"What did he say when he heard of my disgraceful conduct?"
"Naturally he was very sorry to hear it; at the same time he said he thought that a man's past ought not to be regarded as a perpetual barrier to his future upward progress."
"Your father is a kind-hearted man, and I esteem him for his charitable views."
"That's what poor dear mother used to say," she replied.
"Then he had no objection to urge against me?"
"None!" she added; "he gave me his full consent to do whatever my own heart dictated as right."
"God bless you, Jessie! The aim of my life shall be that you may never have a moment's pang of regret for the choice you have this day made."
"Had I feared that, I would never have given you the answer I have," was her confident reply.
Much of the conversation which followed was of that tender and confidential nature, so manifestly not intended for the too inquisitive public ear, that we refrain from repeating it, leaving it to the imagination of the more experienced to supply many of the missing links.
Before separating, he told her of the letter received from home, which had given him so great a surprise, and how much he was at a loss to conceive who could have been the spy and informer.