A Heart's Bitterness — page 87: what you’re looking at

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

, A HEART’S BITTERNESS. 79 _ My lady, I came alone.” «* Where is my husband ?” | ““ Dear lady, he is in Homburg,” faltered the old man, for Adam was a gray-haired. valet, formerly in the service of Norman Leigh’s father. “Why have you left him?” she cried. ‘*Oh, my lady,” said Adam, in a low, vehement voice, drawing near to her in the moonlight, ‘‘he is in fearful danger, and I have come for you to save him.” | - : anger! What danger? What do you mean? Is he ui?” ‘* Must your heart be broken?” said Adam, reluctantly. “‘T think nothing that you can say will break my heart,” faltered Violet. Adam was close at her side; his head, that needed no powder to whiten it, was bent on his breast, and his stal- wart, north-country figure shook as he spoke. ‘¢ Lady Leigh, I love your husband, not only as a servant loves his lord, but as a father loves his son. Boy and man, I have been true to him, and I promised his father on his dying bed that I would follow him everywhere, and save him if I could from his besetting sin. Oh, my lady, how I ~ have tried to keep that promise! Do you know what that sin 1s, my mistress?” ‘“No,” groaned Violet. *‘Say all you must, Adam.” ‘‘ He is a master-hand at keeping thingsy” ‘sighed Adam. ‘Lady Leigh, he—gambles.” ‘What!’ cried Violet, ‘‘ have I married a gambler?” -A moan from the old man was her only answer. — “And you mean that he is at Homburg—gambling now?” ‘* Mistress, I do.” ‘‘ Let him go his own way,” cried Violet, madly. ‘‘Lady, dear mistress, hear me,” pleaded old Adam. ‘‘I must speak terrible things. What with gaming debts and speculation he was near to ruin; but he married you. With the money of yours put in his hands, debts and mortgages were cleared, and money is assured for restoring the low- ers and improvements, and a round sum in hand at the bankers for him, and the thought, perhaps, of the great income that he has with you yearly, has set him wild again, — my lady. He has forgotten his fright—oh, my lady, how — can I tell you?—he has lost seventy thousand pounds these Gomicbooks.com