It was
surely rather an extreme step for a man like this to write to a girl
in such a condition of things, asking her to use her influence to
dissuade Laurie from his present course of life. Plainly the man meant
what he said; he had not written to Mrs. Baxter, as he explained in
the letter, for fear of alarming her unduly, and, as he expressly
said, there was nothing to be alarmed about. Yet he had written.
Maggie stopped at the lower end of the orchard path, took out the
letter, and read the last three or four sentences again:
Please forgive me if you think it was unnecessary to
write. Of course I have no doubt whatever that the whole
thing is nothing but nonsense; but even nonsense can have
a bad effect, and Mr. Baxter seems to me to be far too
much wrapped up in it. I enclose the address of a friend
of mine in case you would care to write to him on the
subject. He was once a Spiritualist, and is now a devout
Catholic. He takes a view of it that I do not take; but at
any rate his advice could do no harm. You can trust him to
be absolutely discreet.
Believe me,
Yours sincerely,
James Morton
It really was very odd and unconventional; and Mr.
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