Part 29 (2/2)
”No,” said Mrs Thornton ”No man has That was another ainst public opinion”
”All ous”
Thornton spoke calmly and dispassionately
”True It is absurd in otten his own interests or safety in thinking of others”
”That does very well for poetry, but not in real life”
”In _real life_, such as that on board the _Tecu eyelids
”You are getting excited, my dear,” said Thornton, patiently, with the air of a wise father who overlooks the petulance of his child ”I will go on I had business on the Continent when poor Brandon's ruin occurred You ith me, my dear, at Berlin when I heard about it I felt shocked, but not surprised I feared that it would come to that”
”You showed no emotion in particular”
”No; I was careful not to trouble you”
”You were in Berlin threeor end of your stay?”
”At the beginning”
”And you staid?”
”I had business which I could not leave”
”Would you have been ruined if you had left?”
”Well, no--not exactly ruined, but it would have entailed serious consequences”
”Would those consequences have been as serious as the _Tecuedy?”
”My dear, in business there are rules which a ations which are iid, as elsewhere”
”And yet there are tiations of this sort are weakened
When friends die, this is recognized Why should it not be so when they are in danger of a fate worse than death?”
Thornton elevated his eyebrows, and made no reply
”You must have heard about it in March, then?”
”Yes, at the end of January His ruin took place in Deceot home I then, toward the end of the e to ht word of the death of Brandon, and the departure of his family to parts unknown”
[Illustration: ”THEN, COVERING HER FACE WITH HER HANDS, SHE BURST INTO AN AGONY OF TEARS”]
”Did he make no particular inquiries?”