A Fair Fraud — page 182: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

A Fair Fraud 171 of discretion and gentlemanlike feeling, has sounded Mr Naylor with regard to his inten- tions. Your name cropped up, it seems, and your uncle seized the opportunity to speak—’ Marion sprang angrily to her feet. ‘ How dare my uncle speak to him about me!’ she cried furiously, ‘to a man who has known me for two days! What a degradation! What an insult!’ ‘My dear child, don’t be so silly!’ inter- rupted Mrs Drury in a matter-of-fact manner. ‘What is there to get so excited and violent about, pray? It is the commonest affair in the world! And please allow me to finish what | was going to say. Mr Naylor's replies were higiily satisfactory, and pointed plainly to the most honourable intentions. In short, it is nearly certain that he will shortly make you an offer of marriage. Of course your uncle told him plainly that you have not a penny of your own in the world, and that you can only expect the very slenderest provision at our death—’ ‘I never expected anything! I can work! I want nothing!’ she cried ina suffocated voice. ‘IT have never been so wicked as to think about your death !’ | ‘It is not wicked to look forward to the future. Be sensible, Marion, The plain English of it is that here is a man who can afford to keep a wife, who is prepared to make <S (GO) GOMMGIOO