"Butyoumustnotsacrificeyourselftoherfromanysenseofjustice，"repliedEustaciaquickly。

"Ifyoudonotloveheritisthemostmercifulthinginthelongruntoleaveherassheis。That’salwaysthebestway。There，nowIhavebeenunwomanly，Isuppose。

WhenyouhaveleftmeIamalwaysangrywithmyselfforthingsthatIhavesaidtoyou。"

Wildevewalkedapaceortwoamongtheheatherwithoutreplying。

Thepausewasfilledupbytheintonationofapollardthornalittlewaytowindward，thebreezesfilteringthroughitsunyieldingtwigsasthroughastrainer。

Itwasasifthenightsangdirgeswithclenchedteeth。

Shecontinued，halfsorrowfully，"Sincemeetingyoulast，ithasoccurredtomeonceortwicethatperhapsitwasnotforloveofmeyoudidnotmarryher。Tellme，Damon——I’lltrytobearit。HadInothingwhatevertodowiththematter？"

"Doyoupressmetotell？"

"Yes，Imustknow。IseeIhavebeentooreadytobelieveinmyownpower。"

"Well，theimmediatereasonwasthatthelicensewouldnotdofortheplace，andbeforeIcouldgetanothersheranaway。Uptothatpointyouhadnothingtodowithit。

SincethenheraunthasspokentomeinatonewhichI

don’tatalllike。"

"Yes，yes！Iamnothinginit——Iamnothinginit。

Youonlytriflewithme。Heaven，whatcanI，EustaciaVye，bemadeoftothinksomuchofyou！"

"Nonsense；donotbesopassionate……Eustacia，howwerovedamongthesebusheslastyear，whenthehotdayshadgotcool，andtheshadesofthehillskeptusalmostinvisibleinthehollows！"

Sheremainedinmoodysilencetillshesaid，"Yes；andhowIusedtolaughatyoufordaringtolookuptome！

Butyouhavewellmademesufferforthatsince。"

"Yes，youservedmecruellyenoughuntilIthoughtIhadfoundsomeonefairerthanyou。Ablessedfindforme，Eustacia。"

"Doyoustillthinkyoufoundsomebodyfairer？"

"SometimesIdo，sometimesIdon’t。Thescalesarebalancedsonicelythatafeatherwouldturnthem。"

"Butdon’tyoureallycarewhetherImeetyouorwhetherIdon’t？"shesaidslowly。

"Icarealittle，butnotenoughtobreakmyrest，"

repliedtheyoungmanlanguidly。"No，allthat’spast。

IfindtherearetwoflowerswhereIthoughttherewasonlyone。Perhapstherearethree，orfour，oranynumberasgoodasthefirst……Mineisacuriousfate。

Whowouldhavethoughtthatallthiscouldhappentome？"

Sheinterruptedwithasuppressedfireofwhicheitherloveorangerseemedanequallypossibleissue，"Doyoulovemenow？"

"Whocansay？"

"Tellme；Iwillknowit！"

"Ido，andIdonot，"saidhemischievously。"Thatis，Ihavemytimesandmyseasons。Onemomentyouaretootall，anothermomentyouaretoodo—nothing，anothertoomelancholy，anothertoodark，anotherIdon’tknowwhat，except——thatyouarenotthewholeworldtomethatyouusedtobe，mydear。

Butyouareapleasantladytoknowandnicetomeet，andIdaresayassweetasever——almost。"

Eustaciawassilent，andsheturnedfromhim，tillshesaid，inavoiceofsuspendedmightiness，"Iamforawalk，andthisismyway。"

"Well，Icandoworsethanfollowyou。"

"Youknowyoucan’tdootherwise，forallyourmoodsandchanges！"sheanswereddefiantly。"Saywhatyouwill；

tryasyoumay；keepawayfrommeallthatyoucan——youwillneverforgetme。Youwilllovemeallyourlifelong。

Youwouldjumptomarryme！"

"SoIwould！"saidWildeve。"SuchstrangethoughtsasI’vehadfromtimetotime，Eustacia；andtheycometomethismoment。Youhatetheheathasmuchasever；

thatIknow。"

"Ido，"shemurmureddeeply。"’Tismycross，myshame，andwillbemydeath！"

"Iabhorittoo，"saidhe。"Howmournfullythewindblowsroundusnow！"

Shedidnotanswer。Itstonewasindeedsolemnandpervasive。

Compoundutterancesaddressedthemselvestotheirsenses，anditwaspossibletoviewbyearthefeaturesoftheneighbourhood。

Acousticpictureswerereturnedfromthedarkenedscenery；

theycouldhearwherethetractsofheatherbeganandended；

wherethefurzewasgrowingstalkyandtall；whereithadbeenrecentlycut；inwhatdirectionthefir—clumplay，andhownearwasthepitinwhichtheholliesgrew；

forthesedifferingfeatureshadtheirvoicesnolessthantheirshapesandcolours。

"God，howlonelyitis！"resumedWildeve。"Whatarepicturesqueravinesandmiststouswhoseenothingelse？"

Whyshouldwestayhere？WillyougowithmetoAmerica？

IhavekindredinWisconsin。"

"Thatwantsconsideration。"

"Itseemsimpossibletodowellhere，unlessonewereawildbirdoralandscape—painter。Well？"

"Givemetime，"shesoftlysaid，takinghishand。

"Americaissofaraway。Areyougoingtowalkwithmealittleway？"

AsEustaciautteredthelatterwordssheretiredfromthebaseofthebarrow，andWildevefollowedher，sothatthereddlemancouldhearnomore。

Heliftedtheturvesandarose。Theirblackfiguressankanddisappearedfromagainstthesky。Theywereastwohornswhichthesluggishheathhadputforthfromitscrown，likeamollusc，andhadnowagaindrawnin。

Thereddleman’swalkacrossthevale，andoverintothenextwherehiscartlay，wasnotsprightlyforaslimyoungfellowoftwenty—four。Hisspiritwasperturbedtoaching。

Thebreezesthatblewaroundhismouthinthatwalkcarriedoffuponthemtheaccentsofacommination。

Heenteredthevan，wheretherewasafireinastove。

Withoutlightinghiscandlehesatdownatonceonthethree—leggedstool，andponderedonwhathehadseenandheardtouchingthatstill—lovedoneofhis。

Heutteredasoundwhichwasneithersighnorsob，butwasevenmoreindicativethaneitherofatroubledmind。

"MyTamsie，"hewhisperedheavily。"Whatcanbedone？Yes，IwillseethatEustaciaVye。"

10—ADesperateAttemptatPersuasionThenextmorning，atthetimewhentheheightofthesunappearedveryinsignificantfromanypartoftheheathascomparedwiththealtitudeofRainbarrow，andwhenallthelittlehillsinthelowerlevelswerelikeanarchipelagoinafog—formedAegean，thereddlemancamefromthebramblednookwhichhehadadoptedashisquartersandascendedtheslopesofMistoverKnap。

Thoughtheseshaggyhillswereapparentlysosolitary，severalkeenroundeyeswerealwaysreadyonsuchawintrymorningasthistoconvergeuponapasser—by。

Featheredspeciessojournedhereinhidingwhichwouldhavecreatedwonderiffoundelsewhere。Abustardhauntedthespot，andnotmanyyearsbeforethisfiveandtwentymighthavebeenseeninEgdonatonetime。

Marsh—harrierslookedupfromthevalleybyWildeve’s。

Acream—colouredcourserhadusedtovisitthishill，abirdsorarethatnotmorethanadozenhaveeverbeenseeninEngland；butabarbarianrestedneithernightnordaytillhehadshottheAfricantruant，andafterthateventcream—colouredcoursersthoughtfittoenterEgdonnomore。

AtravellerwhoshouldwalkandobserveanyofthesevisitantsasVennobservedthemnowcouldfeelhimselftobeindirectcommunicationwithregionsunknowntoman。

Hereinfrontofhimwasawildmallard——justarrivedfromthehomeofthenorthwind。ThecreaturebroughtwithinhimanamplitudeofNorthernknowledge。Glacialcatastrophes，snowstormepisodes，glitteringauroraleffects，Polarisinthezenith，Franklinunderfoot——thecategoryofhiscommonplaceswaswonderful。Butthebird，likemanyotherphilosophers，seemedashelookedatthereddlemantothinkthatapresentmomentofcomfortablerealitywasworthadecadeofmemories。

Vennpassedonthroughthesetowardsthehouseoftheisolatedbeautywholivedupamongthemanddespisedthem。

ThedaywasSunday；butasgoingtochurch，excepttobemarriedorburied，wasexceptionalatEgdon，thismadelittledifference。HehaddeterminedupontheboldstrokeofaskingforaninterviewwithMissVye——toattackherpositionasThomasin’srivaleitherbyartorbystorm，showingtherein，somewhattooconspicuously，thewantofgallantrycharacteristicofacertainastutesortofmen，fromclownstokings。ThegreatFrederickmakingwaronthebeautifulArchduchess，NapoleonrefusingtermstothebeautifulQueenofPrussia，werenotmoredeadtodifferenceofsexthanthereddlemanwas，inhispeculiarway，inplanningthedisplacementofEustacia。

Tocallatthecaptain’scottagewasalwaysmoreorlessanundertakingfortheinferiorinhabitants。

Thoughoccasionallychatty，hismoodswereerratic，andnobodycouldbecertainhowhewouldbehaveatanyparticularmoment。Eustaciawasreserved，andlivedverymuchtoherself。Exceptthedaughterofoneofthecotters，whowastheirservant，andaladwhoworkedinthegardenandstable，scarcelyanyonebutthemselveseverenteredthehouse。TheyweretheonlygenteelpeopleofthedistrictexcepttheYeobrights，andthoughfarfromrich，theydidnotfeelthatnecessityforpreservingafriendlyfacetowardseveryman，bird，andbeastwhichinfluencedtheirpoorerneighbours。

Whenthereddlemanenteredthegardentheoldmanwaslookingthroughhisglassatthestainofblueseainthedistantlandscape，thelittleanchorsonhisbuttonstwinklinginthesun。HerecognizedVennashiscompaniononthehighway，butmadenoremarkonthatcircumstance，merelysaying，"Ah，reddleman——youhere？Haveaglassofgrog？"

Venndeclined，onthepleaofitbeingtooearly，andstatedthathisbusinesswaswithMissVye。Thecaptainsurveyedhimfromcaptowaistcoatandfromwaistcoattoleggingsforafewmoments，andfinallyaskedhimtogoindoors。

MissVyewasnottobeseenbyanybodyjustthen；

andthereddlemanwaitedinthewindow—benchofthekitchen，hishandshangingacrosshisdivergentknees，andhiscaphangingfromhishands。

"Isupposetheyoungladyisnotupyet？"hepresentlysaidtotheservant。

"Notquiteyet。Folksnevercalluponladiesatthistimeofday。"

"ThenI’llstepoutside，"saidVenn。"Ifsheiswillingtoseeme，willshepleasesendoutword，andI’llcomein。"

Thereddlemanleftthehouseandloiteredonthehilladjoining。Aconsiderabletimeelapsed，andnorequestforhispresencewasbrought。Hewasbeginningtothinkthathisschemehadfailed，whenhebeheldtheformofEustaciaherselfcomingleisurelytowardshim。

Asenseofnoveltyingivingaudiencetothatsingularfigurehadbeensufficienttodrawherforth。

Sheseemedtofeel，afterabarelookatDiggoryVenn，thatthemanhadcomeonastrangeerrand，andthathewasnotsomeanasshehadthoughthim；forhercloseapproachdidnotcausehimtowritheuneasily，orshifthisfeet，orshowanyofthoselittlesignswhichescapeaningenuousrusticattheadventoftheuncommoninwomankind。

Onhisinquiringifhemighthaveaconversationwithhershereplied，"Yes，walkbesideme，"andcontinuedtomoveon。

Beforetheyhadgonefaritoccurredtotheperspicaciousreddlemanthathewouldhaveactedmorewiselybyappearinglessunimpressionable，andheresolvedtocorrecttheerrorassoonashecouldfindopportunity。

"Ihavemadesobold，miss，astostepacrossandtellyousomestrangenewswhichhascometomyearsaboutthatman。"

"Ah！whatman？"

Hejerkedhiselbowtothesoutheast——thedirectionoftheQuietWoman。

Eustaciaturnedquicklytohim。"DoyoumeanMr。Wildeve？"

"Yes，thereistroubleinahouseholdonaccountofhim，andIhavecometoletyouknowofit，becauseIbelieveyoumighthavepowertodriveitaway。"

"I？Whatisthetrouble？"

"Itisquiteasecret。ItisthathemayrefusetomarryThomasinYeobrightafterall。"

Eustacia，thoughsetinwardlypulsingbyhiswords，wasequaltoherpartinsuchadramaasthis。

Sherepliedcoldly，"Idonotwishtolistentothis，andyoumustnotexpectmetointerfere。"

"But，miss，youwillhearoneword？"

"Icannot。Iamnotinterestedinthemarriage，andevenifIwereIcouldnotcompelMr。Wildevetodomybidding。"

"AstheonlyladyontheheathIthinkyoumight，"saidVennwithsubtleindirectness。"Thisishowthecasestands。

Mr。WildevewouldmarryThomasinatonce，andmakeallmatterssmooth，ifsobetherewerenotanotherwomaninthecase。Thisotherwomanissomepersonhehaspickedupwith，andmeetsontheheathoccasionally，Ibelieve。Hewillnevermarryher，andyetthroughherhemaynevermarrythewomanwholoveshimdearly。

Now，ifyou，miss，whohavesomuchswayoverusmenfolk，weretoinsistthatheshouldtreatyouryoungneighbourTamsinwithhonourablekindnessandgiveuptheotherwoman，hewouldperhapsdoit，andsaveheragooddealofmisery。"

"Ah，mylife！"saidEustacia，withalaughwhichunclosedherlipssothatthesunshoneintohermouthasintoatulip，andlentitasimilarscarletfire。"Youthinktoomuchofmyinfluenceovermenfolkindeed，reddleman。

IfIhadsuchapowerasyouimagineIwouldgostraightanduseitforthegoodofanybodywhohasbeenkindtome——whichThomasinYeobrighthasnotparticularly，tomyknowledge。"

"Canitbethatyoureallydon’tknowofit——howmuchshehadalwaysthoughtofyou？"

"Ihaveneverheardawordofit。AlthoughweliveonlytwomilesapartIhaveneverbeeninsideheraunt’shouseinmylife。"

ThesuperciliousnessthatlurkedinhermannertoldVennthatthusfarhehadutterlyfailed。Heinwardlysighedandfeltitnecessarytounmaskhissecondargument。

"Well，leavingthatoutofthequestion，’tisinyourpower，Iassureyou，MissVye，todoagreatdealofgoodtoanotherwoman。"

Sheshookherhead。

"YourcomelinessislawwithMr。Wildeve。Itislawwithallmenwhosee’ee。Theysay，’Thiswell—

favouredladycoming——what’shername？Howhandsome！’

HandsomerthanThomasinYeobright，"thereddlemanpersisted，sayingtohimself，"Godforgivearascalforlying！"Andshewashandsomer，butthereddlemanwasfarfromthinkingso。

TherewasacertainobscurityinEustacia’sbeauty，andVenn’seyewasnottrained。Inherwinterdress，asnow，shewaslikethetiger—beetle，which，whenobservedindullsituations，seemstobeofthequietestneutralcolour，butunderafullilluminationblazeswithdazzlingsplendour。

Eustaciacouldnothelpreplying，thoughconsciousthatsheendangeredherdignitythereby。"ManywomenarelovelierthanThomasin，"shesaid，"sonotmuchattachestothat。"

Thereddlemansufferedthewoundandwenton："Heisamanwhonoticesthelooksofwomen，andyoucouldtwisthimtoyourwilllikewithywind，ifyouonlyhadthemind。"

"SurelywhatshecannotdowhohasbeensomuchwithhimIcannotdolivinguphereawayfromhim。"

Thereddlemanwheeledandlookedherintheface。

"MissVye！"hesaid。

"Whydoyousaythat——asifyoudoubtedme？"Shespokefaintly，andherbreathingwasquick。"Theideaofyourspeakinginthattonetome！"sheadded，withaforcedsmileofhauteur。

"Whatcouldhavebeeninyourmindtoleadyoutospeaklikethat？"

"MissVye，whyshouldyoumakebelievethatyoudon’tknowthisman？——Iknowwhy，certainly。Heisbeneathyou，andyouareashamed。"

"Youaremistaken。Whatdoyoumean？"

Thereddlemanhaddecidedtoplaythecardoftruth。

"IwasatthemeetingbyRainbarrowlastnightandheardeveryword，"hesaid。"ThewomanthatstandsbetweenWildeveandThomasinisyourself。"

Itwasadisconcertingliftofthecurtain，andthemortificationofCandaules’wifeglowedinher。

Themomenthadarrivedwhenherlipwouldtrembleinspiteofherself，andwhenthegaspcouldnolongerbekeptdown。

"Iamunwell，"shesaidhurriedly。"No——itisnotthat——I

amnotinahumourtohearyoufurther。Leaveme，please。"

"Imustspeak，MissVye，inspiteofpainingyou。

WhatIwouldputbeforeyouisthis。Howeveritmaycomeabout——whethersheistoblame，oryou——hercaseiswithoutdoubtworsethanyours。YourgivingupMr。Wildevewillbearealadvantagetoyou，forhowcouldyoumarryhim？

Nowshecannotgetoffsoeasily——everybodywillblameherifsheloseshim。ThenIaskyou——notbecauseherrightisbest，butbecausehersituationisworst——togivehimuptoher。"

"No——Iwon’t，Iwon’t！"shesaidimpetuously，quiteforgetfulofherpreviousmannertowardsthereddlemanasanunderling。

"Nobodyhaseverbeenservedso！Itwasgoingonwell——I

willnotbebeatendown——byaninferiorwomanlikeher。

Itisverywellforyoutocomeandpleadforher，butisshenotherselfthecauseofallherowntrouble？

AmInottoshowfavourtoanypersonImaychoosewithoutaskingpermissionofaparcelofcottagers？Shehascomebetweenmeandmyinclination，andnowthatshefindsherselfrightlypunishedshegetsyoutopleadforher！"

"Indeed，"saidVennearnestly，"sheknowsnothingwhateveraboutit。ItisonlyIwhoaskyoutogivehimup。

Itwillbebetterforherandyouboth。Peoplewillsaybadthingsiftheyfindoutthataladysecretlymeetsamanwhohasill—usedanotherwoman。"

"IhaveNOTinjuredher——hewasminebeforehewashers！Hecameback——because——becausehelikedmebest！"

shesaidwildly。"ButIloseallself—respectintalkingtoyou。WhatamIgivingwayto！"

"Icankeepsecrets，"saidVenngently。"Youneednotfear。

Iamtheonlymanwhoknowsofyourmeetingswithhim。

Thereisbutonethingmoretospeakof，andthenIwillbegone。Iheardyousaytohimthatyouhatedlivinghere——thatEgdonHeathwasajailtoyou。"

"Ididsayso。Thereisasortofbeautyinthescenery，Iknow；butitisajailtome。Themanyoumentiondoesnotsavemefromthatfeeling，thoughheliveshere。

Ishouldhavecarednothingforhimhadtherebeenabetterpersonnear。"

Thereddlemanlookedhopeful；afterthesewordsfromherhisthirdattemptseemedpromising。"Aswehavenowopenedourmindsabit，miss，"hesaid，"I’lltellyouwhatIhavegottopropose。SinceIhavetakentothereddletradeItravelagooddeal，asyouknow。"

Sheinclinedherhead，andsweptroundsothathereyesrestedinthemistyvalebeneaththem。

"AndinmytravelsIgonearBudmouth。NowBudmouthisawonderfulplace——wonderful——agreatsaltsheeningseabendingintothelandlikeabow——thousandsofgentlepeoplewalkingupanddown——bandsofmusicplaying——officersbyseaandofficersbylandwalkingamongtherest——outofeverytenfolksyoumeetnineof’eminlove。"

"Iknowit，"shesaiddisdainfully。"IknowBudmouthbetterthanyou。Iwasbornthere。Myfathercametobeamilitarymusiciantherefromabroad。Ah，mysoul，Budmouth！IwishIwastherenow。"

Thereddlemanwassurprisedtoseehowaslowfirecouldblazeonoccasion。"Ifyouwere，miss，"hereplied，"inaweek’stimeyouwouldthinknomoreofWildevethanofoneofthosehe’th—croppersthatweseeyond。

Now，Icouldgetyouthere。"

"How？"saidEustacia，withintensecuriosityinherheavyeyes。

"Myunclehasbeenforfiveandtwentyyearsthetrustymanofarichwidow—ladywhohasabeautifulhousefacingthesea。Thisladyhasbecomeoldandlame，andshewantsayoungcompany—keepertoreadandsingtoher，butcan’tgetonetohermindtosaveherlife，thoughshe’veadvertisedinthepapers，andtriedhalfadozen。Shewouldjumptogetyou，andUnclewouldmakeitalleasy。"

"Ishouldhavetowork，perhaps？"

"No，notrealwork——you’dhavealittletodo，suchasreadingandthat。YouwouldnotbewantedtillNewYear’sDay。"

"Iknewitmeantwork，"shesaid，droopingtolanguoragain。

"Iconfesstherewouldbeatrifletodointhewayofamusingher；butthoughidlepeoplemightcallitwork，workingpeoplewouldcallitplay。Thinkofthecompanyandthelifeyou’dlead，miss；thegaietyyou’dsee，andthegentlemanyou’dmarry。Myuncleistoinquireforatrustworthyyoungladyfromthecountry，asshedon’tliketowngirls。"

"Itistowearmyselfouttopleaseher！andIwon’tgo。

O，ifIcouldliveinagaytownasaladyshould，andgomyownways，anddomyowndoings，I’dgivethewrinkledhalfofmylife！Yes，reddleman，thatwouldI。"

"HelpmetogetThomasinhappy，miss，andthechanceshallbeyours，"urgedhercompanion。

"Chance——’tisnochance，"shesaidproudly。"Whatcanapoormanlikeyouofferme，indeed？——Iamgoingindoors。

Ihavenothingmoretosay。Don’tyourhorseswantfeeding，oryourreddlebagswantmending，ordon’tyouwanttofindbuyersforyourgoods，thatyoustayidlingherelikethis？"

Vennspokenotanotherword。Withhishandsbehindhimheturnedaway，thatshemightnotseethehopelessdisappointmentinhisface。Thementalclearnessandpowerhehadfoundinthislonelygirlhadindeedfilledhismannerwithmisgivingevenfromthefirstfewminutesofclosequarterswithher。Heryouthandsituationhadledhimtoexpectasimplicityquiteatthebeckofhismethod。

ButasystemofinducementwhichmighthavecarriedweakercountrylassesalongwithithadmerelyrepelledEustacia。

Asarule，thewordBudmouthmeantfascinationonEgdon。

ThatRoyalportandwateringplace，iftrulymirroredinthemindsoftheheathfolk，musthavecombined，inacharmingandindescribablemanneraCarthaginianbustleofbuildingwithTarentineluxuriousnessandBaianhealthandbeauty。

Eustaciafeltlittlelessextravagantlyabouttheplace；

butshewouldnotsinkherindependencetogetthere。

WhenDiggoryVennhadgonequiteaway，Eustaciawalkedtothebankandlookeddownthewildandpicturesquevaletowardsthesun，whichwasalsointhedirectionofWildeve’s。Themisthadnowsofarcollapsedthatthetipsofthetreesandbushesaroundhishousecouldjustbediscerned，asifboringupwardsthroughavastwhitecobwebwhichcloakedthemfromtheday。

Therewasnodoubtthathermindwasinclinedthitherward；

indefinitely，fancifully——twininganduntwiningabouthimasthesingleobjectwithinherhorizononwhichdreamsmightcrystallize。Themanwhohadbegunbybeingmerelyheramusement，andwouldneverhavebeenmorethanherhobbybutforhisskillindesertingherattherightmoments，wasnowagainherdesire。

Cessationinhislove—makinghadrevivifiedherlove。

SuchfeelingasEustaciahadidlygiventoWildevewasdammedintoafloodbyThomasin。ShehadusedtoteaseWildeve，butthatwasbeforeanotherhadfavouredhim。Oftenadropofironyintoanindifferentsituationrendersthewholepiquant。

"Iwillnevergivehimup——never！"shesaidimpetuously。

Thereddleman’shintthatrumourmightshowhertodisadvantagehadnopermanentterrorforEustacia。Shewasasunconcernedatthatcontingencyasagoddessatalackoflinen。