As his affairs were really in a sufficiently satisfactory state, he felt that he must write to Elsie Melville, renewing his offer of marriage, and endeavouring as far as he could to give her confidence in the stability of his character.  How exceedingly awkward he felt it to be to have to write this instead of saying it.  How incomparably better such things are done by word of mouth, particularly when one is not a ready and clever letter-writer.  He would in the personal interview have felt the effect of one sentence before he ventured on another—­he would have assisted his halting phrases by all the advantages of tone, gesture, and expression of countenance.  Though he had failed once in his attempt to win her affections, he had been far more stupid than he was now, and he was now more anxious for success.  The more he had thought over the person, the manners, and the character of Elsie Melville, the more convinced he was that she was the one woman in the world for him; but he was by no means so sanguine of being accepted as he had been, particularly when he had only the pen to trust to.  There was no saying what so clever and so literary a girl as Elsie Melville was would think of his blundering declaration.  The paper looked cold and blank and uninviting—­it really was hard to make it the only means of telling her how much he loved her.  No kind wishes towards the overseer whose fears and scruples had hurried him away, or towards Miss Phillips, who had interrupted him when he was about to say something he had hoped Elsie could not mistake, accompanied the half-dozen different attempts at a love-letter, which were written before he could please himself.  Emily was his friend; Jane, he thought, would be his friend too.  Elsie was really a kind-hearted girl, and if he could only convince her that he would be miserable if she refused him, she might pity him a little.  He had not the same objections to a little pity that she had on that day in the railway carriage, when he had been so confident of success.  But when he reflected on what Peggy might have said with truth about him, and when he put to that the fact that immediately after his refusal by Elsie he had devoted himself to Miss Phillips, there was no doubt that Elsie had some cause to suspect the steadiness of his principles.  It was difficult by writing to hint at these things without saying too much, but they must not be passed over in silence either.

At last the letter was written and committed to the country post-office nearest to Barragong—­not that he was satisfied with it, but he must not lose the mail.  If she was good enough to accept of him, she was to draw upon him for a specified sum for passage-money and outfit, and come out in the mail steamer following her answer.  It was not a brilliant letter, but it was honest and straightforward.  However, as Elsie had sailed for Melbourne before it reached England, it was of the less consequence what it was.