“When I met you yesterday you were walking with the--with Mrs. Swayne’s young lodger,” said Mr. Brownlow, “and it was evidently not for the first time. You must know, Jack, that--that--this sort of thing will not do. It puts me out as much--perhaps more than it can put you out--to have to speak to you on such a subject. I believe the girl is an innocent girl--” “There can be no doubt about that, sir,” cried Jack, firing up suddenly and growing very red. “I hope not,” said Mr. Brownlow, “and I hope--and I may say I believe--that you don’t mean any harm. But it’s dangerous playing with edge-tools; harm might come of it before you knew what you were doing. Now look here, Jack; I know the time for sermons is passed, and that you are rather disposed to think you know the world better than I do, but I can’t leave you without warning. I believe the girl is an innocent girl, as I have said; but there are different kinds of innocence--there is that which is utterly beyond temptation, and there is that which has simply never been tempted.” “It is not a question I can discuss, sir,” cried Jack. “I beg your pardon. I know you don’t mean to be hard upon me, but as for calling in question--her--innocence, I can’t have it. She is as innocent as the angels; she doesn’t understand what evil means.” “I am glad you think so,” said Mr. Brownlow; “but let me have out my say. I don’t believe in seduction in the ordinary sense of the word--” “Sir!” cried Jack, starting to his feet with a countenance flaming like that of an angry angel. Mr. Brownlow only waved his hand and went on. “Let me have out my say. I tell you I don’t believe in seduction; but there are people in the world--and the most part of the people in the world--who are neither good nor bad, and to such a sudden impulse one way or other may be every thing. I would not call down upon a young man’s foolish head all the responsibility of such a woman’s misery,” said Mr. Brownlow, thoughtfully, “but still it would be an awful thought that somebody else might have turned the unsteady balance the right way, and that your folly had turned it the wrong. See, I am not going into it as a question of personal vice. That your own heart would tell you of; but I don’t believe, my boy--I don’t believe you mean any harm. I say this to you once for all. You could not, if you were a hundred times the man you are, turn one true, good, pure-hearted girl wrong. I don’t believe any man could; but you might develop evil that but for you would only have smouldered and never come to positive harm. Who can tell whether this poor child is of the one character or the other? Don’t interrupt me. You think you know, but you can’t know. Mind what you are about. This is all I am going to say to you, Jack.” “It is too much,” cried Jack, bursting with impatience, “or it is not half, not a hundredth part enough. I, sir--do you think I would harm her? Not for any thing that could be offered me--not for all the world!”