I am a broken, defeated man."
"Oh, my boy!" she exclaimed, with tears in her eyes, "I cannot consent
to your going away. You have always been my favorite nephew; and I could
not endure to see a stranger in your place. It is all Sophy's fault. And
why should you sacrifice your life, and Charlie's, for her? Let some
place at a distance be found for her; no one will blame you, and you
will not suffer so much from the disgrace, if you do not witness it.
Only stay in Upton, and all I have shall be yours. It will be a happy
place to you again, if you will only wait patiently for brighter days."
"No," he said, sorrowfully; "it has been a pleasant place to me, but it
can never be so again. I must go for Sophy's sake. There is no hope for
her here; there is hope for her among new scenes and fresh influences. I
have spoken to her about it, and she is eager to go; she feels that
there would be a chance for her. To turn away from my purpose now would
be to doom her to her sin without hope of deliverance. It would be
impossible for me to do that."
It was a terrible blow to Mrs.
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