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Lost for love, by the author of 'Lady Audley's secret'.
Lost for love by the author of 'Lady Audley's secret' Author:Mary Elizabeth Braddon Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. ' There shall be time for deeds, and soon enough,' Let that come when it may. And it may be Deeds must be done shall shut and shrivel up All quie... more »t thoughts, and quite preclude repose To the end of time. Upon this narrow strait And promontory of our mortal life We stand between what was, and is not yet.' Any privileged person who had been admitted to the sacred interior of Mr. Gurner's home at this period could hardly have failed to perceive a change in that gentleman's manner of living—nay, even in the man himself—though here the difference, being more subtle, would naturally have been more difficult to define. It was one of Jarred Gurner's idiosyncrasies, however, to keep himself very much to himself, so far as the domestic hearth was concerned, and to invite no one to his house, unless for some special reason, grounded upon self-interest. Few visitors had ever been allowed the privileges of intimatefriendship which Jarred had accorded to Mr. Ley- burne. He had his friends—chosen comrades and allies—but these he was in the habit of meeting at certain favourite taverns in the neighbourhood, where social intercourse was less restrained than it might have been in his own house, and the materials for conviviality were ready to hand. ' I don't want anybody spying about my place,' Mr. Gurner was wont to remark; an observation not altogether complimentary to those boon companions whose jovial society gave wings to his evening hours. Thus it happened that there were few to remark the change that had come over the spirit of Jarred Gurner's life inside the house in Voysey-street. The gossips outside took note of the fact that Mrs. Gurner bought more butcher's meat than in former years, and that Jarred came home tipsy oftener than of old, and worked less, as tes...« less