staringatoneso。I’llbeboundyouwishedyou’dtakenmyoffer，andborrowedmyblackwateredscarf!Nowdidn’tyou，Mary？Speaktruth!““Totelltruth，Ineverthoughtaboutit，then，Sally。HowcouldI？“askedshe，reproachfully。“Oh——Iforgot。YouwereallforthatstupidJamesWilson。Well!ifI’veeverthelucktogowitnessonatrial，seeifIdon’tpickupabetterbeauthantheprisoner。I’llaimatalawyer’sclerk，butI’llnottakelessthanaturnkey。“CastdownasMarywas，shecouldhardlykeepfromsmilingattheidea，sowildlyincongruouswiththesceneshehadreallyundergone，oflookingoutforadmirersduringatrialformurder。“I’dnothoughttobelookingoutforbeaux，Icanassureyou，Sally。Butdon’tletustalkanymoreaboutit；Ican’tbeartothinkonit。HowisMissSimmonds？andeverybody？““Oh，verywell；andbythewayshegavemeabitofamessageforyou。
Youmaycomebacktoworkifyou’llbehaveyourself，shesays。Itoldyoushe’dbegladtohaveyouback，afterallthispieceofbusiness，bywayoftemptingpeopletocometohershop。They’dcomefromSalfordtohaveapeepatyou，forsixmonthsatleast。““Don’ttalkso；Icannotcome，IcanneverfaceMissSimmondsagain。AndevenifIcould——“shestopped，andblushed。“Aye!Iknowwhatyouarethinkingon。Butthatwillnotbethissometime，ashe’sturnedofffromthefoundry，——you’dbetterthinktwiceaforerefusingMissSimmonds’offer。““Turnedofffromthefoundry？Jem!“criedMary。“Tobesure!didn’tyouknowit？Decentmenwerenotgoingtoworkwitha——no!IsupposeImustn’tsayit，seeingyouwenttosuchatroubletogetupanalibi；notthatIshouldthinkmuchtheworseofaspiritedyoungfellowforfallingfoulofarival，——theyalwaysdoatthetheatre。“ButMary’sthoughtswerewithJem。Howgoodhehadbeennevertonamehisdismissaltoher。Howmuchhehadtoendureforhersake!“Tellmeallaboutit，“shegaspedout。“Why，yousee，they’vealwaysswordsquitehandyatthemplays，“beganSally；butMary，withanimpatientshakeofherhead，interrupted，“AboutJem，——aboutJem，Iwanttoknow。““Oh!Idon’tpretendtoknowmorethanisineveryone’smouthhe’sturnedawayfromthefoundry，becausefolksdon’tthinkyou’veclearedhimoutrightofthemurder；thouhperhapsthejurywereloathtohanghim。OldMrCarsonissavageagainstjudgeandjury，andlawyersandall，asIheard。““Imustgotohim，Imustgotohim，“repeatedMary，inahurriedmanner。“He’lltellyouallI’vesaidistrue，andnotawordoflie，“repliedSally。“SoI’llnotgiveyouranswertoMissSimmonds，butleaveyoutothinktwiceaboutit。Goodafternoon!“Maryshutthedoor，andturnedintothehouse。Herfathersatinthesameattitude；theoldunchangingattitude。Onlyhisheadwasmorebowedtowardstheground。SheputonherbonnettogotoAncoats；forsee，andquestion，andcomfort，andworshipJem，shemust。Asshehungaboutherfatherforaninstantbeforeleavinghim，hespoke——voluntarilyspokeforthefirsttimesinceherreturn；buthisheadwasdroopingsolowshecouldnothearwhathesaid，soshestoopeddown；andafteramoment’spause，herepeatedthewords，“TellJemWilsontocomehereateighto’clockto-night。“CouldhehaveoverheardherconversationwithSallyLeadbitter？Theyhadwhisperedlow，shethought。Ponderingonthis，andmanyotherthings，shereachedAncoats。
“Oh，hadhelived，RepliedRusilla，neverpenitenceHadequalledhis!fullwellIknowhisheart，Vehementinallthings。HewouldonhimselfHavewreakedsuchpenanceashadreachedtheheightOffleshlysuffering，——yea，whichbeingtold，WithitsportentousrigourshouldhavemadeThememoryofhisfaulto’erpoweredandlost，Inshudderingpityandastonishment，Fadelikeafeeblehorror。SOUTHEY’SRoderick。AsMarywasturningintothestreetwheretheWilsonslived，Jemovertookher。Hecameuponhersuddenly，andshestarted。“You’regoingtoseemother？“
heaskedtenderly，placingherarmwithinhis，andslackeninghispace。“Yes，andyoutoo。Oh，Jem，isittrue？tellme。“Shefeltrightlythathewouldguessthemeaningofheronlyhalf-expressedinquiry。Hehesitatedamomentbeforeheansweredher。“Darling，itis；it’snousehidingit——ifyoumeanthat。I’mnolongertoworkatDuncombe’sfoundry。It’snotimetomymindtohavesecretsfromeachother，thoughIdidnotnameityesterday，thinkingyoumightfret。Ishallsoongetworkagain，neverfear。““Butwhydidtheyturnyouoff，whenthejuryhadsaidyouwereinnocent？““Itwasnotjusttosayturnedoff，thoughIdon’tthinkIcouldhavewellstayedon。Agoodnumberofthemenmanagedtoletouttheyshouldnotliketoworknudermeagain；thereweresomefewwhoknewmewellenoughtofeelIcouldnothavedoneit，butmoreweredoubtful；andonespoketoyoungMrDuncombe，hintingatwhattheythought。““Oh，Jem!whatashame!“saidMary，withmournfulindignation。“Nay，darling!I’mnotforblamingthem。Poorfellowslikethemhavenoughttostanduponandbeproudofbuttheircharacter，andit’sfittingtheyshouldtakecareofthat，andkeepthatfreefromsoilandtaint。““Butyou，——whatcouldtheygetbutgoodfromyou？Theymighthaveknownyoubythistime。““Sosomedo；theoverlooker，I’msure，wouldknowIaminnocent。Indeed，hesaidasmuchto-day；andhesaidhehadhadsometalkwitholdMrDuncombe，andtheythoughtitmightbebetterifIleftManchesterforabit；they’drecommendmetosomeotherplace。“ButMarycouldonlyshakeherheadinamournfulway，andrepeatherwords，“Theymighthaveknowntheebetter，Jem。“Jempressedthelittlehandheheldbetweenhisownwork-hardenedones。
Afteraminuteortwo，heasked，“Mary，artthoumuchboundtoManchester？Woulditgrievetheesoretoquittheoldsmoke-jack？““Withthee？“sheasked，inaquiet，glancingway。“Aye，lass!Trustme，I’llneverasktheetoleaveManchesterwhileI’minit。BecauseIhaveheardfinethingsofCanada；andouroverlookerhasacousininthefoundrylinethere。ThouknowestwhereCanadais，Mary？““Notrightly——notnow，atanyrate；——butwiththee，Jem，“hervoicesunktoasoft，lowwhisper，“anywhere——“Whatwastheuseofageographicaldescription!“Butfather!“saidMary，suddenlybreakingthatdelicioussilencewiththeonesharpdiscordinherpresentlife。Shelookedupatherlover’sgraveface；andthenthemessageherfatherhadsentflashedacrosshermemory。“Oh，Jem，didItellyou？Fathersentwordhewishedtospeakwithyou。
Iwastobidyoucometohimateighto’clockto-night。Whatcanhewant，Jem？““Icannottell，“repliedhe。“AtanyrateI’llgo。It’snousetroublingourselvestoguess，“hecontinued，afterapauseforafewminutes，duringwhichtheyslowlyandsilentlypacedupanddowntheby-street，intowhichhehadledherwhentheirconversationbegan。“Comeandseemother，andthenI’lltaketheehome，Mary。ThouwertallinatremblewhenfirstI
cameutothee；thou’rtnotfittobetrustedhomebythyself，“saidhe，withfondexaggerationofherhelplessness。Yetalittlemorelovers’loitering；afewmorewords，inthemselvesnothing——toyounothing——buttothosetwo，whattenderpassionatelanguagecanIusetoexpressthefeelingswhichthrilledthroughthatyoungmanandmaiden，astheylistenedtothesyllablesmadedearandlovelythroughlifebythathour’slow-whisperedtalk。Itstruckthehalfhourpastseven。“Comeandspeaktomother；sheknowsyou’retobeherdaughter，Mary，darling。“Sotheywentin。JaneWilsonwasratherchafedatherson’sdelayinreturninghome，forasyethehadmanagedtokeepherinignoranceofhisdismissalfromthefoundry：anditwasherwaytopreparesomelittlepleasure，somelittlecomfortforthosesheloved；andifthey，unwittingly，didnotappearatthepropertimetoenjoyherpreparation，sheworkedherselfupintoastateoffretfulnesswhichfoundventinupbraidingsassoonasevertheobjectsofhercareappeared，therebymarringthepeacewhichshouldeverbetheatmosphereofahome，howeverhumble；andcausingafeelingalmostamountingtoloathingtoariseatthesightofthe“stalledox，“
which，thoughaneffectandproofofcarefullove，hasbeenthecauseofsomuchdisturbance。MrsWilsonhadfirstsighed，andthengrumbledtoherself，overtheincreasingtoughnessofthepotato-cakesshehadmadeforherson’stea。Thedooropened，andhecamein；hisfacebrighteningintoproudsmiles，MaryBartonhangingonhisarm，blushinganddimpling，witheyelidsveilingthehappylightofhereyes，——therewasaroundtheyoungcouplearadiantatmosphere——agloryofhappiness。Couldhismothermarit？CouldshebreakintoitwithherMartha-likecares？
Onlyforonemomentdidsherememberhersenseofinjury，——herwastedtrouble，——andthen，herwholewoman’sheartheavingwithmotherlyloveandsympathy，sheopenedherarms，andreceivedMaryintothem，assheddingtearsofagitatedjoy，shemurmuredinherear，“Blessthee，Mary，blessthee!OnlymakehimandGodblesstheeforever!“IttooksomeofJem’sself-commandtoseparatethosewhomhesomuchloved，andwhowerebeginning，forhissake，toloveoneanothersodearly。ButthetimeforhismeetingJohnBartondrewon；anditwasalongwaytohishouse。Astheywalkedbrisklythither，theyhardlyspoke；thoughmanythoughtswereintheirminds。Thesunhadnotlongset，butthefirstfaintshadeoftwilightwasoverall；andwhentheyopenedthedoor，Jemcouldhardlyperceivetheobjectswithinbythewaninglightofday，andtheflickeringfire-blaze。ButMarysawallataglance。Hereye，accustomedtowhatwasusualintheaspectoftheroom，sawinstantlywhatwasunusual，——sawandunderstooditall。Herfatherwasstandingbehindhishabitualchair；holdingbythebackofitasifforsupport。AndoppositetohimtherestoodMrCarson；thedarkoutlineofhissternfigureloominglargeagainstthelightofthefireinthatlittleroom。BehindherfathersatJobLegh，hisheadinhishands，andrestinghiselbowonthelittlefamilytable，——listeningevidently；butasevidentlydeeplyaffectedbywhatheheard。Thereseemedtobesomepauseintheconversation。MaryandJemstoodatthehalf-opendoor，notdaringtostir；hardlytobreathe。“AndhaveIheardyouaright？“beganMrCarson，withhisdeepquiveringvoice。“Man，haveIheardyouaright？Wasityou，then，thatkilledmyboy？myonlyson？“hesaidtheselastfewwordsalmostasifappealingforpity，andthenhechangedhistonetoonemorevehementandfierce。
“Don’tdaretothinkthatIshallbemerciful，andspareyou，becauseyouhavecomeforwardtoaccuseyourself。ItellyouIwillnotspareyoutheleastpangthelawcaninflict，——you，whodidnotshowpityonmyboy，shallhavenonefromme。““Ididnotaskforany，“saidJohnBarton，inalowvoice。“Ask，ornotask，whatcareI？Youshallbehanged——hanged——man!“saidhe，advancinghisface，andrepeatingthewordwithslowgrindingemphasis，asiftoinfusesomeofthebitternessofhissoulintoit。JohnBartongasped；butnotwithfear。Itwasonlythathefeltitterribletohaveinspiredsuchhatred，aswasconcentratedintoeveryword，everygestureofMrCarson’s。“Asforbeinghanged，sir，Iknowit’sallrightandproper。Idaresayit’sbadenough；butItellyouwhat，sir，“speakingwithanoutburst，“ifyou’dhangedmethedayafterI’ddonethedeed，Iwouldhavegonedownonmykneesandblessedyou。Death!LordwhatisittoLife？TosuchaLifeasI’vebeenleadingthisfortnightpast。Lifeatbestisnogreatthing；butsuchaLifeasIhavedraggedthroughsincethatnight，“heshudderedatthethought。“Why，sir，I’vebeenonthepointofkillingmyselfthismanyatimetogetawayfrommyownthoughts。Ididn’t!andI’lltellyouwhy。Ididn’tknowbutthatIshouldbemorehauntedthaneverwiththerecollectionofmysin。Oh!GodaboveonlycantelltheagonywithwhichI’verepentedmeofit，andpartperhapsbecauseIfearedHewouldthinkIwereimpatientofthemiseryHesentaspunishment——far，farworsemiserythananybanging，sir。“Heceasedfromexcessofemotion。Thenhebeganagain。“Sin’thatdayitmaybeverywicked，sir，butit’sthetruthI’vekeptthinkingandthinkingifIwerebutinthatworldwheretheysayGodis，Hewould，maybe，teachmerightfromwrong，evenifitwerewithmanystripes。
I’vebeensorepuzzledhere。Iwouldgothroughhell-fireifIcouldbutgetfreefromsinatlast，it’ssuchanawfulthing。Asforhanging，that’sjustnoughtatall“Hisexhaustioncompelledhimtositdown。Maryrushedtohim。Itseemedasiftillthenhehadbeenunawareofherpresence。“Aye，aye，wench!“saidhe，feebly，“isitthee？Where’sJemWilson？“Jemcameforward。JohnBartonspokeagain，withmanyabreakandgaspingpause。“Lad!thouhastborneadealforme。It’sthemeanestthingIeverdidtoleavetheetobearthebrunt。Thou，whowertasinnocentofanyknowledgeofitasthebabeunborn。I’llnotblesstheeforit。Blessingfromsuchasmewouldnotbringtheeanygood。Thou’ltloveMary，thoughsheismychild。“Heceased，andtherewasapauseforafewseconds。ThenMrCarsonturnedtogo。Whenhishandwasonthelatchofthedoor，hehesitatedforaninstant。“YoucanhavenodoubtforwhatpurposeIgo。Straighttothepolice-office，tosendmentotakecareofyou，wretchedman，andyouraccomplice。To-morrowmorningyourtaleshallberepeatedtothosewhocancommityoutogoal，andbeforelongyoushallhavetheopportunityoftryinghowdesirablehangingis。““Oh，sir!“saidMary，springingforward，andcatchingholdofMrCarson’sarm，myfatherisdying。Lookathim，sir。IfyouwantDeathforDeath，youhaveit。Don’ttakehimawayfrommetheselasthours。HemustgoalonethroughDeath，butletmebewithhimaslongasIcan。Oh，sir!ifyouhaveanymercyinyou，leavehimheretodie。“Johnhimselfstoodup，stiffandrigid，andreplied，“Mary，wench!Iowehimsummut。Iwillgodie，where，andashewishesme。Thouhastsaidtrue，IamstandingsidebysidewithDeath；anditmatterlittlewhereIspendthebitoftimeleftofLife。ThattimeImustpasswrestlingwithmysoulforacharactertotakeintotheotherworld。