After All;

Besides , Mr . Phane , unknown to his family , was now in financial difficulties , and he and Merrisslope had been conferring together very frequently of late . In fact Mr . Phane was somewhat involved with this young man , and he was the more anxious that he should become his son-in-law , as he would soon be obliged , unless affairs took a brighter turn , to make him a partner in the firm . Of course this would be the best provision possible for his daughter

, and therefore he was doubly desirous that her marriage with Merrisslope should take place as soon a possible . Merrisslope , too , was more infatuated than ever with Olivia , and he wished to grasp the cup of happiness before it could be clashed from his lips again . He could never feel certain that Miss Phane ' s heart was really ancl solely his ( in fact , he knew that there lingered sad thoughts of another in the corner of

it yet ) until they were indissolubly wedded . Sincerely he felt that he would do almost anything to possess the whole heart of the fair creature , for he felt that he had many amends to make . Poor Mrs . Phane , she hacl strange forbodings of evil in her soul . She hoped Olivia was happy ; and really Merrisslope was a very attentive lover , but she had never altogether liked him : perhaps it was a foolish prejudice on her

part . Her husband , too , had been strangely taciturn and morose lately , as though some great difficulty were weighing on his mind , ancl the late bad trade hardly seemed sufficient to account for it all . God grant that it might only be her superstitious fancy ; but the fear of some dreadful calamity seemed to hang over her like a shroud . Dear , good woman ; she could but trust in Providence .

On the other hand , Merrisslope , though absorbed in the society of Olivia , never seemed so happy as when amid a whirl of life , and he constantly sought the busy hum of men—a peculiar frame of mind , but quite consistent , quite in accordance with his character , and easil y explainable . Although he adored Miss Phane , and was inspired and elevated by her presence , still he hacl thoughts to flee from actually connected with her , which only the

distracting stir of humanity could erase for the time , while he could still enjoy her now indispensable society . When absent from her he was moody ancl melancholy with more than the misery of a lover , and yet she alone , though the chief item of his desires , was not sufficient for him ; he must have society . Thus , in the face of his approaching marriage , he led her through the most crowded thoroughfares , tenderly guarding her the while . Through

fashionable Hyde Park they roamed , and in the aristocratic Rotten Row ; from thence they would go to the finest collection of wild-beasts in the world in the famous Zoological Gardens . Plenty of interesting objects there to avert the gloomiest thoughts , and Merrisslope was soon cheerily describing the different animals to his interested companion , who was so fond of dumb creatures . They might have been strangers to the metropolis who had never seen such sights before . Nor were the theatres neglected . Olivia had never

led such a gay lite before . Intellectual Irving and quietly conscious Ellen Terry were her favourites , though Merrisslope preferred rather the accentuated Booth as Iago . Once or twice he-winced at the withering denunciations of the noble Moor , for he had the weight of sin on his mind . Just as Irvinghad thrown Iago on the ground in a moment of distrustful passion , Merrisslope seemed as though he could no longer bear the play , and he begged Olivia to leave with him , as he felt very indisposed . She was about to comply with his

strange request , when , in the opposite box , she suddenly caught sig ht of the pale face of Arthur Humberton , with a peculiar eager expression upon it . It was the first time she had seen him since his disgrace ; and though she tried to avert her eyes she could not , for there was a strange fascination in that sad face of his . Merrisslope was no longer anything to her , ancl her heart leaped out to Humberton ready to forgive and forget . But she could not think that face was guilty ; no , it could not be . It was all that was