Meredith, he said:
"I have proposed to your niece, but she cannot answer me now. She
wishes for a month's probation, which I have granted, and I ask that
she shall not be persecuted about the matter. I wish for an unbiassed
answer."
He bowed politely, and walked away, while Mrs. Meredith almost trod on
air as she climbed the three flights of stairs and sought her niece's
chamber. Over the interview which ensued that night we pass silently,
and come to the next morning, when Anna sat alone on the piazza at the
rear of the hotel, watching the playful gambols of some children on
the grass, and wondering if she ever could conscientiously say "yes"
to Thornton Hastings' suit. He was coming toward her now, lifting his
hat politely, and asking what she would give for news from home.
"I found this on my table," he said, holding up a dainty little
missive, on the corner of which was written "In haste," as if its
contents were of the utmost importance. "The boy must have made a
mistake, or else he thought it well enough to begin at once bringing
your letters to me," he continued, with a smile, as he handed Anna the
letter from Lucy Harcourt. "I have one too, from Arthur which I will
read while you are devouring yours, and then, perhaps, you will take a
little ride.
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