It is true that, as the whispers of the congregation came to
his ears, he found present consolation in their belief; but then
nature was too powerful, and had too strong a hold of the old man's
heart, not to give rise to the rebellious thought, that the succession
of his daughter to the heavenly inheritance was a little premature.
But Middleton, the lover, the husband, the bridegroom--Middleton was
nearly crushed by the weight of the unexpected and terrible blow.
Educated himself under the dominion of a simple and rational faith, in
which nothing is attempted to be concealed from the believers, he
could have no other apprehensions for the fate of Inez than such as
grew out of his knowledge of the superstitious opinions she
entertained of his own church. It is needless to dwell on the mental
tortures that he endured, or all the various surmises, hopes, and
disappointments, that he was fated to experience in the first few
weeks of his misery. A jealous distrust of the motives of Inez, and a
secret, lingering, hope that he should yet find her, had tempered his
enquiries, without however causing him to abandon them entirely.
Pages:
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356