I am afraid she trusts
implicitly to Van Loo's judgment as her broker. I believe he is strictly
honorable, but the general opinion of his business insight is not high.
They--perhaps I ought to say HE--have been at least so unlucky that
they might have learned prudence. The loss of twenty thousand dollars in
three months"--
"Twenty thousand!" echoed Mrs. Horncastle.
"Yes. Why, you knew that; it was in the mine you and she visited; or,
perhaps," he added hastily, as he flushed at his indiscretion, "she
didn't tell you that."
But Mrs. Horncastle as hastily said, "Yes--yes--of course, only I had
forgotten the amount;" and he continued:--
"That loss would have frightened any man; but you women are more daring.
Only Van Loo ought to have withdrawn. Don't you think so? Of course I
couldn't say anything to him without seeming to condemn my own wife; I
couldn't say anything to HER because it's her own money."
"I didn't know that Mrs. Barker had any money of her own," said Mrs.
Horncastle.
"Well, I gave it to her," said Barker, with sublime simplicity, "and
that would make it all the worse for me to speak about it."
Mrs. Horncastle was silent. A new theory flashed upon her which seemed
to reconcile all the previous inconsistencies of the situation. Van
Loo, under the guise of a lover, was really possessing himself of Mrs.
Barker's money. This accounted for the risks he was running in this
escapade, which were so incongruous to the rascal's nature.
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