At this
moment she thought that Lord Rufford had treated her villainously,
whereas her conduct to him had been only that which the necessity
of the case required. To Lord Rufford she had simply behaved after
the manner of her class, heartless of course, but only in the way
which the "custom of the trade" justified. Each had tried to
circumvent the other, and she as the weaker had gone to the wall.
But John Morton had believed in her and loved her. Oh, how she
wished that she had deserted her class, and clung to him,--even
though she should now have been his widow. The legacy was a burden
to her. Even she had conscience enough to be sorry for a day or two
that he had named her in his will.
And what would she do with herself for the future? Her quarrel with
her mother had been very serious, each swearing that under no
circumstances would she again consent to live with the other. The
daughter of course knew that the mother would receive her again
should she ask to be received. But in such case she must go back
with shortened pinions and blunted beak. Her sojourn with Mrs.
Green was to last for one month, and at the end of that time she
must seek for a home. If she put John Morton's legacy out to
interest, she would now be mistress of a small income;--but she
understood money well enough to know to what obduracy of poverty
she would thus be subjected.
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