson。’TellthesquireaboutOsborne’scall，—whatyoutoldme！’Stillthesquirehungonherlips，listeningwithopenmouthandeyes。’SomemonthsagoOsbornecalled。Hewasnotwell，andwantedtoseepapa。
Papawasaway，andIwasalone。Idon’texactlyrememberhowitcameabout，buthespoketomeofhiswifeforthefirstandonlytimesincetheaffairinthelibrary。’Shelookedatherfather，asifquestioninghimastothedesirablenessoftellingthefewfurtherparticularsthatsheknew。
Thesquire’smouthwasdryandstiff，buthetriedtosay，’Tellmeall，—everything。’AndMollyunderstoodthehalf—formedwords。’Hesaidhiswifewasagoodwoman，andthathelovedherdearly；butshewasaFrenchRomanCatholic，anda’—anotherglanceatherfather—’shehadbeenaservantonce。Thatwasall；exceptthatIhaveheraddressathome。Hewroteitdownandgaveitme。’’Well，well！’moanedthesquire。’It’sallovernow。Allover。Allpastandgone。We’llnotblamehim，—no；butIwishhe’datoldme；heandItolivetogetherwithsuchasecretinoneofus。It’snowondertomenow—nothingcanbeawonderagain，foronenevercantellwhat’sinaman’sheart。Marriedsolong！andwesittingtogetheratmeals—andlivingtogether。Why，Itoldhimeverything！Toomuch，maybe，forIshowedhimallmypassionsandill—tempers！Marriedsolong！Oh，Osborne，Osborne，youshouldhavetoldme！’’Yes，heshould！’saidMrGibson。’ButIdaresayheknewhowmuchyouwoulddislikesuchachoiceashehadmade。Butheshouldhavetoldyou！’’Youknownothingaboutit，sir，’saidthesquiresharply。’Youdon’tknowthetermswewereon。Notheartyorconfidential。Iwascrosstohimmanyatime。angrywithhimforbeingdull，poorlad—andhewithallthisweightonhismind。Iwon’thavepeopleinterferingandjudgingbetweenmeandmysons。AndRogertoo！Hecouldknowitall，andkeepitfromme！’’Osborneevidentlyhadboundhimdowntosecrecy，justasheboundme，’
saidMolly；’Rogercouldnothelphimself。’’Osbornewassuchafellowforpersuadingpeople，andwinningthemover，’
saidthesquire，dreamily。’Iremember—butwhat’stheuseofremembering？
It’sallover，andOsborneisdeadwithoutopeninghishearttome。Icouldhavebeentendertohim，Icould。Buthe’llneverknowitnow！’’Butwecanguesswhatwishhehadstrongestinhismindatthelast，fromwhatwedoknowofhislife。’saidMrGibson。’What，sir？’saidthesquire，withsharpsuspicionofwhatwascoming。’Hiswifemusthavebeenhislastthought，mustshenot？’’HowdoIknowshewashiswife？Doyouthinkhe’dgoandmarryaFrenchbaggageofaservant？Itmaybeallataletrumpedup。’’Stop，squire。Idon’tcaretodefendmydaughter’struthoraccuracy。
Butwiththedeadman’sbodylyingupstairs—hissoulwithGod—thinktwicebeforeyousaymorehastywords，impugninghischaracter；ifshewasnothiswife，whatwasshe？’’Ibegyourpardon。IhardlyknowwhatIamsaying。DidIaccuseOsborne？
Oh，mylad，mylad—thoumighthavetrustedthyolddad！Heusedtocallmehis"olddad"whenhewasalittlechapnotbiggerthanthis，’indicatingacertainheightwithhishand。’Inevermeanttosayhewasnot—notwhatonewouldwishtothinkhimnow—hissoulwithGod，asyousayveryjustly—forIamsureitisthere—’’Well！but，squire，’saidMrGibson，tryingtochecktheother’srambling，’toreturntohiswife——’’Andthechild，’whisperedMollytoherfather。Lowasthewhisperwas，itstruckonthesquire’sear。’What？’saidhe，turningroundtohersuddenly，’—child！Younevernamedthat？Isthereachild？Husbandandfather，andIneverknew！GodblessOsborne’schild！Isay，Godblessit！’Hestoodupreverently，andtheothertwoinstinctivelyrose。Heclosedhishandsasifinmomentaryprayer。
Thenexhaustedhesatedownagain，andputouthishandtoMolly。’You’reagoodgirl。Thankyou。TellmewhatIoughttodo，andI’lldoit。’ThistoMrGibson。’Iamalmostasmuchpuzzledasyouare，squire，’repliedhe。’Ifullybelievethewholestory；butIthinktheremustbesomewrittenconfirmationofit，whichperhapsoughttobefoundatonce，beforeweact。MostprobablythisistobediscoveredamongOsborne’spapers。Willyoulookoverthematonce？Mollyshallreturnwithme，andfindtheaddressthatOsbornegaveher，whileyouarebusy——’’She’llcomebackagain？’saidthesquireeagerly。’You—shewon’tleavemetomyself？’’No！Sheshallcomebackthisevening。I’llmanagetosendhersomehow。
Butshehasnoclothesbutthehabitshecamein，andIwantmyhorsethatsherodeawayupon。’’Takethecarriage，’saidthesquire。’Takeanything。I’llgiveorders。
You’llcomebackagain，too？’’No！I’mafraidnot，to—day。I’llcometo—morrow，early。Mollyshallreturnthisevening，wheneveritsuitsyoutosendforher。’’Thisafternoon；thecarriageshallbeatyourhouseatthree。IdarenotlookatOsborne’s—atthepaperswithoutoneofyouwithme；andyetI
shallneverresttillIknowmore。’’IwillsendthedeskinbyRobinsonbeforeIleave。And—canyougivemesomelunchbeforeIgo？’Littlebylittleheledthesquiretocatamorselorsooffood；andso，strengtheninghimphysically，andencouraginghimmentally，MrGibsonhopedthathewouldbeginhisresearchesduringMolly’sabsence。Therewassomethingtouchinginthesquire’swistfullooksafterMollyasshemovedabout。AstrangermighthaveimaginedhertobehisdaughterinsteadofMrGibson’s。Themeek，broken—down，consideratewaysofthebereavedfathernevershowedthemselvesmorestronglythanwhenhecalledthembacktohischair，outofwhichheseemedtoolanguidtorise，andsaid，asifbyanafter—thought，—’GivemylovetoMissKirkpatrick；tellherIlookuponherasquiteoneofthefamily。Ishallbegladtoseeherafter—afterthefuneral。Idon’tthinkIcanbefore。’’HeknowsnothingofCynthia’sresolutiontogiveupRoger，’saidMrGibsonastheyrodeaway。’Ihadalongtalkwithherlastnight，butshewasasresoluteasever。Fromwhatyourmammatellsme，thereisathirdloverinLondon，whomshe’salreadyrefused。I’mthankfulthatyou’venoloveratall，Molly，unlessthatabortiveattemptofMrCoxe’satanoffer，longago，canbecalledalover。’’Ineverheardofit，papa，’saidMolly。’Oh，no。Iforgot。WhatafoolIwas！Why，don’tyourememberthehurryIwasintogetyouofftoHamleyHall，theveryfirsttimeyoueverwent？
ItwasallbecauseIgotholdofadesperatelove—letterfromCoxe，addressedtoyou。’ButMollywastootiredtobeamused，oreveninterested。Shecouldnotgetoverthesightofthestraightbodycoveredwithasheet，whichyetlettheoutlinesbeseen，—allthatremainedofOsborne。Herfatherhadtrustedtoomuchtothemotionoftheride，andthechangeofscenefromthedarkenedhouse。Hesawhismistake。’SomeonemustwritetoMrsOsborneHamley，’saidhe。’Ibelievehertohavealegalrighttothename；butwhetherorno，shemustbetoldthatthefatherofherchildisdead。Shallyoudoit，orI？’’Oh，you，please，papa！’’Iwill，ifyouwish，Butshemayhaveheardofyouasafriendofherdeadhusband’s；whileofme—amerecountrydoctor—it’sveryprobableshehasneverheardthename。’’IfIought，Iwilldoit。’MrGibsondidnotlikethisreadyacquiescence，giveninsofewwords，too。’There’sHollingfordchurch—spire，’saidshepresently，astheydrewnearthetown，andcaughtaglimpseofthechurchthroughthetrees。’IthinkIneverwishtogooutofsightofitagain。’’Nonsense！’saidhe。’Why，you’veallyourtravellingtodoyet；andifthesenewfangledrailwaysspread，astheysaytheywill，weshallallbespinningabouttheworld；"sittingontea—kettles，"asPhoebeBrowningcallsit。MissBrowningwrotesuchacapitalletterofadvicetoMissHornblower。
IheardofitattheMillers’。MissHornblowerwasgoingtotravelbyrailroadforthefirsttime；andSallywasveryanxious，andsentherdirectionsforherconduct；onepieceofadvicewasnottositontheboiler。’Mollylaughedalittle，asshewasexpectedtodo。’Hereweareathome，atlast。’MrsGibsongaveMollyawarmwelcome。Foronething，Cynthiawasindisgrace；
foranother，Mollycamefromthecentreofnews；forathird，MrsGibsonwasreallyfondofthegirl，inherway，andsorrytoseeherpaleheavylooks。’Tothinkofitallbeingsosuddenatlast！NotbutwhatIalwaysexpectedit！Andsoprovoking！JustwhenCynthiahadgivenupRoger！Ifshehadonlywaitedaday！Whatdoesthesquiresaytoitall？’’Heisbeatendownwithgrief，’repliedMolly。’Indeed！Ishouldnothavefanciedhehadlikedtheengagementsomuch。’’Whatengagement？’’Why，RogertoCynthia，tobesure。Iaskedyouhowthesquiretookherletter，announcingthebreakingofitoff？’’Oh—Imadeamistake。Hehasnotopenedhislettersto—day。IsawCynthia’samongthem。’’NowthatIcallpositivedisrespect。’’Idon’tknow。Hedidnotmeanitforsuch。WhereisCynthia？’’Goneoutintothemeadow—garden。She’llbeindirectly。Iwantedhertodosomeerrandsforme，butsheflatlyrefusedtogointothetown。Iamafraidshemismanagesheraffairssadly。Butshewon’tallowmetointerfere。
Ihatetolookatsuchthingsinamercenaryspirit，butitisprovokingtoseeherthrowovertwosuchgoodmatches。FirstMrHenderson，andnowRogerHamley。WhendoesthesquireexpectRoger？DoeshethinkhewillcomebacksoonerforpoordearOsborne’sdeath？’’Idon’tknow。HehardlyseemstothinkofanythingbutOsborne。Heseemstometohavealmostforgotteneveryoneelse。ButperhapsthenewsofOsborne’sbeingmarried，andofthechild，mayrousehimup。’MollyhadnodoubtthatOsbornewasreallyandtrulymarried，norhadsheanyideathatherfatherhadneverbreathedthefactsofwhichshehadtoldhimonthepreviousnight，tohiswifeorCynthia。ButMrGibsonhadbeenslightlydubiousofthefulllegalityofthemarriage，andhadnotfeltinclinedtospeakofittohiswifeuntilthathadbeenascertainedonewayoranother。SoMrsGibsonexclaimed，’Whatdoyoumean，child？Married！Osbornemarried。Whosaysso？’’Oh，dear！IsupposeIoughtnottohavenamedit。Iamverystupidto—day。
Yes！Osbornehasbeenmarriedalongtime；butthesquiredidnotknowofituntilthismorning。Ithinkithasdonehimgood。ButIdon’tknow。’’Whoisthelady？Why，Icallitashametogoaboutasasingleman，andbemarriedallthetime！Ifthereisonethingthatrevoltsme，itisduplicity。
Whoisthelady？Dotellmeallyouknowaboutit，there’sadear。’’SheisFrench，andaRomanCatholic，’saidMolly。’French！Theyaresuchbeguilingwomen；andhewassomuchabroad！Yousaidtherewasachild，—isitaboyorgirl？’’Ididnothear。Ididnotask。’Mollydidnotthinkitnecessarytodomorethananswerquestions；indeed，shewasvexedenoughtohavetoldanythingofwhatherfatherevidentlyconsidereditdesirabletokeepsecret。JustthenCynthiacamewanderingintotheroomwithacareless，hopelesslookinherface，whichMollynoticedatonce。ShehadnotheardofMolly’sarrival，andhadnoideathatshewasreturneduntilshesawhersittingthere。’Molly，darling！Isthatyou？You’reaswelcomeastheflowersinMay，thoughyou’venotbeengonetwenty—fourhours。Butthehouseisnotthesamewhenyouareaway！’’Andshebringsussuchnewstoo！’saidMrsGibson。’I’mreallyalmostgladyouwrotetothesquireyesterday，forifyouhadwaitedtillto—day—Ithoughtyouwereintoogreatahurryatthetime—hemighthavethoughtyouhadsomeinterestedreasonforgivingupyourengagement。OsborneHamleywasmarriedallthistimeunknowntoeverybody，andhasgotachildtoo。’’Osbornemarried！’exclaimedCynthia。’Ifeveramanlookedabachelor，hedid。PoorOsborne！withhisfairdelicateelegance，—helookedsoyoungandboyish！’’Yes！itwasagreatpieceofdeceit，andIcan’teasilyforgivehimforit。Onlythink！Ifhehadpaideitherofyouanyparticularattention，andyouhadfalleninlovewithhim！Why，hemighthavebrokenyourheart，orMolly’seither。Ican’tforgivehim，eventhoughheisdead，poorfellow！’Well，asheneverdidpayeitherofusanyparticularattention，andasweneitherofusdidfallinlovewithhim，IthinkIonlyfeelsorrythathehadallthetroubleandworryofconcealment。’Cynthiaspokewithaprettykeenrecollectionofhowmuchtroubleandworryherconcealmenthadcosther。’Andnowofcourseitisason，andwillbetheheir，andRogerwilljustbeaspoorlyoffasever。Ihopeyou’lltakecareandletthesquireknowCynthiawasquiteignorantofthesenewfactsthathavecomeoutwhenshewrotethoseletters，Molly？IshouldnotlikeasuspicionofworldlinesstorestuponanyonewithwhomIhadanyconcern。’’HehasnotreadCynthia’sletteryet。Oh，doletmebringithomeunopened，’
saidMolly。’SendanotherlettertoRoger—now—atonce；itwillreachhimatthesametime；hewillgetbothwhenhearrivesattheCape，andmakehimunderstandwhichisthelast—therealone。Think！hewillhearofOsborne’sdeathatthesametime—twosuchsadthings！Do，Cynthia！’’No，mydear，’saidMrsGibson。’Icouldnotallowthat，evenifCynthiafeltinclinedforit。Askingtobere—engagedtohim！Atanyrate，shemustwaitnowuntilheproposesagain，andweseehowthingsturnout。’ButMollykeptherpleadingeyesfixedonCynthia。’No！’saidCynthiafirmly，butnotwithoutconsideration。’Itcannotbe。
IhavefeltmorecontentthislastnightthanIhavedoneforweekspast。
Iamgladtobefree。IdreadedRoger’sgoodness，andlearning，andallthat。Itwasnotinmyway，andIdon’tbelieveIshouldhaveevermarriedhim，evenwithoutknowingofalltheseill—naturedstoriesthatarecirculatingaboutme，andwhichhewouldhearof，andexpectmetoexplain，andbesorryfor，andpenitentandhumble。Iknowhecouldnothavemademehappy，andIdon’tbelievehewouldhavebeenhappywithme。Itmuststayasitis。Iwouldratherbeagovernessthanmarriedtohim。Ishouldgetwearyofhimeverydayofmylife。’’WearyofRoger！’saidMollytoherself。’Itisbestasitis，Isee，’
sheansweredaloud。’OnlyIamverysorryforhim，very。Hedidloveyouso。Youwillnevergetanyonetoloveyoulikehim！’’Verywell。Imusttakemychance。Andtoomuchloveisratheroppressivetome，Ibelieve。Ilikeagreatdeal，widelyspreadabout；notallconfinedtooneindividuallover。’’Idon’tbelieveyou，’saidMolly。’Butdon’tletustalkanymoreaboutit。Itisbestasitis。Ithought—Ialmostfeltsureyouwouldbesorrythismorning。Butwewillleaveitalonenow。’Shesatesilentlylookingoutofthewindow，herheartsorelystirred，shescarcelyknewhoworwhy。
Butshecouldnothavespoken。Mostlikelyshewouldhavebeguntocryifshehadspoken。Cynthiastolesoftlyuptoherafterawhile。’Youarevexedwithme，Molly，’shebeganinalowvoice。ButMollyturnedsharplyround。’I！Ihavenobusinessatallintheaffair。Itisforyoutojudge。Dowhatyouthinkright。Ibelieveyouhavedoneright。OnlyIdon’twanttodiscussit，andpawitoverwithtalk。Iamverymuchtired，dear’—
gentlynowshespoke，—’andIhardlyknowwhatIsay。IfIspeakcrossly，don’tmindit。’Cynthiadidnotreplyatonce。Thenshesaid，—’DoyouthinkImightgowithyou，andhelpyou？Imighthavedoneyesterday；
andyousayhehasnotopenedmyletter，sohehasnotheardasyet。AndIwasalwaysfondofpoorOsborne，inmyway，youknow。’’Icannottell；Ihavenorighttosay，’repliedMolly，scarcelyunderstandingCynthia’smotives，which，afterall，wereonlyimpulsesinthiscase。’Papawouldbeabletojudge；Ithink，perhaps，youhadbetternot。Butdon’tgobymyopinion，IcanonlytellwhatIshouldwishtodoinyourplace。’’Itwasasmuchforyoursakeasanyone’s，Molly，’saidCynthia。’Oh，then，don’t！Iamtiredto—daywithsittingup；butto—morrowIshallbeallright；andIshouldnotlikeit，if，formysake，youcameintothehouseatsosolemnatime。’’Verywell！’saidCynthia，half—gladthatherimpulsiveofferwasdeclined；
for，asshesaid，thinkingtoherself，’Itwouldhavebeenawkwardafterall，’SoMollywentbackinthecarriagealone，wonderinghowsheshouldfindthesquire，wonderingwhatdiscoverieshehadmadeamongOsborne’spapers；andatwhatconvictionhewouldhavearrived。
chapter53CHAPTERLIIIUNLOOKED—FORARRIVALSRobinsonopenedthedoorforMollyalmostbeforethecarriagehadfairlydrawnupattheHall，andtoldherthatthesquirehadbeenveryanxiousforherreturn，andhadmorethanoncesenthimtoanupstairswindow，fromwhichaglimpseofthehill—roadbetweenHollingfordandHamleycouldbeperceived，toknowifthecarriagewasnotyetinsight。Mollywentintothedrawing—room。Thesquirewasstandinginthemiddleofthefloor，awaitingher；infact，longingtogooutandmeether，butrestrainedbyafeelingofsolemnetiquette，whichpreventedhismovingaboutasusualinthathouseofmourning。Heheldapaperinhishands，whichweretremblingwithexcitementandemotion；andfourorfiveopenletterswerestrewedonatablenearhim。’It’salltrue，’hebegan；’she’shiswife，andhe’sherhusband—washerhusband—that’sthewordforit—was！Poorlad！poorlad！it’scosthimadeal。PrayGod，itwasnotmyfault。Readthis，mydear。It’sacertificate。
It’sallregular—OsborneHamleytoMarie—Aimé；eScherer，—parish—churchandall，andwitnessed。Oh，dear！’Hesatedowninthenearestchairandgroaned。Mollytookaseatbyhim，andreadthelegalpaper，theperusalofwhichwasnotneededtoconvinceherofthefactofthemarriage。Shehelditinherhandaftershehadfinishedreadingit，waitingforthesquire’snextcoherentwords；forhekepttalkingtohimselfinbrokensentences。’Ay，ay！thatcomeso’temper，andcrabbedness。Shewastheonlyoneascould—andI’vebeenworsesinceshewasgone。Worse！worse！
andseewhatithascometo。Hewasafraidofme—ay—afraid。That’sthetruthofit—afraid。Anditmadehimkeepalltohimself，andcarekilledhim。Theymaycallitheart—disease—Omylad，mylad，Iknowbetternow；butit’stoolate—that’sthestingofit—toolate，toolate！’
Hecoveredhisface，andmovedhimselfbackwardsandforwardstillMollycouldbearitnolonger。’Therearesomeletters，’saidshe：’mayIreadanyofthem？’Atanothertimeshewouldnothaveasked；butshewasdriventoitnowbyherimpatienceofthespeechlessgriefoftheoldman。’Ay，read’em，read’em，’saidhe。’Maybeyoucan。Icanonlypickoutawordhereandthere。Iput’emthereforyoutolookat；andtellmewhatisin’em。’Molly’sknowledgeofwrittenFrenchofthepresentdaywasnotsogreatasherknowledgeoftheFrenchoftheMé；moiresdeSully，andneitherthespellingnorthewritingoftheletterswasofthebest；
butshemanagedtotranslateintogoodenoughcolloquialEnglishsomeinnocentsentencesoflove，andsubmissiontoOsborne’swill—asifhisjudgmentwasinfallible，—andfaithinhispurposes；—littlesentencesin’littlelanguage’thatwenthometothesquire’sheart。PerhapsifMollyhadreadFrenchmoreeasilyshemightnothavetranslatedthemintosuchtouching，homely，brokenwords。Hereandthere，therewereexpressionsinEnglish；
thesethehungry—heartedsquirehadreadwhilewaitingforMolly’sreturn。
Everytimeshestopped，hesaid，’Goon。’Hekepthisfaceshaded，andonlyrepeatedthosetwowordsateverypause。ShegotuptofindsomemoreofAimé；e’sletters。Inexaminingthepapers，shecameupononeinparticular。’Haveyouseenthis，sir？Thiscertificateofbaptism’（readingaloud）’ofRogerStephenOsborneHamley，bornJune21，183—，childofOsborneHamleyandMarie—Aimé；ehiswife—’’Giveitme，’saidthesquire，hisvoicebreakingnow，andstretchingforthhiseagerhand。’"Roger，"that’sme，"Stephen，"that’smypooroldfather：
hediedwhenhewasnotsooldasIam；butI’vealwaysthoughtonhimasveryold。HewasmainandfondofOsborne，whenhewasquitealittleone。It’sgoodoftheladtohavethoughtonmyfatherStephen。Ay！thatwashisname。AndOsborne—OsborneHamley！OneOsborneHamleyliesdeadonhisbed—andt’other—t’otherIhaveneverseen，andneverheardontillto—day。HemustbecalledOsborne：Molly。ThereisaRoger—there’stwoforthatmatter；butoneisagood—for—nothingoldman；andthere’sneveranOsborneanymore，unlessthislittlethingiscalledOsborne：
we’lltakehimhere，andgetanurseforhim；andmakehismothercomfortableforlifeinherowncountry。I’llkeepthis，Molly。You’reagoodlassforfindingit。OsborneHamley！AndifGodwillgivemegrace，heshallneverhearacrosswordfromme—never。Heshan’tbeafeardofme。Oh，myOsborne，myOsborne’（heburstout），’doyouknownowhowbitterandsoreismyheartforeveryhardwordasIeverspoketoyou？DoyouknownowhowIlovedyou—myboy—myboy？’FromthegeneraltoneofthelettersMollydoubtedifthemotherwouldconsent，soeasilyasthesquireseemedtoexpect，tobepartedfromherchild；theletterswerenotverywise，perhaps（thoughofthisMollyneverthought），butaheartfulloflovespoketenderwordsineveryline。Still，itwasnotforMollytotalkofthisdoubtofhersjustthen；rathertodwellontheprobablegracesandcharmsofthelittleRogerStephenOsborneHamley。Sheletthesquireexhausthimselfinwonderingastotheparticularsofeveryevent，helpinghimoutinconjectures；andbothofthem，fromtheirimperfectknowledgeofpossibilities，madethemostcurious，fantastic，andimprobableguessesatthetruth。Andsothatdaypassedover，andthenightcame。Therewerenotmanypeoplewhohadanyrighttobeinvitedtothefuneral，andoftheseMrGibsonandthesquire’shereditarymanofbusinesshadtakencharge。ButwhenMrGibsoncame，earlyonthefollowingmorning，Mollyreferredthequestiontohim，whichhadsuggesteditselftohermind，thoughapparentlynottothesquire’s。Whatintimationofherlossshouldbesenttothewidow，livingsolitarynearWinchester，watchingandwaiting，ifnotforhiscomingwholaydeadinhisdistanthome，atleastforhisletters？Aletterhadalreadycomeinherforeignhandwritingtothepost—officetowhichallhercommunicationswereusuallysent，butofcoursetheyattheHallknewnothingofthis。’Shemustbetold！’saidMrGibson，musing。’Yes，shemust，’repliedherdaughter。’Buthow？’’Adayortwoofwaitingwilldonoharm，’saidhe，almostasifhewasanxioustodelaythesolutionoftheproblem。’Itwillmakeheranxious，poorthing，andallsortsofgloomypossibilitieswillsuggestthemselvestohermind—amongstthemthetruth；itwillbeakindofpreparation。’’Forwhat？Somethingmustbedoneatlast，’saidMolly。’Yes；true。Supposeyouwrite，andsayheisveryill；writeto—morrow。
Idaresaytheyhaveindulgedthemselvesindailypostage，andthenshe’llhavehadthreedays’silence。Yousayhowyoucometoknowallhowandaboutit；Ithinksheoughttoknowheisveryill—ingreatdanger，ifyoulike：andyoucanfollowitupnextdaywiththefulltruth。Iwouldnotworrythesquireaboutit。Afterthefuneralwewillhaveatalkaboutthechild。’’Shewillneverpartwithit，’saidMolly。’Whew！TillIseethewomanIcan’ttell，’saidherfather；（somewomenwould。Itwillbewellprovidedfor，accordingtowhatyousay。Andsheisaforeigner，andmayverylikelywishtogobacktoherownpeopleandkindred。There’smuchtobesaidonbothsides。’’Soyoualwayssay，papa。ButinthiscaseIthinkyou’llfindI’mright。
Ijudgefromherletters；butIthinkI’mright。’’Soyoualwayssay，daughter。Timewillshow。Sothechildisaboy？MrsGibsontoldmeparticularlytoask。ItwillgofartoreconcilinghertoCynthia’sdismissalofRoger。Butindeeditisquiteaswellforbothofthem，thoughofcoursehewillbealongtimebeforehethinksso。Theywerenotsuitedtoeachother。PoorRoger！Itwashardworkwritingtohimyesterday；andwhoknowswhatmayhavebecomeofhim！Well，well！onehastogetthroughtheworldsomehow。I’mglad，however，thislittleladhasturneduptobetheheir。IshouldnothavelikedthepropertytogototheIrishHamleys，whoarethenextheirs，asOsborneoncetoldme。
Nowwritethatletter，Molly，tothepoorlittleFrenchwomanoutyonder。
Itwillprepareherforit；andwemustthinkabithowtosparehertheshock，forOsborne’ssake。’ThewritingthisletterwasratherdifficultworkforMolly，andshetoreuptwoorthreecopiesbeforeshecouldmanageittohersatisfaction；
andatlast，indespairofeverdoingitbetter，shesentitoffwithoutre—readingit。Thenextdaywaseasier；thefactofOsborne’sdeathwastoldbrieflyandtenderly。Butwhenthissecondletterwassentoff，Molly’sheartbegantobleedforthepoorcreature，bereftofherhusband，inaforeignland，andheatadistancefromher，deadandburiedwithouthereverhavinghadthechanceofprintinghisdearfeaturesonhermemorybyonelastlonglingeringlook。WithherthoughtsfulloftheunknownAimé；e，Mollytalkedmuchaboutherthatdaytothesquire。Hewouldlistenforevertoanyconjecture，howeverwild，aboutthegrandchild，butperpetuallywincedawayfromalldiscourseabout’theFrenchwoman，’
ashecalledher；notunkindly，buttohismindshewassimplytheFrenchwoman—chattering，dark—eyed，demonstrative，andpossiblyevenrouged。Hewouldtreatherwithrespectashisson’swidow，andwouldtryevennottothinkuponthefemaleinveiglementinwhichhebelieved。Hewouldmakeheranallowancetotheextentofhisduty；buthehopedandtrustedhemightneverbecalledupontoseeher。Hissolicitor，Gibson，anybodyandeverybody，shouldbecalledupontoformaphalanxofdefenceagainstthatdanger。Andallthistimealittle，young，grey—eyedwomanwasmakingherway；