He called at Miss Somerset's house, saw Polly, and questioned her.
He drove home again, and came into the drawing-room looking as he had
been seen to look when fighting his ship; but his daughter had never
seen him so. "My girl," said he, solemnly, "there's nothing for you to
do but to be brave, and hide your grief as well as you can, for the man
is unworthy of your love. That coward spoke the truth. He is there at
this moment."
"Oh, papa! papa! let me die! The world is too wicked for me. Let me
die!"
"Die for an unworthy object? For shame! Go to your own room, my girl,
and pray to your God to help you, since your mother has left us. Oh,
how I miss her now! Go and pray, and let no one else know what we
suffer. Be your father's daughter. Fight and pray."
Poor Bella had no longer to complain that she was not commanded. She
kissed him, and burst into a great passion of weeping; but he led her
to the door, and she tottered to her own room, a blighted girl.
The sight of her was harrowing. Under its influence the admiral dashed
off a letter to Sir Charles, calling him a villain, and inviting him to
go to France and let an indignant father write scoundrel on his
carcass.
But when he had written this his good sense and dignity prevailed over
his fury; he burned the letter, and wrote another.
Pages:
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59