It was as though the paper upon which she was writing represented a human being, and spoke the words she wrote.
She underlined the name “Frederick,” saying, as she did so, “For reasons which I shall one day learn, he has concealed his surname.”
The next words she wrote were: “Frederick Holdfast was educated in Oxford.”
To which she replied, “My Frederick was educated in Oxford.”
Then she wrote: “Between Frederick Holdfast and his father there was a difference so serious that they quarrelled, and Frederick Holdfast left his father’s house.”
“My Frederick told me,” said Becky aloud, “that he and his father were separated because of a family difference. He could tell me no more, he said, because of a vow he had made to his father. He has repeated this in the letter I received from him this evening.”
Becky took the letter from her dress, kissed it, and replaced it in her bosom. “I do not need this,” she said, “to assure me of his worth and truth.”
She proceeded with her task and wrote: “Frederick Holdfast went to America. His father also went to America.”
And answered it with, “My Frederick went to America, and his father followed him.”
Upon the paper then she wrote: “Mr. Holdfast and his son Frederick both returned to England.”