human
Dearest, what do I care for her or her money? he cried out;
gpt
I'll go and see her, and tell her it was my fault,
human
It was all my fault, she insisted.
gpt
I was out of my head!
human
his mother had said. Oh, he did not need his mother to tell him what jealousy meant: Elizabeth would not have married him if she had not been 'out of her head'!
gpt
She still thinks of him, he said to himself, as he had said many, many times in these two months of marriage--months of alternate ecstasies and angers, of hopes and despairs. As for her indignation at the way he had been treated, it meant nothing personal, after all. In his disappointment he went out of the room in hurt silence and left her to her thoughts of
human
I won't have Blair punished for my sins, she said to herself;
gpt
I won't have it! Her revolt at an injustice was a faint echo of her old violence. She had no one to talk to about it; Nannie was too shy to come to see her, and Miss White too tearful to be consulted. But she did not need advice; she knew what she must do. The afternoon following Mrs. Maitland's return from Philadelphia she went to see her. . . . She found Nannie in the parlor, sitting forlornly at her drawing-board. Nannie had heard, of course, from Blair, the details of that interview with his mother, and in her scared anger she planned many ways of
human
but she had not thought of Elizabeth's assistance. She took it for granted that Elizabeth would not have the courage to
gpt
I have come to see Mrs. Maitland, Elizabeth said.
human
Is she in the dining-room?
gpt
Oh, Elizabeth! How do you dare? But do go; and make her forgive him. She wouldn't listen to me. And after all, Elizabeth, you know that _you_--
human
Yes, I'm the one, Elizabeth said, briefly; and went swiftly across the hall. She stood for a moment by Sarah Maitland's desk unnoticed.
gpt
Mrs. Maitland! Elizabeth's voice was peremptory. Blair's mother put her pen down and looked up over her spectacles.
human
Oh--Elizabeth?
gpt
Mrs. Maitland, I came to tell you that you must not be angry at Blair. It was all my fault.
human
I guess, as I told your uncle, it was the pot and the kettle, Elizabeth.
gpt
No, no! I was angry, and I was--willing.
human
Do you think it excuses Blair if you did throw yourself at his head?
gpt
I think it does excuse him to some extent, and that is why I have come to ask you to forgive him.
human
Oh, said Mrs. Maitland, and paused; then with most disconcerting suddenness, sneezed violently and blew her nose;
gpt
Then, said Elizabeth, with a gasp of relief,
human
Disinherit him? What's that got to do with forgiving him? Of course I will disinherit him,--or rather, I have. My will is made; signed, sealed. I've left him an income of a thousand dollars a year. That will keep you from starvation. If Blair is worth more he'll earn more. If he isn't, he can live on a thousand dollars--as better men than he have done. Or he can go to the workhouse;--your uncle can take care of you. I reckon I've paid taxes in this county long enough to entitle my son to go to the workhouse if he wants to.
gpt
But Mrs. Maitland, Elizabeth protested, hotly,
human
You don't know what you are talking about! I am not 'punishing' him; that's the last thing I was thinking of. If there's any 'punishing' going on, I'm the one that's getting it. Listen, Elizabeth, and I'll try to explain--you look as if you had some sense, so maybe you can understand. Nannie couldn't; she has no brains. And Blair wouldn't--I guess he has no heart. But this is how it is: Blair has always been a loafer--that's why he behaved as he did to you. Satan finds some mischief still, you know! So I'm cutting off his allowance, now, and leaving him practically penniless in my will, to stop his loafing. To make him work! He'll have to work, to keep from starving; and work will make a man of him. As for you, you've done an abominable thing, Elizabeth; but it's _done_! Now, turn to, and pay for your whistle: do your duty! Use your influence to induce Blair to work. That's the best way to make up for the injury you've done him. As for the injury he's done you, I hope the Lord will send you some children to make up for that. Now, my--my dear, clear out! clear out! I've got my work to do.