"I see—you thought it a means of bringing pressure to bear upon me?—you propose, in short, that I should throw up the sponge, and resign my living?"
"Unless, of course, you can vindicate yourself publicly."
Barron to his annoyance could not keep his hand which held a glove from shaking a little. The wrestle between their personalities was rapidly growing in intensity.
"Unless I bring an action, you mean—against any one spreading the story? No—I shall not bring an action—I shall not bring an action!" Meynell repeated, with emphasis.
"In that case—I suggest—it might be better to meet the wishes of your
Bishop, and so avoid further publicity."
"By resigning my living?"
"Precisely. The scandal would then drop of itself. For Miss Puttenham's sake alone you must, I think, desire to stop its development."
Meynell flushed hotly. He took another turn up the room—while Barron sat silent, looking straight before him.
"I shall not take action"—Meynell resumed—"and I shall not dream of retreating from my position here. Judith Sabin's story is untrue. She did not see me at Grenoble and I am not the father of Hester Fox-Wilton. As to anything else, I am not at liberty to discuss other people's affairs, and I shall not answer any questions whatever on the subject."
The two men surveyed each other.