He laid his hand upon her shoulder, and made her look at him.  “My dearest, what is this?”

“Oh, Archibald!” she uttered, clasping her hands together, all her pent up feelings bursting forth, and the tears streaming from her eyes, “has this taken your love from me?”

He took both her hands in one of his, he put the other round her waist and held her there, before him, never speaking, only looking gravely into her face.  Who could look at its sincere truthfulness, at the sweet expression of his lips, and doubt him?  Not Barbara.  She allowed the moment’s excitement to act upon her feelings, and carry her away.

“I had thought my wife possessed entire trust in me.”

“Oh, I do, I do; you know I do.  Forgive me, Archibald,” she slowly whispered.

“I deemed it better to impart this to you, Barbara.  Had there been wrong feeling on my part, I should have left you in ignorance.  My darling, I have told you it in love.”

She was leaning on his breast, sobbing gently, her repentant face turned towards him.  He held her there in his strong protection, his enduring tenderness.

“My wife!  My darling! now and always.”

“It was a foolish feeling to cross my heart, Archibald.  It is done with and gone.”

“Never let it come back, Barbara.  Neither need her name be mentioned again between us.  A barred name it has hitherto been; so let it continue.”

“Anything you will.  My earnest wish is to please you; to be worthy of your esteem and love, Archibald,” she timidly added, her eye-lids drooping, and her fair cheeks blushing, as she made the confession.  “There has been a feeling in my heart against your children, a sort of jealous feeling, you can understand, because they were hers; because she had once been your wife.  I knew how wrong it was, and I have tried earnestly to subdue it.  I have, indeed, and I think it is nearly gone,” her voice sunk.  “I constantly pray to be helped to do it; to love them and care for them as if they were my own.  It will come with time.”

“Every good thing will come with time that we may earnestly seek,” said Mr. Carlyle.  “Oh, Barbara, never forget—­never forget that the only way to ensure peace in the end is to strive always to be doing right, unselfishly under God.”