CHAPTERXXXIII
THEPLUMSTEADFOXES
Thelettershadbeenbroughtintothebreakfast—parlouratPlumsteadRectoryonemorning，andthearchdeaconhadinspectedthemall，andthenthrownovertohiswifehershareofthespoil——aswasthecustomofthehouse。AstomostofMrsGrantly’sletters，henevermadeanyfurtherinquiry。Tolettersfromhersister，thedean’swife，hewasprofoundlyindifferent，andrarelymadeanyinquiryastothosewhichweredirectedinwritingwithwhichhewasnotfamiliar。Buttherewereothersastowhich，asMrsGrantlyknew，hewouldbesuretoaskherquestionsifshedidnotshowthem。NonoteeverreachedherfromLadyHarteltopastowhichhewasnotcurious，andyetLadyHartletop’snotesveryseldomcontainedmuchthatwasofinterest。Now，onthismorning，therecamealetterwhich，asamatterofcourse，MrsGrantlyreadatbreakfast，andwhich，sheknew，wouldnotbeallowedtodisappearwithoutinquiry。Nor，indeed，didshewishtokeeptheletterfromherhusband。Itwastooimportanttobesotreated。Butshewouldhavebeengladtogaintimetothinkinwhatspiritshewoulddiscussthecontentsoftheletter——ifonlysuchtimemightbeallowedtoher。Butthearchdeaconwouldallowhernotime。’WhatdoesHenrysay，mydear？’heasked，beforethebreakfastthingshadbeentakenaway。
’Whatdoeshesay？Well，hesays——I’llgiveyouhislettertoreadby—and—by。’
’Andwhynotnow？’
’IthoughtI’dreaditagainmyself，first。’
’Butifyouhavereadit，Isupposeyouknowwhat’sinit？’
’Notveryclearly，asyet。However，thereitis。’Sheknewverywellthatwhenshehadoncebeenaskedforit，nopeacewouldbeallowedhertillhehadseenit。And，alas！therewasnotmuchprobabilityofpeaceinthehouseforsometimeafterhehadseenit。
Thearchdeaconreadthethreeorfirstlinesinsilence——andthenburstout。’Hehas，hashe？Then，byheavens——’
’Stop，dearest；stop，’saidhiswife，risingfromherchairandcomingovertohim；’donotsaywordswhichyouwillsurelyrepent。’
’Iwillsaywordswhichshallmakehimrepent。Heshallneverhavefrommeason’sportion。’
’Donotmakethreatsinanger。Donot！Youknowthatitiswrong。Ifhehasoffendedyou，saynothingaboutit——eventoyourself———astothreatenedpunishments，tillyoucanjudgeoftheoffenceincoolblood。’
’Iamcool，’saidthearchdeacon。
’No，mydear；no；youareangry。Andyouhavenotevenreadhisletterthrough。’
’Iwillreadhisletter。’
’Youwillseethatthemarriageisnotimminent。Itmaybethatevenyetitwillnevertakeplace。Theyoungladyhasrefusedhim。’
’Psha！’
’Youwillseethatshehasdoneso。Hetellsussohimself。Andshehasbehavedveryproperly。’
’Whyhassherefusedhim？’
’Therecanbenodoubtaboutthereason。Shefeelsthat，withthischargehangingoverherfather，sheisnotinapositiontobecomethewifeofanygentleman。Youcannotbutrespectherforthat。’
Thearchdeaconfinishedhisson’sletter，utteringsundryinterjectionsandejaculationsashedidso。
’Ofcourse；Iknewit。Iunderstooditall，’hesaidatlast。’I’venothingtodowiththegirl。Idon’tcarewhethershebegoodorbad。’
’Oh，mydear！’
’Icarenotatall——withreferencetomyownconcerns。OfcourseI
wouldwishthatthedaughterofaneighbouringclergyman——thatthedaughterofanyneighbour——thatthedaughterofanyonewhatsoever——shouldbegoodratherthanbad。ButasregardsHenryandme，andourmutualrelation，hergoodnesscanmakenodifference。LetherbeanotherGrizel，andstillsuchamarriagemustestrangehimfromme，andmefromhim。’
’Butshehasrefusedhim。’
’Yes；andwhatdoeshesay？——thathehastoldherthathewillnotacceptherrefusal。Ofcourseweknowwhatitallmeans。ThegirlIamnotjudging。ThegirlIwillnotjudge。Butmyownson，towhomIhaveeverdoneafather’sdutywithafather’saffectionateindulgence——himI
willjudge。Ihavewarnedhim，andhedeclareshimselftobecarelessofmywarning。Ishalltakenonoticeofthisletter。Ishallneitherwritetohimaboutitorspeaktohimaboutit。ButIchargeyoutowritetohimandtellhimthatifhedoesthisthingheshallnothaveachild’sportionfromme。ItisnotthatIwillshortenthatwhichwouldhavebeenhis；butheshallhave——nothing！’Then，havingspokenthesewordswithasolemnitywhichforthemomentsilencedhiswife，hegotupandlefttheroom。Helefttheroomandclosedthedoor，but，beforehehadgonehalfthelengthofthehalltowardshisownstudy，hereturnedandaddressedhiswifeagain。’Youunderstandmyinstructions，Ihope？’
’Whatinstructions？’
’ThatyouwritetoHenryandtellhimwhatIsay。’
’Iwillspeakagaintoyouaboutitby—and—by。’
’Iwillspeaknomoreaboutit——notawordmore。Lettherebenotawordmoresaid，butobligemebydoingasIaskyou。’
Thenhewasagainabouttoleavetheroom，butshestoppedhim。’Waitamoment，mydear。’
’WhyshouldIwait？’
’Thatyoumaylistentome。Surelyyouwilldothat，whenIaskyou。I
willwritetoHenry，ofcourse，ifyoubidme；andIwillgivehimyourmessage，whateveritmaybe；butnottoday，mydear。’
’Whynottoday？’
’BecausethesunshallgodownonyourwrathbeforeIbecomeitsmessenger。Ifyouchoosetowritethatyourself，Icannothelpit。I
cannothinderyou。IfIamtowritetohimonyourbehalfIwilltakemyinstructionsfromyoutomorrowmorning。Whentomorrowmorningcomesyouwillnotbeangrywithmebecauseofthedelay。’
Thearchdeaconwasbynomeanssatisfied；butheknewhiswifetoowell，andhimselftoowell，andtheworldtoowell，toinsistontheimmediategratificationofhispassion。Overhisbosom’smistresshedidexerciseacertainmaritalcontrol——whichwas，forinstance，quitesufficientlyfixedtoenablehimtolookdownwiththoroughcontemptonsuchaoneaBishopProudie；buthewasnotadespotwhocouldexactapassiveobediencetoeveryfantasy。Hiswifewouldnothavewrittentheletterforhimonthatday，andheknewverywellthatshewouldnotdoso。Heknewalsothatshewasright；——andyetheregrettedhiswantofpower。
Hisangeratthepresentmomentwasveryhot——sohotthathewishedtowreakit。Heknewthatitwouldcoolbeforethemorrow；——and，nodoubt，knewalsotheoretically，thatitwouldbemostfittingthatitshouldbecool。Butnotthelesswasitamatterofregrettohimthatsomuchgoodhotangershouldbewasted，andthathecouldnothavehiswillofhisdisobedientsonwhileitlasted。Hemight，nodoubt，havewrittenhimself，buttohavedonesowouldnothavesuitedhim。Eveninhisangerhecouldnothavewrittentohissonwithoutusingtheordinarytermsofaffection，andinhisangerhecouldnotbringhimselftousethoseterms。’YouwillfindthatIshallbeofthesamemindtomorrow——exactly，’hesaidtohiswife。’Ihaveresolvedaboutitlongsince；anditisnotlikelythatIshallchangeinaday。’Thenhewentout，abouthisparish，intendingtocontinuetothinkofhisson’siniquity，sothathemightkeephisangerhot——redhot。Thenherememberedthattheeveningwouldcome，andthathewouldsayhisprayers；andheshookhisheadinregret——inaregretofwhichhewasonlyhalfconscious，thoughitwasverykeen，andwhichhedidnotattempttoanalyse——ashereflectedthathisragewouldhardlybeabletosurvivethatordeal。Howcommonwithusitistorepinethatthedevilisnotstrongeroverthanheis。
Thearchdeacon，whowasaverywealthyman，hadpurchasedapropertyatPlumstead，contiguoustotheglebe—land，andhadthuscometoexerciseintheparishthedoubledutyofrectorandsquire。AndofthisestateinBarsetshire，whichextendedbeyondtheconfinesofPlumsteadintotheneighbouringparishofStogpingum——StokePinguiumwouldhavebeenthepropernamehadnotthebarbarousSaxontonguesclippeditofitsproperproportions——hehadalwaysintendedthathissonCharlesshouldenjoytheinheritance。Therewasotherproperty，bothinlandandinmoney，forhiselderson，andotheragainforthemaintenanceofhiswife，forthearchdeacon’sfatherhadbeenformanyyearsBishopofBarchester，andsuchabishopricasthatofBarchesterhadbeeninthosedaysworthmoney。Ofhisintentioninthisrespecthehadneverspokeninplainlanguagetoeitherofhissons；butthemajorhadforthelastyearortwoenjoyedtheshootingoftheBarsetshirecovers，givingwhatordershepleasedaboutthegame；andthefatherhadencouragedhimtotakesomethinglikethemanagementofthepropertyintohishands。Theremighthavebeensomefifteenhundredacresofitaltogether，andthearchdeaconhadrejoicedoveritwithhiswifescoresoftimes，sayingthattherewasmanyasquireinthecountywhoseeldersonwouldneverfindhimselfsowellplacedaswouldhisownyoungerson。NowtherewasastringofnarrowwoodscalledPlumsteadCoppiceswhichranfromapointnearthechurchrightacrosstheparish，dividingthearchdeacon’slandfromtheUllathorneestate，andthesecoppices，orbeltsofwoodland，belongedtothearchdeacon。Onthemorningofwhichwearespeaking，thearchdeaconmountedonhiscob，stillthinkingofhisson’siniquityandofhisownfixedresolvetopunishhimashehadsaidthathewouldpunishhim，openedwithhiswhipawoodlandgate，fromwhichagreenmuddylaneledthroughthetreesuptothehouseofthegamekeeper。Theman’swifewasill，andinhisordinarywayofbusinessthearchdeaconwasabouttocallandaskafterherhealth。Atthedoorofthecottagehefoundtheman，whowaswoodmanaswellasgamekeeper，andwasresponsibleforfencesandfaggots，aswellasforthefoxesandpheasants’eggs。
’How’sMartha，Flurry？’saidthearchdeacon。
’Thankingyourreverence，shebeadealimprovedsincethemistresswashere——lastTuesdayitwas，Ithink。’
’I’mgladofthat。Itwasonlyrheumatism，Isuppose？’
’Justatichoffeverwithit，yourreverence，thedoctorsaid，’
’TellherIwasaskingafterit。Iwon’tmindgettingdowntoday，asI
amratherbusy。Shehashadwhatshewantedfromthehouse？’
’Themistresshasbeenverygoodinthatway。Shealwaysis，Godblessher！’
’Good—daytoyou，Flurry。I’llaskMrSimstocomeandreadtoherabitthisafternoon，ortomorrowmorning。’Thearchdeaconkepttwocurates，andMrSimswasoneofthem。’
’She’lltakeitverykindly，yourreverence。Butwhileyouarehere，sir，there’sjustawordI’dliketosay。Ididn’thappentocatchMrHenrywhenhewasheretheotherday。’
’NevermindMrHenry——whatisityouhavetosay？’
’Idothink，Idoindeed，sire，thatMrThorne’smanain’tdealingfairlyalongofthefoxes。Iwouldn’tsayawordaboutit，onlythatMrHenryissoparticular。’
’Whataboutthefoxes？Whatishedoingwiththefoxes？’
’Well，sire，he’satrappingon’em。Heis，indeed，yourreverence。I
wouldn’tspeakifIwarn’twellnighmortalsure。’
Nowthearchdeaconhadneverbeenahuntingman，thoughinhisearlydaysmanyaclergymanhadbeeninthehabitofhuntingwithoutlosinghisclericalcharacterbydoingso；buthehadlivedallhislifeamonggentlemeninahuntingcounty，andhadhisownverystrongideasaboutthetrappingoffoxes。Foxesfirst，andpheasantsafterwards，hadalwaysbeentherulewithhimastoanylandofwhichhehimselfhadthemanagement。Andnomanunderstoodbetterthanhedidhowtodealwithkeepersastothismatteroffox—preserving，orknewbetterthatkeeperswillintruthobeynotthewordsoftheiremployers，buttheirsympathies。’Wishthemtohavefoxes，andpaythem，andtheywillhavethem。’MrSowerbyofChaldicotesusedtosay，andheinhisdaywasreckonedtobethebestpreserveroffoxesinBarsetshire。’Tellthemtohavethem，anddon’twishit，andpaythemwell，andyouwon’thaveafoxtointerferewithyourgame。Idon’tcarewhatamansaystome，I
canreaditalllikeabookwhenIseehiscoversdrawn。’ThatwaswhatpoorMrSowerbyofChaldicotesusedtosay，andthearchdeaconhadheardhimsayitascoreoftime，andhadlearnedthelesson。Butnowhisheartwasnotwiththefoxes——andespeciallynotwiththefoxesonbehalfofhissonHenry。’Ican’thaveanymeddlingwithMrThorne，’hesaid；’Ican’t；andIwon’t。’
’ButIdon’tsupposeitcanbeMrThorne’sorder，yourreverence；andMrHenryissoparticular。’
’Ofcourseitisn’tMrThorne’sorder。MrThornehasbeenahuntingmanallhislife。’
’Buthehaveguv’upnow，yourreverence。Heain’thuntedthesetwoyears。’
’I’msurehewouldn’thavethefoxestrapped。’
’Notifheknowedit，hewouldn’t，yourreverence。Agentlemanofthelikesofhim，who’sbeenahuntingoverfiftyyear，wouldn’tdothelikesofthat；butthefoxesistrapped，andMrHenry’llbeaputtingitonmeifIdon’tspeakout。TheyisPlumsteadfoxes，too；andavixenwastrappedjustacrossthefieldyonder，inGoshallSprings，nolaterthanyesterdaymorning。’Flurrywasnowthoroughlyinearnest；and，indeed，thetrappingofavixeninFebruaryisaseriousthing。
’GoshallSpringsdon’tbelongtome，’saidthearchdeacon。
’No，yourreverence；they’reontheUllathorneproperty。Butawordfromyourreverencewoulddoit。MrHenrythinksmoreofthefoxesthananything。Thelastwordhetoldmewasthatitwouldbreakhisheartifhesawthecoppicesdrawnblank。’
’Thenhemustbreakhisheart。’Thewordswerepronounced，butthearchdeaconhadsomuchcommandoverhimselfastospeaktheminsuchavoicethatthemanshouldnothearthem。Butitwasincumbentonhimtosaysomethingthatthemanshouldhear。’Iwillhavenomeddlinginthematter，Flurry。Whethertherearefoxesorwhethertherearenot，isamatterofnogreatmoment。IwillnothaveawordsaidtoannoyMrThorne。’Thenherodeaway，backthroughthewoodandoutontotheroad，andthehorsewalkedwithhimleisurelyon，whitherthearchdeaconhardlyknew——forhewasthinking，thinking，thinking。’Well；——ifthatain’tthedarn’destthingthateverwas，’saidFlurry；’butI’lltellthesquireaboutThorne’sman——darnedifIdon’t。’now，’thesquire’wasyoungSquireGresham，themasteroftheEastBarsetshirehounds。
Butthearchdeaconwentonthinking，thinking，thinking。Hecouldhaveheardnothingofhissontostirhimmoreinhisfavourthanthisstrongevidenceofhispartialityforfoxes。Idonotmeanittobeunderstoodthatthearchdeaconregardedfoxesasbetterthanactivecharity，ofacontentedmind，orameekspirit，orthanself—denyingtemperance。Nodoubtallthesevirtuesdidholdinhismindtheirproperplaces，altogetherbeyondcontaminationoffoxes。Buthehadpridedhimselfonthinkingthathissonshouldbeacountrygentleman，andprobablynothingdoubtingastothemajor’sactivecharityandothervirtues，wasdelightedtoreceiveevidenceofthosetasteswhichhehadeverwishedtoencourageinhisson’scharacter。Orrather，suchevidencewouldhavedelightedhimatanyothertimethanthepresent。Nowitonlyaddedmoregalltohiscup。’Whyshouldheteachhimselftocareforsuchthings，whenhehasnotthespirittoenjoythem，’saidthearchdeacontohimself。’Heisafool——afool。Amanthathasbeenmarriedonce，togocrazyafteralittlegirl，thathashardlyadresstoherback，andwhoneverwasinadrawing—roominherlife！Charlesistheeldest，andheshallbetheeldest。Itwasbebettertokeepittogether。Itisthewayinwhichthecountryhasbecomewhatitis。’Hewasoutnearlyallday，anddidnotseehiswifetilldinner—time。Herfather，MrHarding，wasstillwiththem，buthadbreakfastedinhisownroom。Notaword，therefore，wassaidaboutHenryGrantlybetweenthefatherandmotheronthatevening。
MrsGrantlywasdeterminedthat，unlessprovoked，shewouldsaynothingtohimtillthefollowingmorning。Heshouldsleepuponhiswrathbeforeshespoketohimagain。Andhewasequallyunwillingtorecurtothesubject。Hadshepermitted，thenextmorningwouldhavepassedaway，andnowordwouldhavebeenspoken。Butthiswouldnothavesuitedher。Shehadhisorderstowrite，andshehadundertakentoobeytheseorders——withthedelayofoneday。Wereshenottowriteatall——orinwritingtosendnomessagefromthefather，therewouldbecauseforfurtheranger。Andyetthis，Ithink，waswhatthearchdeaconwished。
’Archdeacon，’shesaid，’IshallwritetoHenrytoday。’
’Verywell。’
’AndwhatamItosayfromyou？’
’Itoldyouyesterdaywhataremyintentions。’
’Iamnotaskingaboutthatnow。Wehopetherewillbeyearsandyearstocome，inwhichyoumaychangethem，andshapethemasyouwill。WhatshallItellhimnowfromyou？’
’Ihavenothingtosaytohim——nothing；notaword。Heknowswhathehastoexpectfromme，forIhavetoldhim。Heisactingwithhiseyesopen，andsoamI。IfhemarriedMissCrawley，hemustliveonhisownmeans。Itoldhimthatsoplainly，thathecanwantnofurtherintimation。’ThenMrsGrantlyknewthatshewasabsolvedfromtheburdenofyesterday’smessage，andsheplumedherselfontheprudenceofherconduct。Onthesamemorningthearchdeaconwrotethefollowingnote：——
’DEARTHORNE，——
’MymantellsmethatfoxeshavebeentrappedonDarvell’sfarm，justoutsidethecoppices。Iknownothingofitmyself，butIamsureyou’lllooktoit。
’Yoursalways，’T。GRANTLY。’
CHAPTERXXXIV
MRSPROUDIESENDSFORHERLAWYER
TherewasgreatdismayinBarchesterPalaceafterthevisitpaidtothebishopandMrsProudiebythatterribleclericaloffender，MrCrawley。
Itwillberemembered，perhaps，howhehaddefiedthebishopwithspokenwords，andhowhehaddefiedthebishop’swifebyspeakingwordstoher。
Forthemoment，nodoubt，MrCrawleyhadthebestofit。MrsProudieacknowledgedtoherselfthatthiswasthecase；butasshewasawomanwhohadneveryetsuccumbedtoanenemy，whohadnever——ifonsuchanoccasionImaybeallowedtouseaschoolboy’sslang——takenalickingfromanyone，itwasnotlikelythatMrCrawleywouldbeallowedtoenjoyhistriumphinpeace。Itwouldbeoddifalltheweightofthepalacewouldnotbeabletosilenceawretchofaperpetualcuratewhohadalreadybeencommittedtotakehistrialforthieving；——andMrsProudiewasdeterminedthatalltheweightofthepalaceshouldbeused。Asforthebishop，thoughhewasnotasangryashiswife，hewasquiteunhappy，andthereforequiteashostiletoMrCrawley；andwasfullyconsciousthattherecouldbenopeaceforhimnowuntilMrCrawleyshouldbecrushed。Ifonlytheassizeswouldcomeatonce，andgethimcondemnedoutoftheway，whatablessedthingitwouldbe！Butunluckilyitstillwantedthreemonthstotheassizes，andduringthosethreemonthsMrCrawleywouldbeatlargeandsubjectonlytotheepiscopalauthority。Duringthattimehecouldnotbesilencedbythearmofthecivillaw。HiswifewasnotlonginexpressingheropinionafterMrCrawleyhadleftthepalace。’YoumustproceedagainsthimintheCourtofArches——andthatatonce，’saidMrsProudie。’Youcandothat，ofcourse？Iknowthatitwillbeexpensive。Ofcourseitwillbeexpensive。Isupposeitmaycostussomethreehundredpounds；butdutyisduty，mylord，andinsuchacaseasthisyourdutyasabishopisparamount。’
Thepoorbishopknewthatitwasuselesstoexplaintoherthevariousmistakeswhichshemade——whichshewasevermaking——astotheextentofhispowersandthemodesofprocedurewhichwereopentohim。Whenhewouldtososhewouldonlyrailathimforbeinglukewarminhisoffice，poorinspirit，andafraidofdealingroundlywiththosebelowhim。Onthepresentoccasionhedidsayaword，butshewouldnotevenhearhimtotheend。’Don’ttellmeaboutruraldeans，asifIdidn’tknow。Theruraldeanhasnothingtodowithsuchacase。Themanhasbeencommittedfortrial。SendforMrChadwickatonce，andletstepsbetakenbeforeyouareanhourolder。’
’But，mydear，MrChadwickcandonothing。’
’TheIwillseeMrChadwick。’AndinherangershedidsitdownandwriteanotetoMrChadwick，begginghimtocomeovertoheratthepalace。
MrChadwickwasalawyer，livinginBarchester，whoearnedhisbreadfromecclesiasticalbusiness。Hisfather，andhisuncle，andhisgrandfatherandgranduncles，hadallbeenconcernedintheaffairsofthedioceseofBarchester。Hisunclehadbeenbailifftotheepiscopalestates，orstewardashehadbeencalled，inBishopGrantly’stime，andstillcontrivedtodrawhisincomeinsomeshapefromthepropertyofthesee。Thenephewhadalsobeenthelegalassistantofthebishopinhislatterdays，andhadbeencontinuedinthatpositionbyBishopProudie，notfromlove，butfromexpediency。MrJohnChadwickwasoneofthosegentlemen，twoorthreeofwhomaretobeseeninconnexionwitheverysee——whoseemtobehybrids——half—lay，half—cleric。Theydresslikeclergymen，andaffectthatmixtureofclericalsolemnityandclericalwaggishnesswhichisgenerallytobefoundamongminorcanonsandvicarschoralofacathedral。Theylive，oratleasthavetheiroffices，halfintheCloseandhalfoutofit——dwellingasitwerejustonthebordersofholyorders。Theyalwayswearwhiteneck—handkerchiefsandblackgloves；andwouldbealtogetherclericalintheirappearance，wereitnotthatasregardstheoutwardmantheyimpingesomewhatonthecharacteristicsoftheundertaker。Theysavourofthechurchbutthesavourisofthechurch’sexterior。Anystrangerthrownintochancecontactwithoneofthemwould，frominstinct，begintotalkaboutthingsecclesiasticalwithoutanyreferencetothingstheologicalorthingsreligious。Theyarealwaysmostworthymen，muchrespectedinthesocietyoftheClose，andIneverheardofoneofthemwhosewifewasnotcomfortableorwhosechildrenwereleftwithoutprovision。
SuchaonewasMrJohnChadwick，andasitwasaportionofhisdutiestoaccompanythebishoptoconsecrationsandordinations，heknewDrProudieverywell。Havingbeenbroughtup，asitwere，undertheverywingofBishopGrantly，itcouldnotwellbethatheshouldloveBishopGrantly’ssuccessor。Theoldbishopandthenewbishophadbeensodifferentthatnomancouldlike，orevenesteem，themboth。ButMrChadwickwasaprudentman，whoknewwellthesourcefromwhichheearnedhisbread，andhehadneverquarrelledwithBishopProudie。HeknewMrsProudiealso——ofnecessity——andwhenIsayofhimthathehadhithertoavoidedanyopenquarrelwithher，itwillIthinkbeallowedthathewasamanofprudenceandsagacity。
Buthehadsometimesbeensorelytried，andhefeltwhenhegothernotethathewasnowabouttoencounteraverysoretrial。Hemutteredsomethingwhichmighthavebeentakenforanoath，wereitnotthattheoutwardssignsofthemangavewarrantythatnooathcouldproceedfromsuchaone。ThenhewroteashortnotepresentinghiscomplimentstoMrsProudie，andsayingthathewouldcallatthepalaceateleveno’clockonthefollowingmorning。
But，inthemeantime，MrsProudie，whocouldnotbesilentonthesubjectforamoment，didlearnsomethingofthetruthfromherhusband。
Theinformationdidnotcometoherinthewayofinstruction，butwasteasedoutoftheunfortunateman。’IknowthatyoucanproceedagainsthimintheCourtofArches，underthe\"ChurchDisciplineAct\"，’shesaid。
’No，mydear；no，’saidthebishop，shakinghisheadinhismisery。
’OrintheConsistorialCourt。It’sallthesamething。’
’Theremustbeaninquiryfirst——byhisbrotherclergy。Theremustindeed。It’stheonlywayofproceeding。’
’Buttherehasbeenaninquiry，andhehasbeencommitted。’
’Thatdoesn’tsignify，mydear。That’stheCivilLaw。’
’AndiftheCivilLawcondemnshim，andlockshimupinprison——asitmostcertainlywilldo？’
’Butithasn’tdonesoyet，mydear。Ireallythinkthatasithasgonesofar，itwillbebesttoleaveitasitistillhehastakenhistrial。’
’What！Leavehimthereafterwhathasoccurredthismorninginthispalace？’ThepalacewithMrsProudiewasalwaysapalace，andneverahouse。’No；no；tenthousandtimesno。Areyounotawarethatheinsultedyou，andgrossly，mostgrosslyinsultedme？SinceIfirstcametothispalace；——never，never。Andweknowthemantobeathief；——weabsolutelyknowit。Think，mylord，ofthesoulsofhispeople！’