Fred. Let me see it. ’Tis false! That check has never been in my possession.
Harry. Fred Hastings, do you deny it?
Fred. Most certainly. Harry, I would willingly lend you my name to help you out of a scrape; but this is a crime I look upon with abhorrence. You must bear the blame yourself: I cannot help you.
Harry. Am I awake?
Doctor. A lie to cover a crime! O Harry, Harry! Is this the reward for all my love, my pride in you?
Harry. Father, what can I say? One whom I thought a friend has bitterly betrayed me. I do not know, I cannot imagine, a reason for this; but, as true as there is a heaven above, I am innocent of crime.
Doctor. Have you not frequented the gambling-house of Capt. Pitman?
Harry. I have. To my shame, I confess it.
Doctor. Then you are no longer son of mine. You have bitterly betrayed the trust reposed in you, and you cannot hold up your head in honesty. Go! The world is wide: find where you can a resting-place. My house shall no longer harbor a gambler and a forger.
Mrs. L. Doctor, doctor, calm yourself!