If you will deign to accept a warning
before it is too late, you will notice what your correspondent has
to say.
'You are deceived. Can such a woman as this be worthy?
'One who encouraged an honest youth to love her, then slighted
him, so that he died.
'One who next took a man of no birth as a lover, who was forbidden
the house by her father.
'One who secretly left her home to be married to that man, met
him, and went with him to London.
'One who, for some reason or other, returned again unmarried.
'One who, in her after-correspondence with him, went so far as to
address him as her husband.
'One who wrote the enclosed letter to ask me, who better than
anybody else knows the story, to keep the scandal a secret.
'I hope soon to be beyond the reach of either blame or praise.
But before removing me God has put it in my power to avenge the
death of my son.
'GERTRUDE JETHWAY.'
The letter enclosed was the note in pencil that Elfride had
written in Mrs. Jethway's cottage:
'DEAR MRS. JETHWAY,--I have been to visit you. I wanted much to
see you, but I cannot wait any longer. I came to beg you not to
execute the threats you have repeated to me. Do not, I beseech
you, Mrs. Jethway, let any one know I ran away from home! It would
ruin me with him, and break my heart. I will do anything for you,
if you will be kind to me. In the name of our common womanhood,
do not, I implore you, make a scandal of me.
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