Why,
me
,
to
be
sure
,
daddy
,
"
said
Eppie
,
with
dimpling
laughter
,
kissing
her
father
's
cheek
;
"
as
if
he
'd
want
to
marry
anybody
else
!
"
"
And
you
mean
to
have
him
,
do
you
?
"
said
Silas
.
"
Yes
,
some
time
,
"
said
Eppie
,
"
I
do
n't
know
when
.
Everybody
's
married
some
time
,
Aaron
says
.
But
I
told
him
that
was
n't
true
:
for
,
I
said
,
look
at
father
—
he
's
never
been
married
.
"
"
No
,
child
,
"
said
Silas
,
"
your
father
was
a
lone
man
till
you
was
sent
to
him
.
"
"
But
you
'll
never
be
lone
again
,
father
,
"
said
Eppie
,
tenderly
.
"
That
was
what
Aaron
said
—
'
I
could
never
think
o
'
taking
you
away
from
Master
Marner
,
Eppie
.
'
And
I
said
,
'
It
'
ud
be
no
use
if
you
did
,
Aaron
.
'
And
he
wants
us
all
to
live
together
,
so
as
you
need
n't
work
a
bit
,
father
,
only
what
's
for
your
own
pleasure
;
and
he
'd
be
as
good
as
a
son
to
you
—
that
was
what
he
said
.
"
"
And
should
you
like
that
,
Eppie
?
"
said
Silas
,
looking
at
her
.
"
I
should
n't
mind
it
,
father
,
"
said
Eppie
,
quite
simply
.
"
And
I
should
like
things
to
be
so
as
you
need
n't
work
much
.
But
if
it
was
n't
for
that
,
I
'd
sooner
things
did
n't
change
.
I
'm
very
happy
:
I
like
Aaron
to
be
fond
of
me
,
and
come
and
see
us
often
,
and
behave
pretty
to
you
—
he
always
does
behave
pretty
to
you
,
does
n't
he
,
father
?
"
"
Yes
,
child
,
nobody
could
behave
better
,
"
said
Silas
,
emphatically
.
"
He
's
his
mother
's
lad
.
"
"
But
I
do
n't
want
any
change
,
"
said
Eppie
.
"
I
should
like
to
go
on
a
long
,
long
while
,
just
as
we
are
.
Only
Aaron
does
want
a
change
;
and
he
made
me
cry
a
bit
—
only
a
bit
—
because
he
said
I
did
n't
care
for
him
,
for
if
I
cared
for
him
I
should
want
us
to
be
married
,
as
he
did
.
"
"
Eh
,
my
blessed
child
,
"
said
Silas
,
laying
down
his
pipe
as
if
it
were
useless
to
pretend
to
smoke
any
longer
,
"
you
're
o'er
young
to
be
married
.
We
'll
ask
Mrs
Winthrop
—
we
'll
ask
Aaron
's
mother
what
she
thinks
:
if
there
's
a
right
thing
to
do
,
she
'll
come
at
it
.
But
there
's
this
to
be
thought
on
,
Eppie
:
things
will
change
,
whether
we
like
it
or
not
;
things
wo
n't
go
on
for
a
long
while
just
as
they
are
and
no
difference
.
I
shall
get
older
and
helplesser
,
and
be
a
burden
on
you
,
belike
,
if
I
do
n't
go
away
from
you
altogether
.
Not
as
I
mean
you
'd
think
me
a
burden
—
I
know
you
would
n't
—
but
it
'
ud
be
hard
upon
you
;
and
when
I
look
for'ard
to
that
,
I
like
to
think
as
you
'd
have
somebody
else
besides
me
—
somebody
young
and
strong
,
as
'
ll
outlast
your
own
life
,
and
take
care
on
you
to
the
end
.
"
Silas
paused
,
and
,
resting
his
wrists
on
his
knees
,
lifted
his
hands
up
and
down
meditatively
as
he
looked
on
the
ground
.
"
Then
,
would
you
like
me
to
be
married
,
father
?
"
said
Eppie
,
with
a
little
trembling
in
her
voice
.
"
I
'll
not
be
the
man
to
say
no
,
Eppie
,
"
said
Silas
,
emphatically
;
"
but
we
'll
ask
your
god-mother
.
She
'll
wish
the
right
thing
by
you
and
her
son
too
.
"
"
There
they
come
then
,
"
said
Eppie
.
"
Let
us
go
and
meet
'
em
.
O
the
pipe
!
wo
n't
you
have
it
lit
again
,
father
?
"
said
Eppie
,
lifting
that
medicinal
appliance
from
the
ground
.
"
Nay
,
child
,
"
said
Silas
,
"
I
've
done
enough
for
to-day
.
I
think
,
mayhap
,
a
little
of
it
does
me
more
good
than
so
much
at
once
.
"
CHAPTER
XVII
.
While
Silas
and
Eppie
were
seated
on
the
bank
discoursing
in
the
fleckered
shade
of
the
ash
tree
,
Miss
Priscilla
Lammeter
was
resisting
her
sister
's
arguments
,
that
it
would
be
better
to
stay
tea
at
the
Red
House
,
and
let
her
father
have
a
long
nap
,
than
drive
home
to
the
Warrens
so
soon
after
dinner
.
The
family
party
(
of
four
only
)
were
seated
round
the
table
in
the
dark
wainscoted
parlour
,
with
the
Sunday
dessert
before
them
,
of
fresh
filberts
,
apples
,
and
pears
,
duly
ornamented
with
leaves
by
Nancy
's
own
hand
before
the
bells
had
rung
for
church
.
A
great
change
has
come
over
the
dark
wainscoted
parlour
since
we
saw
it
in
Godfrey
's
bachelor
days
,
and
under
the
wifeless
reign
of
the
old
Squire
.
Now
all
is
polish
,
on
which
no
yesterday
's
dust
is
ever
allowed
to
settle
,
from
the
yard
's
width
of
oaken
boards
round
the
carpet
,
to
the
old
Squire
's
gun
and
whips
and
walking-sticks
,
ranged
on
the
stag
's
antlers
above
the
mantelpiece
.
All
other
signs
of
sporting
and
outdoor
occupation
Nancy
has
removed
to
another
room
;
but
she
has
brought
into
the
Red
House
the
habit
of
filial
reverence
,
and
preserves
sacredly
in
a
place
of
honour
these
relics
of
her
husband
's
departed
father
.
The
tankards
are
on
the
side-table
still
,
but
the
bossed
silver
is
undimmed
by
handling
,
and
there
are
no
dregs
to
send
forth
unpleasant
suggestions
:
the
only
prevailing
scent
is
of
the
lavender
and
rose-leaves
that
fill
the
vases
of
Derbyshire
spar
.
All
is
purity
and
order
in
this
once
dreary
room
,
for
,
fifteen
years
ago
,
it
was
entered
by
a
new
presiding
spirit
.
"
Now
,
father
,
"
said
Nancy
,
"
is
there
any
call
for
you
to
go
home
to
tea
?
May
n't
you
just
as
well
stay
with
us
?
—
such
a
beautiful
evening
as
it
's
likely
to
be
.
"
The
old
gentleman
had
been
talking
with
Godfrey
about
the
increasing
poor-rate
and
the
ruinous
times
,
and
had
not
heard
the
dialogue
between
his
daughters
.
"
My
dear
,
you
must
ask
Priscilla
,
"
he
said
,
in
the
once
firm
voice
,
now
become
rather
broken
.
"
She
manages
me
and
the
farm
too
.
"
"
And
reason
good
as
I
should
manage
you
,
father
,
"
said
Priscilla
,
"
else
you
'd
be
giving
yourself
your
death
with
rheumatism
.
And
as
for
the
farm
,
if
anything
turns
out
wrong
,
as
it
ca
n't
but
do
in
these
times
,
there
's
nothing
kills
a
man
so
soon
as
having
nobody
to
find
fault
with
but
himself
.
It
's
a
deal
the
best
way
o
'
being
master
,
to
let
somebody
else
do
the
ordering
,
and
keep
the
blaming
in
your
own
hands
.
It'ud
save
many
a
man
a
stroke
,
I
believe
.
"
"
Well
,
well
,
my
dear
,
"
said
her
father
,
with
a
quiet
laugh
,
"
I
did
n't
say
you
do
n't
manage
for
everybody
's
good
.
"
"
Then
manage
so
as
you
may
stay
tea
,
Priscilla
,
"
said
Nancy
,
putting
her
hand
on
her
sister
's
arm
affectionately
.
"
Come
now
;
and
we
'll
go
round
the
garden
while
father
has
his
nap
.
"
"
My
dear
child
,
he
'll
have
a
beautiful
nap
in
the
gig
,
for
I
shall
drive
.
And
as
for
staying
tea
,
I
ca
n't
hear
of
it
;
for
there
's
this
dairy-maid
,
now
she
knows
she
's
to
be
married
,
turned
Michaelmas
,
she
'd
as
lieve
pour
the
new
milk
into
the
pig-trough
as
into
the
pans
.
That
's
the
way
with
'
em
all
:
it
's
as
if
they
thought
the
world
'
ud
be
new-made
because
they
're
to
be
married
.
So
come
and
let
me
put
my
bonnet
on
,
and
there
'll
be
time
for
us
to
walk
round
the
garden
while
the
horse
is
being
put
in
.
"
When
the
sisters
were
treading
the
neatly-swept
garden-walks
,
between
the
bright
turf
that
contrasted
pleasantly
with
the
dark
cones
and
arches
and
wall-like
hedges
of
yew
,
Priscilla
said
—
"
I
'm
as
glad
as
anything
at
your
husband
's
making
that
exchange
o
'
land
with
cousin
Osgood
,
and
beginning
the
dairying
.
It
's
a
thousand
pities
you
did
n't
do
it
before
;
for
it
'll
give
you
something
to
fill
your
mind
.
There
's
nothing
like
a
dairy
if
folks
want
a
bit
o
'
worrit
to
make
the
days
pass
.
For
as
for
rubbing
furniture
,
when
you
can
once
see
your
face
in
a
table
there
's
nothing
else
to
look
for
;
but
there
's
always
something
fresh
with
the
dairy
;
for
even
in
the
depths
o
'
winter
there
's
some
pleasure
in
conquering
the
butter
,
and
making
it
come
whether
or
no.
My
dear
,
"
added
Priscilla
,
pressing
her
sister
's
hand
affectionately
as
they
walked
side
by
side
,
"
you
'll
never
be
low
when
you
've
got
a
dairy
.
"
"
Ah
,
Priscilla
,
"
said
Nancy
,
returning
the
pressure
with
a
grateful
glance
of
her
clear
eyes
,
"
but
it
wo
n't
make
up
to
Godfrey
:
a
dairy
's
not
so
much
to
a
man
.
And
it
's
only
what
he
cares
for
that
ever
makes
me
low
.
I
'm
contented
with
the
blessings
we
have
,
if
he
could
be
contented
.
"
"
It
drives
me
past
patience
,
"
said
Priscilla
,
impetuously
,
"
that
way
o
'
the
men
—
always
wanting
and
wanting
,
and
never
easy
with
what
they
've
got
:
they
ca
n't
sit
comfortable
in
their
chairs
when
they
've
neither
ache
nor
pain
,
but
either
they
must
stick
a
pipe
in
their
mouths
,
to
make
'
em
better
than
well
,
or
else
they
must
be
swallowing
something
strong
,
though
they
're
forced
to
make
haste
before
the
next
meal
comes
in
.
But
,
joyful
be
it
spoken
,
our
father
was
never
that
sort
o
'
man
.
And
if
it
had
pleased
God
to
make
you
ugly
,
like
me
,
so
as
the
men
would
n't
ha
'
run
after
you
,
we
might
have
kept
to
our
own
family
,
and
had
nothing
to
do
with
folks
as
have
got
uneasy
blood
in
their
veins
.
"
"
O
do
n't
say
so
,
Priscilla
,
"
said
Nancy
,
repenting
that
she
had
called
forth
this
outburst
;
"
nobody
has
any
occasion
to
find
fault
with
Godfrey
.
It
's
natural
he
should
be
disappointed
at
not
having
any
children
:
every
man
likes
to
have
somebody
to
work
for
and
lay
by
for
,
and
he
always
counted
so
on
making
a
fuss
with
'
em
when
they
were
little
.
There
's
many
another
man
'
ud
hanker
more
than
he
does
.
He
's
the
best
of
husbands
.
"
"
O
,
I
know
,
"
said
Priscilla
,
smiling
sarcastically
,
"
I
know
the
way
o
'
wives
;
they
set
one
on
to
abuse
their
husbands
,
and
then
they
turn
round
on
one
and
praise
'
em
as
if
they
wanted
to
sell
'
em
.
But
father
'll
be
waiting
for
me
;
we
must
turn
now
.
"
The
large
gig
with
the
steady
old
grey
was
at
the
front
door
,
and
Mr
Lammeter
was
already
on
the
stone
steps
,
passing
the
time
in
recalling
to
Godfrey
what
very
fine
points
Speckle
had
when
his
master
used
to
ride
him
.
"
I
always
would
have
a
good
horse
,
you
know
,
"
said
the
old
gentleman
,
not
liking
that
spirited
time
to
be
quite
effaced
from
the
memory
of
his
juniors
.
"
Mind
you
bring
Nancy
to
the
Warrens
before
the
week
's
out
,
Mr
Cass
,
"
was
Priscilla
's
parting
injunction
,
as
she
took
the
reins
,
and
shook
them
gently
,
by
way
of
friendly
incitement
to
Speckle
.
"
I
shall
just
take
a
turn
to
the
fields
against
the
Stone-pits
,
Nancy
,
and
look
at
the
draining
,
"
said
Godfrey
.
"
You
'll
be
in
again
by
tea-time
,
dear
?
"
"
O
yes
,
I
shall
be
back
in
an
hour
.
"
It
was
Godfrey
's
custom
on
a
Sunday
afternoon
to
do
a
little
contemplative
farming
in
a
leisurely
walk
.
Nancy
seldom
accompanied
him
;
for
the
women
of
her
generation
—
unless
,
like
Priscilla
,
they
took
to
outdoor
management
—
were
not
given
to
much
walking
beyond
their
own
house
and
garden
,
finding
sufficient
exercise
in
domestic
duties
.
So
,
when
Priscilla
was
not
with
her
,
she
usually
sat
with
Mant
's
Bible
before
her
,
and
after
following
the
text
with
her
eyes
for
a
little
while
,
she
would
gradually
permit
them
to
wander
as
her
thoughts
had
already
insisted
on
wandering
.
But
Nancy
's
Sunday
thoughts
were
rarely
quite
out
of
keeping
with
the
devout
and
reverential
intention
implied
by
the
book
spread
open
before
her
.
She
was
not
theologically
instructed
enough
to
discern
very
clearly
the
relation
between
the
sacred
documents
of
the
past
which
she
opened
without
method
,
and
her
own
obscure
,
simple
life
;
but
the
spirit
of
rectitude
,
and
the
sense
of
responsibility
for
the
effect
of
her
conduct
on
others
,
which
were
strong
elements
in
Nancy
's
character
,
had
made
it
a
habit
with
her
to
scrutinise
her
past
feelings
and
actions
with
self-questioning
solicitude
.
Her
mind
not
being
courted
by
a
great
variety
of
subjects
,
she
filled
the
vacant
moments
by
living
inwardly
,
again
and
again
,
through
all
her
remembered
experience
,
especially
through
the
fifteen
years
of
her
married
time
,
in
which
her
life
and
its
significance
had
been
doubled
.
She
recalled
the
small
details
,
the
words
,
tones
,
and
looks
,
in
the
critical
scenes
which
had
opened
a
new
epoch
for
her
,
by
giving
her
a
deeper
insight
into
the
relations
and
trials
of
life
,
or
which
had
called
on
her
for
some
little
effort
of
forbearance
,
or
of
painful
adherence
to
an
imagined
or
real
duty
—
asking
herself
continually
whether
she
had
been
in
any
respect
blamable
.
This
excessive
rumination
and
self-questioning
is
perhaps
a
morbid
habit
inevitable
to
a
mind
of
much
moral
sensibility
when
shut
out
from
its
due
share
of
outward
activity
and
of
practical
claims
on
its
affections
—
inevitable
to
a
noblehearted
,
childless
woman
,
when
her
lot
is
narrow
.
"
I
can
do
so
little
—
have
I
done
it
all
well
?
"
is
the
perpetually
recurring
thought
;
and
there
are
no
voices
calling
her
away
from
that
soliloquy
,
no
peremptory
demands
to
divert
energy
from
vain
regret
or
superfluous
scruple
.
There
was
one
main
thread
of
painful
experience
in
Nancy
's
married
life
,
and
on
it
hung
certain
deeply-felt
scenes
,
which
were
the
oftenest
revived
in
retrospect
.
The
short
dialogue
with
Priscilla
in
the
garden
had
determined
the
current
of
retrospect
in
that
frequent
direction
this
particular
Sunday
afternoon
.
The
first
wandering
of
her
thought
from
the
text
,
which
she
still
attempted
dutifully
to
follow
with
her
eyes
and
silent
lips
,
was
into
an
imaginary
enlargement
of
the
defence
she
had
set
up
for
her
husband
against
Priscilla
's
implied
blame
.
The
vindication
of
the
loved
object
is
the
best
balm
affection
can
find
for
its
wounds
:
—
"
A
man
must
have
so
much
on
his
mind
,
"
is
the
belief
by
which
a
wife
often
supports
a
cheerful
face
under
rough
answers
and
unfeeling
words
.
And
Nancy
's
deepest
wounds
had
all
come
from
the
perception
that
the
absence
of
children
from
their
hearth
was
dwelt
on
in
her
husband
's
mind
as
a
privation
to
which
he
could
not
reconcile
himself
.
Yet
sweet
Nancy
might
have
been
expected
to
feel
still
more
keenly
the
denial
of
a
blessing
to
which
she
had
looked
forward
with
all
the
varied
expectations
and
preparations
,
solemn
and
prettily
trivial
,
which
fill
the
mind
of
a
loving
woman
when
she
expects
to
become
a
mother
.
Was
there
not
a
drawer
filled
with
the
neat
work
of
her
hands
,
all
unworn
and
untouched
,
just
as
she
had
arranged
it
there
fourteen
years
ago
—
just
,
but
for
one
little
dress
,
which
had
been
made
the
burial-dress
?
But
under
this
immediate
personal
trial
Nancy
was
so
firmly
unmurmuring
,
that
years
ago
she
had
suddenly
renounced
the
habit
of
visiting
this
drawer
,
lest
she
should
in
this
way
be
cherishing
a
longing
for
what
was
not
given
.
Perhaps
it
was
this
very
severity
towards
any
indulgence
of
what
she
held
to
be
sinful
regret
in
herself
,
that
made
her
shrink
from
applying
her
own
standard
to
her
husband
.
"
It
was
very
different
—
it
was
much
worse
for
a
man
to
be
disappointed
in
that
way
:
a
woman
could
always
be
satisfied
with
devoting
herself
to
her
husband
,
but
a
man
wanted
something
that
would
make
him
look
forward
more
—
and
sitting
by
the
fire
was
so
much
duller
to
him
than
to
a
woman
.
"
And
always
,
when
Nancy
reached
this
point
in
her
meditations
—
trying
,
with
predetermined
sympathy
,
to
see
everything
as
Godfrey
saw
it
—
there
came
a
renewal
of
self-questioning
.
Had
she
done
everything
in
her
power
to
lighten
Godfrey
's
privation
?
Had
she
really
been
right
in
the
resistance
which
had
cost
her
so
much
pain
six
years
ago
,
and
again
four
years
ago
—
the
resistance
to
her
husband
's
wish
that
they
should
adopt
a
child
?
Adoption
was
more
remote
from
the
ideas
and
habits
of
that
time
than
of
our
own
;
still
Nancy
had
her
opinion
on
it
.
It
was
as
necessary
to
her
mind
to
have
an
opinion
on
all
topics
,
not
exclusively
masculine
,
that
had
come
under
her
notice
,
as
for
her
to
have
a
precisely
marked
place
for
every
article
of
her
personal
property
:
and
her
opinions
were
always
principles
,
to
be
unwaveringly
acted
on
.
They
were
firm
,
not
because
of
their
basis
,
but
because
she
held
them
with
a
tenacity
inseparable
from
her
mental
action
.
On
all
the
duties
and
proprieties
of
life
,
from
filial
behaviour
to
the
arrangement
of
the
evening
toilette
,
pretty
Nancy
Lammeter
,
by
the
time
she
was
three-and-twenty
,
had
her
unalterable
little
code
,
and
had
formed
every
one
of
her
habits
in
strict
accordance
with
that
code
.
She
carried
these
decided
judgments
within
her
in
the
most
unobtrusive
way
:
they
rooted
themselves
in
her
mind
,
and
grew
there
as
quietly
as
grass
.
Years
ago
,
we
know
,
she
insisted
on
dressing
like
Priscilla
,
because
"
it
was
right
for
sisters
to
dress
alike
,
"
and
because
"
she
would
do
what
was
right
if
she
wore
a
gown
dyed
with
cheese-colouring
.
"
That
was
a
trivial
but
typical
instance
of
the
mode
in
which
Nancy
's
life
was
regulated
.
It
was
one
of
those
rigid
principles
,
and
no
petty
egoistic
feeling
,
which
had
been
the
ground
of
Nancy
's
difficult
resistance
to
her
husband
's
wish
.
To
adopt
a
child
,
because
children
of
your
own
had
been
denied
you
,
was
to
try
and
choose
your
lot
in
spite
of
Providence
:
the
adopted
child
,
she
was
convinced
,
would
never
turn
out
well
,
and
would
be
a
curse
to
those
who
had
wilfully
and
rebelliously
sought
what
it
was
clear
that
,
for
some
high
reason
,
they
were
better
without
.
When
you
saw
a
thing
was
not
meant
to
be
,
said
nancy
,
it
was
a
bounden
duty
to
leave
off
so
much
as
wishing
for
it
.
And
so
far
,
perhaps
,
the
wisest
of
men
could
scarcely
make
more
than
a
verbal
improvement
in
her
principle
.
But
the
conditions
under
which
she
held
it
apparent
that
a
thing
was
not
meant
to
be
,
depended
on
a
more
peculiar
mode
of
thinking
.
She
would
have
given
up
making
a
purchase
at
a
particular
place
if
,
on
three
successive
times
,
rain
,
or
some
other
cause
of
Heaven
's
sending
,
had
formed
an
obstacle
;
and
she
would
have
anticipated
a
broken
limb
or
other
heavy
misfortune
to
any
one
who
persisted
in
spite
of
such
indications
.
"
But
why
should
you
think
the
child
would
turn
out
ill
?
"
said
Godfrey
,
in
his
remonstrances
.
"
She
has
thriven
as
well
as
child
can
do
with
the
weaver
;
and
he
adopted
her
.
There
is
n't
such
a
pretty
little
girl
anywhere
else
in
the
parish
,
or
one
fitter
for
the
station
we
could
give
her
.
Where
can
be
the
likelihood
of
her
being
a
curse
to
anybody
?
"
"
Yes
,
my
dear
Godfrey
,
"
said
Nancy
,
who
was
sitting
with
her
hands
tightly
clasped
together
,
with
yearning
,
regretful
affection
in
her
eyes
.
"
The
child
may
not
turn
out
ill
with
the
weaver
.
But
,
then
,
he
did
n't
go
to
seek
her
,
as
we
should
be
doing
.
It
will
be
wrong
:
I
feel
sure
it
will
.
Do
n't
you
remember
what
that
lady
we
met
at
the
Royston
Baths
told
us
about
the
child
her
sister
adopted
?
That
was
the
only
adopting
I
ever
heard
of
:
and
the
child
was
transported
when
it
was
twentythree
.
Dear
Godfrey
,
do
n't
ask
me
to
do
what
I
know
is
wrong
:
I
should
never
be
happy
again
.
I
know
it
's
very
hard
for
you
—
it
's
easier
for
me
—
but
it
's
the
will
of
Providence
.
"
It
might
seem
singular
that
Nancy
—
with
her
religious
theory
pieced
together
out
of
narrow
social
traditions
,
fragments
of
church
doctrine
imperfectly
understood
,
and
girlish
reasonings
on
her
small
experience
—
should
have
arrived
by
herself
at
a
way
of
thinking
so
nearly
akin
to
that
of
many
devout
people
,
whose
beliefs
are
held
in
the
shape
of
a
system
quite
remote
from
her
knowledge
—
singular
,
if
we
did
not
know
that
human
beliefs
,
like
all
other
natural
growths
,
elude
the
barriers
of
system
.
Godfrey
had
from
the
first
specified
Eppie
,
then
about
twelve
years
old
,
as
a
child
suitable
for
them
to
adopt
.
It
had
never
occurred
to
him
that
Silas
would
rather
part
with
his
life
than
with
Eppie
.
Surely
the
weaver
would
wish
the
best
to
the
child
he
had
taken
so
much
trouble
with
,
and
would
be
glad
that
such
good
fortune
should
happen
to
her
:
she
would
always
be
very
grateful
to
him
,
and
he
would
be
well
provided
for
to
the
end
of
his
life
—
provided
for
as
the
excellent
part
he
had
done
by
the
child
deserved
.
Was
it
not
an
appropriate
thing
for
people
in
a
higher
station
to
take
a
charge
off
the
hands
of
a
man
in
a
lower
?
It
seemed
an
eminently
appropriate
thing
to
Godfrey
,
for
reasons
that
were
known
only
to
himself
;
and
by
a
common
fallacy
,
he
imagined
the
measure
would
be
easy
because
he
had
private
motives
for
desiring
it
.
This
was
rather
a
coarse
mode
of
estimating
Silas
's
relation
to
Eppie
;
but
we
must
remember
that
many
of
the
impressions
which
Godfrey
was
likely
to
gather
concerning
the
labouring
people
around
him
would
favour
the
idea
that
deep
affections
can
hardly
go
along
with
callous
palms
and
scant
means
;
and
he
had
not
had
the
opportunity
,
even
if
he
had
had
the
power
,
of
entering
intimately
into
all
that
was
exceptional
in
the
weaver
's
experience
.
It
was
only
the
want
of
adequate
knowledge
that
could
have
made
it
possible
for
Godfrey
deliberately
to
entertain
an
unfeeling
project
:
his
natural
kindness
had
outlived
that
blighting
time
of
cruel
wishes
,
and
Nancy
's
praise
of
him
as
a
husband
was
not
founded
entirely
on
a
wilful
illusion
.
"
I
was
right
,
"
she
said
to
herself
,
when
she
had
recalled
all
their
scenes
of
discussion
—
"
I
feel
I
was
right
to
say
him
nay
,
though
it
hurt
me
more
than
anything
;
but
how
good
Godfrey
has
been
about
it
!
Many
men
would
have
been
very
angry
with
me
for
standing
out
against
their
wishes
;
and
they
might
have
thrown
out
that
they
'd
had
ill-luck
in
marrying
me
;
but
Godfrey
has
never
been
the
man
to
say
me
an
unkind
word
.
It
's
only
what
he
ca
n't
hide
:
everything
seems
so
blank
to
him
,
I
know
;
and
the
land
—
what
a
difference
it
'
ud
make
to
him
,
when
he
goes
to
see
after
things
,
if
he
'd
children
growing
up
that
he
was
doing
it
all
for
!
But
I
wo
n't
murmur
;
and
perhaps
if
he
'd
married
a
woman
who
'd
have
had
children
,
she
'd
have
vexed
him
in
other
ways
.
"
This
possibility
was
Nancy
's
chief
comfort
;
and
to
give
it
greater
strength
,
she
laboured
to
make
it
impossible
that
any
other
wife
should
have
had
more
perfect
tenderness
.
She
had
been
forced
to
vex
him
by
that
one
denial
.
Godfrey
was
not
insensible
to
her
loving
effort
,
and
did
Nancy
no
injustice
as
to
the
motives
of
her
obstinacy
.
It
was
impossible
to
have
lived
with
her
fifteen
years
and
not
be
aware
that
an
unselfish
clinging
to
the
right
,
and
a
sincerity
clear
as
the
flower-born
dew
,
were
her
main
characteristics
;
indeed
,
Godfrey
felt
this
so
strongly
,
that
his
own
more
wavering
nature
,
too
averse
to
facing
difficulty
to
be
unvaryingly
simple
and
truthful
,
was
kept
in
a
certain
awe
of
this
gentle
wife
who
watched
his
looks
with
a
yearning
to
obey
them
.
It
seemed
to
him
impossible
that
he
should
ever
confess
to
her
the
truth
about
Eppie
:
she
would
never
recover
from
the
repulsion
the
story
of
his
earlier
marriage
would
create
,
told
to
her
now
,
after
that
long
concealment
.
And
the
child
,
too
,
he
thought
,
must
become
an
object
of
repulsion
:
the
very
sight
of
her
would
be
painful
.
The
shock
to
Nancy
's
mingled
pride
and
ignorance
of
the
world
's
evil
might
even
be
too
much
for
her
delicate
frame
.
Since
he
had
married
her
with
that
secret
on
his
heart
,
he
must
keep
it
there
to
the
last
.
Whatever
else
he
did
,
he
could
not
make
an
irreparable
breach
between
himself
and
this
long-loved
wife
.
Meanwhile
,
why
could
he
not
make
up
his
mind
to
the
absence
of
children
from
a
hearth
brightened
by
such
a
wife
?
Why
did
his
mind
fly
uneasily
to
that
void
,
as
if
it
were
the
sole
reason
why
life
was
not
thoroughly
joyous
to
him
?
I
suppose
it
is
the
way
with
all
men
and
women
who
reach
middle
age
without
the
clear
perception
that
life
never
can
be
thoroughly
joyous
:
under
the
vague
dulness
of
the
grey
hours
,
dissatisfaction
seeks
a
definite
object
,
and
finds
it
in
the
privation
of
an
untried
good
.
Dissatisfaction
,
seated
musingly
on
a
childless
hearth
,
thinks
with
envy
of
the
father
whose
return
is
greeted
by
young
voices
—
seated
at
the
meal
where
the
little
heads
rise
one
above
another
like
nursery
plants
,
it
sees
a
black
care
hovering
behind
every
one
of
them
,
and
thinks
the
impulses
by
which
men
abandon
freedom
,
and
seek
for
ties
,
are
surely
nothing
but
a
brief
madness
.
In
Godfrey
's
case
there
were
further
reasons
why
his
thoughts
should
be
continually
solicited
by
this
one
point
in
his
lot
:
his
conscience
,
never
thoroughly
easy
about
Eppie
,
now
gave
his
childless
home
the
aspect
of
a
retribution
;
and
as
the
time
passed
on
,
under
Nancy
's
refusal
to
adopt
her
,
any
retrieval
of
his
error
became
more
and
more
difficult
.
On
this
Sunday
afternoon
it
was
already
four
years
since
there
had
been
any
allusion
to
the
subject
between
them
,
and
Nancy
supposed
that
it
was
for
ever
buried
.
"
I
wonder
if
he
'll
mind
it
less
or
more
as
he
gets
older
,
"
she
thought
;
"
I
'm
afraid
more
.
Aged
people
feel
the
miss
of
children
:
what
would
father
do
without
Priscilla
?
And
if
I
die
,
Godfrey
will
be
very
lonely
—
not
holding
together
with
his
brothers
much
.
But
I
wo
n't
be
over-anxious
,
and
trying
to
make
things
out
beforehand
:
I
must
do
my
best
for
the
present
.
"
With
that
last
thought
Nancy
roused
herself
from
her
reverie
,
and
turned
her
eyes
again
towards
the
forsaken
page
.
It
had
been
forsaken
longer
than
she
imagined
,
for
she
was
presently
surprised
by
the
appearance
of
the
servant
with
the
tea-things
.
It
was
,
in
fact
,
a
little
before
the
usual
time
for
tea
;
but
Jane
had
her
reasons
.
"
Is
your
master
come
into
the
yard
,
Jane
?
"
"
No
'
m
,
he
is
n't
,
"
said
Jane
,
with
a
slight
emphasis
,
of
which
,
however
,
her
mistress
took
no
notice
.
"
I
do
n't
know
whether
you
've
seen
'
em
,
'
m
,
"
continued
Jane
,
after
a
pause
,
"
but
there
's
folks
making
haste
all
one
way
,
afore
the
front
window
.
I
doubt
something
's
happened
.
There
's
niver
a
man
to
be
seen
i
'
the
yard
,
else
I
'd
send
and
see
.
I
've
been
up
into
the
top
attic
,
but
there
's
no
seeing
anything
for
trees
.
I
hope
nobody
's
hurt
,
that
's
all
.
"
"
O
,
no
,
I
daresay
there
's
nothing
much
the
matter
,
"
said
Nancy
.
"
It
's
perhaps
Mr
Snell
's
bull
got
out
again
,
as
he
did
before
.
"
"
I
wish
he
may
n't
gore
anybody
,
then
,
that
's
all
,
"
said
Jane
,
not
altogether
despising
a
hypothesis
which
covered
a
few
imaginary
calamities
.
"
That
girl
is
always
terrifying
me
,
"
thought
Nancy
;
"
I
wish
Godfrey
would
come
in
.
"
She
went
to
the
front
window
and
looked
as
far
as
she
could
see
along
the
road
,
with
an
uneasiness
which
she
felt
to
be
childish
,
for
there
were
now
no
such
signs
of
excitement
as
Jane
had
spoken
of
,
and
Godfrey
would
not
be
likely
to
return
by
the
village
road
,
but
by
the
fields
.
She
continued
to
stand
,
however
,
looking
at
the
placid
churchyard
with
the
long
shadows
of
the
gravestones
across
the
bright
green
hillocks
,
and
at
the
glowing
autumn
colours
of
the
Rectory
trees
beyond
.
Before
such
calm
external
beauty
the
presence
of
a
vague
fear
is
more
distinctly
felt
—
like
a
raven
flapping
its
slow
wing
across
the
sunny
air
.
Nancy
wished
more
and
more
that
Godfrey
would
come
in
.
CHAPTER
XVIII
.
Some
one
opened
the
door
at
the
other
end
of
the
room
,
and
Nancy
felt
that
it
was
her
husband
.
She
turned
from
the
window
with
gladness
in
her
eyes
,
for
the
wife
's
chief
dread
was
stilled
.
"
Dear
,
I
'm
so
thankful
you
're
come
,
"
she
said
,
going
towards
him
.
"
I
began
to
get
.
...
"
She
paused
abruptly
,
for
Godfrey
was
laying
down
his
hat
with
trembling
hands
,
and
turned
towards
her
with
a
pale
face
and
a
strange
unanswering
glance
,
as
if
he
saw
her
indeed
,
but
saw
her
as
part
of
a
scene
invisible
to
herself
.
She
laid
her
hand
on
his
arm
,
not
daring
to
speak
again
;
but
he
left
the
touch
unnoticed
,
and
threw
himself
into
his
chair
.
Jane
was
already
at
the
door
with
the
hissing
urn
.
"
Tell
her
to
keep
away
,
will
you
?
"
said
Godfrey
;
and
when
the
door
was
closed
again
he
exerted
himself
to
speak
more
distinctly
.
"
Sit
down
,
Nancy
—
there
,
"
he
said
,
pointing
to
a
chair
opposite
him
.
"
I
came
back
as
soon
as
I
could
,
to
hinder
anybody
's
telling
you
but
me
.
I
've
had
a
great
shock
—
but
I
care
most
about
the
shock
it
'll
be
to
you
.
"
"
It
is
n't
father
and
Priscilla
?
"
said
Nancy
,
with
quivering
lips
,
clasping
her
hands
together
tightly
on
her
lap
.
"
No
,
it
's
nobody
living
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
unequal
to
the
considerate
skill
with
which
he
would
have
wished
to
make
his
revelation
.
"
It
's
Dunstan
—
my
brother
Dunstan
,
that
we
lost
sight
of
sixteen
years
ago
.
We
've
found
him
—
found
his
body
—
his
skeleton
.
"
The
deep
dread
Godfrey
's
look
had
created
in
Nancy
made
her
feel
these
words
a
relief
.
She
sat
in
comparative
calmness
to
hear
what
else
he
had
to
tell
.
He
went
on
:
"
The
Stone-pit
has
gone
dry
suddenly
—
from
the
draining
,
I
suppose
;
and
there
he
lies
—
has
lain
for
sixteen
years
,
wedged
between
two
great
stones
.
There
's
his
watch
and
seals
,
and
there
's
my
gold-handled
hunting-whip
,
with
my
name
on
:
he
took
it
away
,
without
my
knowing
,
the
day
he
went
hunting
on
Wildfire
,
the
last
time
he
was
seen
.
"
Godfrey
paused
:
it
was
not
so
easy
to
say
what
came
next
.
"
Do
you
think
he
drowned
himself
?
"
said
Nancy
,
almost
wondering
that
her
husband
should
be
so
deeply
shaken
by
what
had
happened
all
those
years
ago
to
an
unloved
brother
,
of
whom
worse
things
had
been
augured
.
"
No
,
he
fell
in
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
in
a
low
but
distinct
voice
,
as
if
he
felt
some
deep
meaning
in
the
fact
.
Presently
he
added
:
"
Dunstan
was
the
man
that
robbed
Silas
Marner
.
"
The
blood
rushed
to
Nancy
's
face
and
neck
at
this
surprise
and
shame
,
for
she
had
been
bred
up
to
regard
even
a
distant
kinship
with
crime
as
a
dishonour
.
"
O
Godfrey
!
"
she
said
,
with
compassion
in
her
tone
,
for
she
had
immediately
reflected
that
the
dishonour
must
be
felt
still
more
keenly
by
her
husband
.
"
There
was
the
money
in
the
pit
,
"
he
continued
—
"
all
the
weaver
's
money
.
Everything
's
being
gathered
up
,
and
they
're
taking
the
skeleton
to
the
Rainbow
.
But
I
came
back
to
tell
you
:
there
was
no
hindering
it
;
you
must
know
.
"
He
was
silent
,
looking
on
the
ground
for
two
long
minutes
.
Nancy
would
have
said
some
words
of
comfort
under
this
disgrace
,
but
she
refrained
,
from
an
instinctive
sense
that
there
was
something
behind
—
that
Godfrey
had
something
else
to
tell
her
.
Presently
he
lifted
his
eyes
to
her
face
,
and
kept
them
fixed
on
her
,
as
he
said
—
"
Everything
comes
to
light
,
Nancy
,
sooner
or
later
.
When
God
Almighty
wills
it
,
our
secrets
are
found
out
.
I
've
lived
with
a
secret
on
my
mind
,
but
I
'll
keep
it
from
you
no
longer
.
I
would
n't
have
you
know
it
by
somebody
else
,
and
not
by
me
—
I
would
n't
have
you
find
it
out
after
I
'm
dead
.
I
'll
tell
you
now
.
It
's
been
'
I
will
'
and
'
I
wo
n't
'
with
me
all
my
life
—
I
'll
make
sure
of
myself
now
.
"
Nancy
's
utmost
dread
had
returned
.
The
eyes
of
the
husband
and
wife
met
with
awe
in
them
,
as
at
a
crisis
which
suspended
affection
.
"
Nancy
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
slowly
,
"
when
I
married
you
,
I
hid
something
from
you
—
something
I
ought
to
have
told
you
.
That
woman
Marner
found
dead
in
the
snow
—
Eppie
's
mother
—
that
wretched
woman
—
was
my
wife
:
Eppie
is
my
child
.
"
He
paused
,
dreading
the
effect
of
his
confession
.
But
Nancy
sat
quite
still
,
only
that
her
eyes
dropped
and
ceased
to
meet
his
.
She
was
pale
and
quiet
as
a
meditative
statue
,
clasping
her
hands
on
her
lap
.
"
You
'll
never
think
the
same
of
me
again
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
after
a
little
while
,
with
some
tremor
in
his
voice
.
She
was
silent
.
"
I
ought
n't
to
have
left
the
child
unowned
:
I
ought
n't
to
have
kept
it
from
you
.
But
I
could
n't
bear
to
give
you
up
,
Nancy
.
I
was
led
away
into
marrying
her
—
I
suffered
for
it
.
"
Still
Nancy
was
silent
,
looking
down
;
and
he
almost
expected
that
she
would
presently
get
up
and
say
she
would
go
to
her
father
's
.
How
could
she
have
any
mercy
for
faults
that
must
seem
so
black
to
her
,
with
her
simple
,
severe
notions
?
But
at
last
she
lifted
up
her
eyes
to
his
again
and
spoke
.
There
was
no
indignation
in
her
voice
—
only
deep
regret
.
"
Godfrey
,
if
you
had
but
told
me
this
six
years
ago
,
we
could
have
done
some
of
our
duty
by
the
child
.
Do
you
think
I
'd
have
refused
to
take
her
in
,
if
I
'd
known
she
was
yours
?
"
At
that
moment
Godfrey
felt
all
the
bitterness
of
an
error
that
was
not
simply
futile
,
but
had
defeated
its
own
end
.
He
had
not
measured
this
wife
with
whom
he
had
lived
so
long
.
But
she
spoke
again
,
with
more
agitation
.
"
And
—
O
,
Godfrey
—
if
we
'd
had
her
from
the
first
,
if
you
'd
taken
to
her
as
you
ought
,
she
'd
have
loved
me
for
her
mother
—
and
you
'd
have
been
happier
with
me
:
I
could
better
have
bore
my
little
baby
dying
,
and
our
life
might
have
been
more
like
what
we
used
to
think
it
'
ud
be
.
"
The
tears
fell
,
and
Nancy
ceased
to
speak
.
"
But
you
would
n't
have
married
me
then
,
Nancy
,
if
I
'd
told
you
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
urged
,
in
the
bitterness
of
his
self-reproach
,
to
prove
to
himself
that
his
conduct
had
not
been
utter
folly
.
"
You
may
think
you
would
now
,
but
you
would
n't
then
.
With
your
pride
and
your
father
's
,
you
'd
have
hated
having
anything
to
do
with
me
after
the
talk
there
'd
have
been
.
"
"
I
ca
n't
say
what
I
should
have
done
about
that
,
Godfrey
.
I
should
never
have
married
anybody
else
.
But
I
was
n't
worth
doing
wrong
for
—
nothing
is
in
this
world
.
Nothing
is
so
good
as
it
seems
beforehand
—
not
even
our
marrying
was
n't
,
you
see
.
"
There
was
a
faint
sad
smile
on
Nancy
's
face
as
she
said
the
last
words
.
"
I
'm
a
worse
man
than
you
thought
I
was
,
Nancy
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
rather
tremulously
.
"
Can
you
forgive
me
ever
?
"
"
The
wrong
to
me
is
but
little
,
Godfrey
:
you
've
made
it
up
to
me
—
you
've
been
good
to
me
for
fifteen
years
.
It
's
another
you
did
the
wrong
to
;
and
I
doubt
it
can
never
be
all
made
up
for
.
"
"
But
we
can
take
Eppie
now
,
"
said
Godfrey
.
"
I
wo
n't
mind
the
world
knowing
at
last
.
I
'll
be
plain
and
open
for
the
rest
o
'
my
life
.
"
"
It
'll
be
different
coming
to
us
,
now
she
's
grown
up
,
"
said
Nancy
,
shaking
her
head
sadly
.
"
But
it
's
your
duty
to
acknowledge
her
and
provide
for
her
;
and
I
'll
do
my
part
by
her
,
and
pray
to
God
Almighty
to
make
her
love
me
.
"
"
Then
we
'll
go
together
to
Silas
Marner
's
this
very
night
,
as
soon
as
everything
's
quiet
at
the
Stone-pits
.
"
CHAPTER
XIX
.
Between
eight
and
nine
o'clock
that
evening
,
Eppie
and
Silas
were
seated
alone
in
the
cottage
.
After
the
great
excitement
the
weaver
had
undergone
from
the
events
of
the
afternoon
,
he
had
felt
a
longing
for
this
quietude
,
and
had
even
begged
Mrs
Winthrop
and
Aaron
,
who
had
naturally
lingered
behind
every
one
else
,
to
leave
him
alone
with
his
child
.
The
excitement
had
not
passed
away
:
it
had
only
reached
that
stage
when
the
keenness
of
the
susceptibility
makes
external
stimulus
intolerable
—
when
there
is
no
sense
of
weariness
,
but
rather
an
intensity
of
inward
life
,
under
which
sleep
is
an
impossibility
.
Any
one
who
has
watched
such
moments
in
other
men
remembers
the
brightness
of
the
eyes
and
the
strange
definiteness
that
comes
over
coarse
features
from
that
transient
influence
.
It
is
as
if
a
new
fineness
of
ear
for
all
spiritual
voices
had
sent
wonder-working
vibrations
through
the
heavy
mortal
frame
—
as
if
"
beauty
born
of
murmuring
sound
"
had
passed
into
the
face
of
the
listener
.
Silas
's
face
showed
that
sort
of
transfiguration
,
as
he
sat
in
his
arm-chair
and
looked
at
Eppie
.
She
had
drawn
her
own
chair
towards
his
knees
,
and
leaned
forward
,
holding
both
his
hands
,
while
she
looked
up
at
him
.
On
the
table
near
them
,
lit
by
a
candle
,
lay
the
recovered
gold
—
the
old
long-loved
gold
,
ranged
in
orderly
heaps
,
as
Silas
used
to
range
it
in
the
days
when
it
was
his
only
joy
.
He
had
been
telling
her
how
he
used
to
count
it
every
night
,
and
how
his
soul
was
utterly
desolate
till
she
was
sent
to
him
.
"
At
first
,
I
'd
a
sort
o
'
feeling
come
across
me
now
and
then
,
"
he
was
saying
in
a
subdued
tone
,
"
as
if
you
might
be
changed
into
the
gold
again
;
for
sometimes
,
turn
my
head
which
way
I
would
,
I
seemed
to
see
the
gold
;
and
I
thought
I
should
be
glad
if
I
could
feel
it
,
and
find
it
was
come
back
.
But
that
did
n't
last
long
.
After
a
bit
,
I
should
have
thought
it
was
a
curse
come
again
,
if
it
had
drove
you
from
me
,
for
I
'd
got
to
feel
the
need
o
'
your
looks
and
your
voice
and
the
touch
o
'
your
little
fingers
.
You
did
n't
know
then
,
Eppie
,
when
you
were
such
a
little
un
—
you
did
n't
know
what
your
old
father
Silas
felt
for
you
.
"
"
But
I
know
now
,
father
,
"
said
Eppie
.
"
If
it
had
n't
been
for
you
,
they
'd
have
taken
me
to
the
workhouse
,
and
there
'd
have
been
nobody
to
love
me
.
"
"
Eh
,
my
precious
child
,
the
blessing
was
mine
.
If
you
had
n't
been
sent
to
save
me
,
I
should
ha
'
gone
to
the
grave
in
my
misery
.
The
money
was
taken
away
from
me
in
time
;
and
you
see
it
's
been
kept
—
kept
till
it
was
wanted
for
you
.
It
's
wonderful
—
our
life
is
wonderful
.
"
Silas
sat
in
silence
a
few
minutes
,
looking
at
the
money
.
"
It
takes
no
hold
of
me
now
,
"
he
said
,
ponderingly
—
"
the
money
does
n't
.
I
wonder
if
it
ever
could
again
—
I
doubt
it
might
,
if
I
lost
you
,
Eppie
.
I
might
come
to
think
I
was
forsaken
again
,
and
lose
the
feeling
that
God
was
good
to
me
.
"
At
that
moment
there
was
a
knocking
at
the
door
;
and
Eppie
was
obliged
to
rise
without
answering
Silas
.
Beautiful
she
looked
,
with
the
tenderness
of
gathering
tears
in
her
eyes
and
a
slight
flush
on
her
cheeks
,
as
she
stepped
to
open
the
door
.
The
flush
deepened
when
she
saw
Mr
and
Mrs
Godfrey
Cass
.
She
made
her
little
rustic
curtsy
,
and
held
the
door
wide
for
them
to
enter
.
"
We
're
disturbing
you
very
late
,
my
dear
,
"
said
Mrs
Cass
,
taking
Eppie
's
hand
,
and
looking
in
her
face
with
an
expression
of
anxious
interest
and
admiration
.
Nancy
herself
was
pale
and
tremulous
.
Eppie
,
after
placing
chairs
for
Mr
and
Mrs
Cass
,
went
to
stand
against
Silas
,
opposite
to
them
.
"
Well
,
Marner
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
trying
to
speak
with
perfect
firmness
,
"
it
's
a
great
comfort
to
me
to
see
you
with
your
money
again
,
that
you
've
been
deprived
of
so
many
years
.
It
was
one
of
my
family
did
you
the
wrong
—
the
more
grief
to
me
—
and
I
feel
bound
to
make
up
to
you
for
it
in
every
way
.
Whatever
I
can
do
for
you
will
be
nothing
but
paying
a
debt
,
even
if
I
looked
no
farther
than
the
robbery
.
But
there
are
other
things
I
'm
beholden
—
shall
be
beholden
to
you
for
,
Marner
.
"
Godfrey
checked
himself
.
It
had
been
agreed
between
him
and
his
wife
that
the
subject
of
his
fatherhood
should
be
approached
very
carefully
,
and
that
,
if
possible
,
the
disclosure
should
be
reserved
for
the
future
,
so
that
it
might
be
made
to
Eppie
gradually
.
Nancy
had
urged
this
,
because
she
felt
strongly
the
painful
light
in
which
Eppie
must
inevitably
see
the
relation
between
her
father
and
mother
.
Silas
,
always
ill
at
ease
when
he
was
being
spoken
to
by
"
betters
,
"
such
as
Mr
Cass
—
tall
,
powerful
,
florid
men
,
seen
chiefly
on
horse-back
—
answered
with
some
constraint
,
—
"
Sir
,
I
've
a
deal
to
thank
you
for
a'ready
.
As
for
the
robbery
,
I
count
it
no
loss
to
me
.
And
if
I
did
,
you
could
n't
help
it
:
you
are
n't
answerable
for
it
.
"
"
You
may
look
at
it
in
that
way
,
Marner
,
but
I
never
can
;
and
I
hope
you
'll
let
me
act
according
to
my
own
feeling
of
what
's
just
.
I
know
you
're
easily
contented
:
you
've
been
a
hard-working
man
all
your
life
.
"
"
Yes
,
sir
,
yes
,
"
said
Marner
,
meditatively
.
"
I
should
ha
'
been
bad
off
without
my
work
:
it
was
what
I
held
by
when
everything
else
was
gone
from
me
.
"
"
Ah
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
applying
Marner
's
words
simply
to
his
bodily
wants
,
"
it
was
a
good
trade
for
you
in
this
country
,
because
there
's
been
a
great
deal
of
linen-weaving
to
be
done
.
But
you
're
getting
rather
past
such
close
work
,
Marner
:
it
's
time
you
laid
by
and
had
some
rest
.
You
look
a
good
deal
pulled
down
,
though
you
're
not
an
old
man
,
are
you
?
"
"
Fifty-five
,
as
near
as
I
can
say
,
sir
,
"
said
Silas
.
"
O
,
why
,
you
may
live
thirty
years
longer
—
look
at
old
Macey
!
And
that
money
on
the
table
,
after
all
,
is
but
little
.
It
wo
n't
go
far
either
way
—
whether
it
's
put
out
to
interest
,
or
you
were
to
live
on
it
as
long
as
it
would
last
:
it
would
n't
go
far
if
you
'd
nobody
to
keep
but
yourself
,
and
you
've
had
two
to
keep
for
a
good
many
years
now
.
"
"
Eh
,
sir
,
"
said
Silas
,
unaffected
by
anything
Godfrey
was
saying
,
"
I
'm
in
no
fear
o
'
want
.
We
shall
do
very
well
—
Eppie
and
me
'
ull
do
well
enough
.
There
's
few
working-folks
have
got
so
much
laid
by
as
that
.
I
do
n't
know
what
it
is
to
gentlefolks
,
but
I
look
upon
it
as
a
deal
—
almost
too
much
.
And
as
for
us
,
it
's
little
we
want
.
"
"
Only
the
garden
,
father
,
"
said
Eppie
,
blushing
up
to
the
ears
the
moment
after
.
"
You
love
a
garden
,
do
you
,
my
dear
?
"
said
Nancy
,
thinking
that
this
turn
in
the
point
of
view
might
help
her
husband
.
"
We
should
agree
in
that
:
I
'
give
a
deal
of
time
to
the
garden
.
"
"
Ah
,
there
's
plenty
of
gardening
at
the
Red
House
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
surprised
at
the
difficulty
he
found
in
approaching
a
proposition
which
had
seemed
so
easy
to
him
in
the
distance
.
"
You
've
done
a
good
part
by
Eppie
,
Marner
,
for
sixteen
years
.
It
'
ud
be
a
great
comfort
to
you
to
see
her
well
provided
for
,
would
n't
it
?
She
looks
blooming
and
healthy
,
but
not
fit
for
any
hardships
:
she
does
n't
look
like
a
strapping
girl
come
of
working
parents
.
You
'd
like
to
see
her
taken
care
of
by
those
who
can
leave
her
well
off
,
and
make
a
lady
of
her
;
she
's
more
fit
for
it
than
for
a
rough
life
,
such
as
she
might
come
to
have
in
a
few
years
'
time
.
"
A
slight
flush
came
over
Marner
's
face
,
and
disappeared
,
like
a
passing
gleam
.
Eppie
was
simply
wondering
Mr
Cass
should
talk
so
about
things
that
seemed
to
have
nothing
to
do
with
reality
;
but
Silas
was
hurt
and
uneasy
.
"
I
do
n't
take
your
meaning
,
sir
,
"
he
answered
,
not
having
words
at
command
to
express
the
mingled
feelings
with
which
he
had
heard
Mr
Cass
's
words
.
"
Well
,
my
meaning
is
this
,
Marner
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
determined
to
come
to
the
point
.
"
Mrs
Cass
and
I
,
you
know
,
have
no
children
—
nobody
to
benefit
by
our
good
home
and
everything
else
we
have
—
more
than
enough
for
ourselves
.
And
we
should
like
to
have
somebody
in
the
place
of
a
daughter
to
us
—
we
should
like
to
have
Eppie
,
and
treat
her
in
every
way
as
our
own
child
.
It
would
be
a
great
comfort
to
you
in
your
old
age
,
I
hope
,
to
see
her
fortune
made
in
that
way
,
after
you
have
been
at
the
trouble
of
bringing
her
up
so
well
.
And
it
's
right
you
should
have
every
reward
for
that
.
And
Eppie
,
I
'm
sure
,
will
always
love
you
and
be
grateful
to
you
:
she
'd
come
and
see
you
very
often
,
and
we
should
all
be
on
the
look-out
to
do
everything
we
could
towards
making
you
comfortable
.
"
A
plain
man
like
Godfrey
Cass
,
speaking
under
some
embarrassment
,
necessarily
blunders
on
words
that
are
coarser
than
his
intentions
,
and
that
are
likely
to
fall
gratingly
on
susceptible
feelings
.
While
he
had
been
speaking
,
Eppie
had
quietly
passed
her
arm
behind
Silas
's
head
,
and
let
her
hand
rest
against
it
caressingly
:
she
felt
him
trembling
violently
.
He
was
silent
for
some
moments
when
Mr
Cass
had
ended
—
powerless
under
the
conflict
of
emotions
,
all
alike
painful
.
Eppie
's
heart
was
swelling
at
the
sense
that
her
father
was
in
distress
;
and
she
was
just
going
to
lean
down
and
speak
to
him
,
when
one
struggling
dread
at
last
gained
the
mastery
over
every
other
in
Silas
,
and
he
said
,
faintly
—
"
Eppie
,
my
child
,
speak
.
I
wo
n't
stand
in
your
way
.
Thank
Mr
and
Mrs
Cass
.
"
Eppie
took
her
hand
from
her
father
's
head
,
and
came
forward
a
step
.
Her
cheeks
were
flushed
,
but
not
with
shyness
this
time
:
the
sense
that
her
father
was
in
doubt
and
suffering
banished
that
sort
of
self-consciousness
.
She
dropped
a
low
curtsy
,
first
to
Mrs
Cass
and
then
to
Mr
Cass
,
and
said
—
"
Thank
you
,
ma'am
—
thank
you
,
sir
.
But
I
ca
n't
leave
my
father
,
nor
own
anybody
nearer
than
him
.
And
I
do
n't
want
to
be
a
lady
—
thank
you
all
the
same
"
(
here
Eppie
dropped
another
curtsy
)
.
"
I
could
n't
give
up
the
folks
I
've
been
used
to
.
"
Eppie
's
lip
began
to
tremble
a
little
at
the
last
words
.
She
retreated
to
her
father
's
chair
again
,
and
held
him
round
the
neck
;
while
Silas
,
with
a
subdued
sob
,
put
up
his
hand
to
grasp
hers
.
The
tears
were
in
Nancy
's
eyes
,
but
her
sympathy
with
Eppie
was
,
naturally
,
divided
with
distress
on
her
husband
's
account
.
She
dared
not
speak
,
wondering
what
was
going
on
in
her
husband
's
mind
.
Godfrey
felt
an
irritation
inevitable
to
almost
all
of
us
when
we
encounter
an
unexpected
obstacle
.
He
had
been
full
of
his
own
penitence
and
resolution
to
retrieve
his
error
as
far
as
the
time
was
left
to
him
;
he
was
possessed
with
all-important
feelings
,
that
were
to
lead
to
a
predetermined
course
of
action
which
he
had
fixed
on
as
the
right
,
and
he
was
not
prepared
to
enter
with
lively
appreciation
into
other
people
's
feelings
counteracting
his
virtuous
resolves
.
The
agitation
with
which
he
spoke
again
was
not
quite
unmixed
with
anger
.
"
But
I
have
a
claim
on
you
,
Eppie
—
the
strongest
of
all
claims
.
It
is
my
duty
,
Marner
,
to
own
Eppie
as
my
child
,
and
provide
for
her
.
She
is
my
own
child
—
her
mother
was
my
wife
.
I
have
a
natural
claim
on
her
that
must
stand
before
every
other
.
"
Eppie
had
given
a
violent
start
,
and
turned
quite
pale
.
Silas
,
on
the
contrary
,
who
had
been
relieved
,
by
Eppie
's
answer
,
from
the
dread
lest
his
mind
should
be
in
opposition
to
hers
,
felt
the
spirit
of
resistance
in
him
set
free
,
not
without
a
touch
of
parental
fierceness
.
"
Then
,
sir
,
"
he
answered
,
with
an
accent
of
bitterness
that
had
been
silent
in
him
since
the
memorable
day
when
his
youthful
hope
had
perished
—
"
then
,
sir
,
why
did
n't
you
say
so
sixteen
year
ago
,
and
claim
her
before
I
'd
come
to
love
her
,
i'stead
o
'
coming
to
take
her
from
me
now
,
when
you
might
as
well
take
the
heart
out
o
'
my
body
?
God
gave
her
to
me
because
you
turned
your
back
upon
her
,
and
He
looks
upon
her
as
mine
:
you
've
no
right
to
her
!
When
a
man
turns
a
blessing
from
his
door
,
it
falls
to
them
as
take
it
in
.
"
"
I
know
that
,
Marner
.
I
was
wrong
.
I
've
repented
of
my
conduct
in
that
matter
,
"
said
Godfrey
,
who
could
not
help
feeling
the
edge
of
Silas
's
words
.
"
I
'm
glad
to
hear
it
,
sir
,
"
