It was poor Mabel's fate to hear these words: "You must permit me to go alone, Mr.
Vane.

I insist upon leaving this house alone." On this, he whispered to her.
She answered: "You are not justified." "I can explain all," was his reply.

"I am ready to renounce credit, character, all the world for you." They passed out of the room before the unhappy listener could recover the numbing influence of these deadly words.
But the next moment she started wildly up, and cried as one drowning cries vaguely for help: "Ernest! oh, no--no! you cannot use me so! Ernest--husband! Oh, mother! mother!" She rose, and would have made for the door, but nature had been too cruelly tried.

At the first step she could no longer see anything; and the next moment, swooning dead away, she fell back insensible, with her head and shoulders resting on the chair..