Her pride was, for the
time, broken. She was humble and grateful. She surrendered to him
unconditionally, and hoped only for his forgiveness and love.
The captain did not suggest South Denboro. He did, however, tell
Sylvester that he believed a little place out of the city would be the
better refuge for the present.
"Poor Caroline's switched clear around," he said to the lawyer, "and you
can't blame her much. She cal'lates New York's nothin' but a sham
from stern to stern, manned by liars and swindlers and hypocrites and
officered by thieves. 'Tain't no use to tell her 'tain't, though she
might pretend to believe it, if _I_ told her, for just now the poor girl
thinks I'm Solomon and Saint Peter rolled into one. The way she agrees
to whatever I say and the way she looks at me and sort of holds on to
me, as if I was her only anchor in a gale, I declare it makes me feel
meaner than poorhouse tea--and that's made of blackberry leaves steeped
in memories of better things, so I've heard say. AM I a low down scamp,
playin' a dirty mean trick on a couple of orphans? What do you think,
Sylvester?"
"You know what I think, Captain Warren," replied the lawyer. "You're
handling the whole matter better than any other man could handle it. No
one else would have thought of it, to begin with; and the results so far
prove that you're right.
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