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Besides, there was your general prohibition about my visitors; I did not dare to take the responsibility in fact. And so I told Tanty." As it fell out, however, even without that child's dangerous expedition, I should have been informed in any case René knew." "René knew?" cried Rupert, surprised; and "damn René" to himself with heart-felt energy.
Flung upon her bed she fell into a heavy sleep, and Tanty who announced her intention of watching her, when René's guardianship had of necessity to cease, had the satisfaction of informing Adrian, as he crept into the house, like one who had no business there, of this consoling fact before retiring herself to the capacious arm-chair in which she heroically purposed to spend the night.
"Faith, nephew," said Tanty, sitting down in high good humour to the innumerable good things in which her Epicurean old soul delighted, "that is about as true a thing as ever you said. Our Irish tongues are apt to get behind a thing before it is there, and they call that making a bull."
And with such tears and such thoughts came a forgetfulness of that anguish which in him, as well as in her, had for so long been part of actual existence. When Tanty entered on tiptoe some hours later, she saw her niece motionless upon her pillow, sleeping as easily and reposefully as a child. And close to her head, Sir Adrian, reclining in the arm-chair, asleep likewise.
Tanty told me yesterday that she sees he is a dissolute young man, and that his dukedom is only a Charles II. creation, and 'We know what that means, she added, and shook her head. I am sure I had not a notion, but I shook my head too, and said, 'Of course, that made it impossible. I was really afraid she would want me to marry him. She was dreadfully pleased and said I was a true O'Donoghue.
Molly was not a secretive person by nature, and moreover she retained quite enough shrewdness, even in her unwonted break-down, to conjecture that with Tanty lay her sole hope of help. So rolling her dark head distractedly on the old maid's shoulder, the young maid narrated her tale of woe.
Tanty, who had been holding forth with the rapidity of a loose windmill in a hurricane, here found herself forced to pause and take breath; which she did, fanning herself with much energy, a triumphant consciousness of the unimpeachability of her logic written upon her heated countenance.
"Ah, my lord," says Tanty, and I could see her old eyes gleam though her tone was so pious, "I fear we were three wild Irish girls indeed!" Lord Manningham was too busy ogling me to attend to her. "Your mother was just such another as you, and she had just such a pair of dimples," said he.
Even Tanty looked perturbed, but Rupert let me alone for the rest of supper. He is right nevertheless, that is what stung me. I am humbled, and I cannot bear it! Sir Adrian has left. And now he has gone, gone without a word to me; only this miserable letter of determined farewell. I will copy it for in my first anger I have so crumpled the paper that it is scarcely readable.
Again Tanty opened her arms, and this time she did draw the stormy creature to a bosom, as warm and motherly as if all the joys of womanhood had not been withheld from it. "Tell me all about it, my poor child." There was a distinct feeling of comfort in the grasp of the old arms, comfort in the very ring of the deep voice.
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