did she, and we suffered a terrible lot more than you’ll ever know or guess; but such things happen every day and true love never did run smooth.  But the truth of what has happened you can see on her face, and nought will ever change her again.  And I’m the sun to your moon if you’ll excuse my saying so.  And the triumph to have won such a woman is all lost for me, because I know a man like you—­so straight and honest—­will never understand such a thing and find it hard to pardon.  It will darken our lives, no doubt, that she made such a fatal mistake and thought she loved you and made you think the same; but you’re old enough to know that girls make that mistake every day of their lives, and think love’s come to ’em before it has, and only know the difference when the true and only man appears afore ’em.”

He ran on like that, and I marked that his old, straight glance was gone.  There was a new expression in his eyes and a sort of suggestion that he was tired of the subject and only concerned to save his face and let me out so quick as might be.  He spoke like a conqueror, in fact, and I well knew he didn’t care a farthing for my feelings under his pretence that he did.

But I weren’t going to let him out quite so easy.  I’d seen war, which Tom Bond had not, for I’d been my master’s batman at the front and was known for a brave man, though not a warrior like Sir Walter.  So I weren’t going to be swept aside as a thing of no account in the matter, and I meant to know a lot more about Bond himself before I went out of the game and handed Jenny over.

When he had done I spoke and went on polishing while I did so: 

“A man who would have run into this bad work open-eyed is a man who’ll need a power of thinking about,” I said to him.  “On your own showing you’ve played a very dirty and devious trick to win this woman, or try to do so, and it lets light on a side of your character I’d overlooked because, no doubt, you was parlous quick to hide it.  You knew Jenny Owlet had ordained to marry me at her own wish and desire, and, knowing that, you made love to her and was sloking her affection away, while all the time I befriended you and praised you and set store upon you.  And that’s both ends and the middle of it.  And no call to bleat about nature, because nature’s a heathen thing, and you well knew it was no time to yield to any temptations that would make you a knave if you did yield to ’em.  And I’m still minded to think the woman would be a lot happier and safer with me than ever she’d find herself with a man that could do what you’ve done.  And that I say though I may be ‘the moon to your sun.’

“So for the present, till I’ve had more truck with her and got to the bottom of her feelings and put reason and decency afore her, I’ll ask you to behave and keep off her.  She’s engaged to marry me at this minute, whatever the pair of you think to the contrary, and I hold her to that undertaking until I am well satisfied it would be better for her if I broke it.  So now you watch out, or you’ll find yourself in a tighter place than you ever was before.”