Mr n Msz Morḷnd’z s’prîz on biyñ aplaid t bî Mr Tilni fr ɖer cnsnt t hiz mariyñ ɖer dōtr wz, fr a fy minits, cnsidṛbl, it hvñ nvr entrd ɖer hedz t sspct an ataćmnt on îɖr sîd; bt az nʈñ, aftr ol, cd b mor naćṛl ɖn Caʈrin’z biyñ b’luvd, ɖe sn lrnt t cnsidr it wɖ onli ɖ hapi ajteśn v graṭfaid prîd, n, az far az ɖe alon wr cnsrnd, hd nt a sngl objx́n t start. Hiz plizñ manrz n gd sns wr slf-evidnt rec̣mndeśnz; n hvñ nvr hŕd īvl v him, it wz nt ɖer we t s’poz eni īvl cd b tld. Gdwil s’playñ ɖ ples v xpirịns, hiz caṛctr nīdd no aṭsteśn. “Caʈrin wd mc a sad, hīdlis yuñ hǎscīpr t b śr,” wz hr muɖr’z fōrbodñ rmarc; bt qc wz ɖ conṣleśn v ɖr biyñ nʈñ lîc practis.
Ɖr wz bt wn obsṭcl, in śort, t b mnśnd; bt tl ɖt wn wz rmuvd, it mst b imposbl fr ɖm t sañśn ɖ ingejmnt. Ɖer tmprz wr mîld, bt ɖer prínsiplz wr stedi, n ẃl hiz peṛnt so xpresli fbad ɖ cnx́n, ɖe cd nt alǎ ɖmslvz t incurij it. Ɖt ɖ jenṛl śd cm fwd t s’lisit ɖ alayns, or ɖt h śd īvn vri harṭli apruv it, ɖe wr nt rfînd inuf t mc eni p’redñ stipyleśn; bt ɖ dīsnt apiṛns v cnsnt mst b yīldd, n ɖt wns obtend—n ɖer ǒn harts md ɖm trust ɖt it cd nt b vri loñ dnaid—ɖer wilñ apṛbeśn wz instntli t folo. Hiz cnsnt wz ol ɖt ɖe wśt fr. Ɖe wr no mor inclînd ɖn intîtld t dmand hiz muni. V a vri cnsidṛbl fortyn, hiz sun wz, bî marijsetlmnts, ivenćli s’kr; hiz preznt incm wz an incm v indpndns n cumf̣t, n undr evri pkńri vy, it wz a mać bynd ɖ clemz v ɖer dōtr.
Ɖ yuñ ppl cd nt b s’prîzd at a dsiźn lîc ɖs. Ɖe flt n ɖe dplord—bt ɖe cd nt rznt it; n ɖe partd, indevrñ t hop ɖt sć a ćenj in ɖ jenṛl, az ć b’livd olmst imposbl, mt spīḍli tec ples, t ynît ɖm agn in ɖ flnis v priṿlijd afx́n. Henri rtrnd t ẃt wz nǎ hiz onli hom, t woć ovr hiz yuñ planteśnz, n xtnd hiz impruvmnts fr hr sec, t huz śer in ɖm h lct añśsli fwd; n Caʈrin rmend at Fŭḷtn t crî. Ẃɖr ɖ torments v absns wr sofnd bî a clandestin corispondns, let s nt inqîr. Mr n Msz Morḷnd nvr dd—ɖe hd bn tù cînd t xact eni promis; n ẃnvr Caʈrin rsivd a letr, az, at ɖt tîm, hapnd priti ofn, ɖe olwz lct anɖr we.
Ɖ añzayti, ẃć in ɖs stet v ɖer ataćmnt mst b ɖ porśn v Henri n Caʈrin, n v ol hu luvd îɖr, az t its fînl ivnt, cn hardli xtnd, I fir, t ɖ bŭzm v mî rīdrz, hu wl si in ɖ tel-têl cmpreśn v ɖ pejz bfr ɖm, ɖt w r ol heṣnñ tgɖr t prfict f’liṣti. Ɖ mīnz bî ẃć ɖer rli marij wz ifctd cn b ɖ onli dǎt: ẃt probbl srcmstans cd wrc upn a tmpr lîc ɖ jenṛl’z? Ɖ srcmstans ẃć ćīfli aveld wz ɖ marij v hiz dōtr wɖ a man v fortyn n consiqns, ẃć tc ples in ɖ cors v ɖ sumr—an axeśn v digṇti ɖt ʈrù him intu a fit v gd hymr, fṛm ẃć h dd nt rcuvr tl aftr Eḷnr hd obtend hiz fgivnis v Henri, n hiz pmiśn fr him “t b a fūl f h lîct it!”
Ɖ marij v Eḷnr Tilni, hr rmuvl fṛm ol ɖ īvlz v sć a hom az Norʈangr hd bn md bî Henri’z baniśmnt, t ɖ hom v hr ćôs n ɖ man v hr ćôs, z an ivnt ẃć I xpct t gv jenṛl saṭsfax́n amñ ol hr aqentns. Mî ǒn jô on ɖ oceźn z vri sinsir. I nǒ nwn mor intîtld, bî unpritndñ merit, or betr priperd bî hbićl suf̣rñ, t rsiv n injô f’liṣti. Hr parśiaḷti fr ɖs jntlmn wz nt v rīsnt oṛjin; n h hd bn loñ wɖheld onli bî infirioṛti v sićueśn fṛm adresñ hr. Hiz unixpctd axeśn t tîtl n fortyn hd rmuvd ol hiz dificltiz; n nvr hd ɖ jenṛl luvd hiz dōtr so wel in ol hr aurz v cmpańnśp, ytiḷti, n peśnt indyṛns az ẃn h frst hêld hr “Yr Lediśp!” Hr huzbnd wz riyli dzrvñ v hr; indipndnt v hiz pirij, hiz wlʈ, n hiz ataćmnt, biyñ t a prisiźn ɖ most ćarmñ yuñ man in ɖ wrld. Eni frɖr def̣niśn v hiz merits mst b uņesṣri; ɖ most ćarmñ yuñ man in ɖ wrld z instntli bfr ɖ imaɉneśn v s ol. Cnsrnñ ɖ wn in qsćn, ɖrfr, I hv onli t ad—awer ɖt ɖ rūlz v compziśn fbid ɖ intṛdux́n v a caṛctr nt cnctd wɖ mî febl—ɖt ɖs wz ɖ vri jntlmn huz neglijnt srvnt left bhnd him ɖt c’lex́n v wośñbílz, rzultñ fṛm a loñ vizit at Norʈangr, bî ẃć mî herǒin wz involvd in wn v hr most alarmñ advnćrz.
Ɖ inflụns v ɖ vîcǎnt n vîcǎntes in ɖer bruɖr’z bhaf wz asistd bî ɖt rît unḍstandñ v Mr Morḷnd’z srcmstansz ẃć, az sn az ɖ jenṛl wd alǎ himslf t b informd, ɖe wr qoḷfaid t gv. It tòt him ɖt h hd bn scersli mor msléd bî Ʈorp’s frst bost v ɖ faṃli wlʈ ɖn bî hiz subsiqnt mliśs oṿʈro v it; ɖt in no sns v ɖ wrd wr ɖe nsesiṭs or pur, n ɖt Caʈrin wd hv ʈri ʈǎznd pǎndz. Ɖs wz so mtirịl an amndmnt v hiz lêt xpcteśnz ɖt it gretli cntribytd t smuɖ ɖ dsent v hiz prîd; n bî no mīnz wɖǎt its ifct wz ɖ prîvt intelijns, ẃć h wz at sm penz t pṛkr, ɖt ɖ Fŭḷtn istet, biyñ intîrli at ɖ dspozl v its preznt pṛpraytr, wz consiqntli opn t evri grīdi spekleśn.
On ɖ streñʈ v ɖs, ɖ jenṛl, sn aftr Eḷnr’z marij, pmitd hiz sun t rtrn t Norʈangr, n ɖns md him ɖ berr v hiz cnsnt, vri crtịsli wrdd in a pej fl v emti pṛfeśnz t Mr Morḷnd. Ɖ ivnt ẃć it oʈ̇rîzd sn foloud: Henri n Caʈrin wr marid, ɖ blz rañ, n evrbdi smîld; n, az ɖs tc ples wɖn a twelvmunʈ fṛm ɖ frst de v ɖer mītñ, it wl nt apir, aftr ol ɖ dredfl dlez oceźnd bî ɖ jenṛl’z cruwlti, ɖt ɖe wr isnṣ́li hrt bî it. T bgin prfict hapinis at ɖ rspctiv ejz v twenti-six n etīn z t d priti wel; n pṛfesñ mslf morovr cnvinst ɖt ɖ jenṛl’z unjust inṭfiṛns, so far fṛm biyñ riyli injurịs t ɖer f’liṣti, wz phps rɖr cndysv t it, bî impruvñ ɖer nolij v ć uɖr, n adñ streñʈ t ɖer ataćmnt, I līv it t b setld, bî hūmsoevr it me cnsrn, ẃɖr ɖ tndnsi v ɖs wrc b oltgɖr t rec̣mnd p’rentl tiṛni, or rword filial diṣbījns.
