In Sight of St. Paul's — page 221: what you’re looking at

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

216 WOMAN AGAINST WOMAN. be bitterer still—when he is punished for his crime!”’ Aileen dashed away her tears. ‘“That he will never be!’’ she cried, with the cour- age of conviction, ‘‘He is innocent, as innocent of this as he was of the forgery you forced his brother to——”’ The Panther, her face convulsed with passion, made a movement as if she would spring upon her. ““What!’’ she interrupted, from between her clinched teeth, controlling with a powerful effort the desire to rend with her nails the face of this girl who dared to defy her, and whom her distorted imagina- tion held to be the prime factor of all*her troubles. “What! You malign the dead, do you?”’ Aileen flung up her head and met the blazing eyes of her accuser with a fearless glance. | ‘"No!?’ she Sete proudly. ‘‘No! I defend the living !’? The Panther answered her with the slow, hard mockery of joyless laughter. Aileen stood erect facing her. Her eyes were dilated with loathing and fear. » Pag ’» said Cynthia, at last, with siiptees ea pas- sion, “‘you take up the cudgels for this man, my enemy, and the blows you deal me are too heavy for my endurance.’”’ Aileen was now quite herself again. . The blood rushed to her face in a bright flood. Her whole form SS) (E(0) Eomichboo