“‘But Charles, men acquire habits by degrees, and learn to love that which they once loathed; and what pleasure is to be derived from associating with those whose time is spent in play, if you do not join in their occupation. They cannot converse with you; that would take off their attention from the game; and they cannot listen to you, their interest is absorbed in their desire to distress those whom they call their friends, by winning their money. But, my husband, I did not mean to read you a lecture,’ continued she smiling. ‘Ah, well do I know, for your wife’s sake, for our cherub child’s sake, you never will abandon yourself to the infamy of a gambler’s life.’ And she threw herself into my arms. I pressed that form of loveliness to my bosom, and felt the beating of its confiding heart, and, coward that I was, I betrayed its confidence by withholding the communication I had decided to make. I felt humbled by her purity, and rebuked by her love, and I dared not tell her what I had done. “The day wore on, not without sad reflection on my part, but I felt self-assured that I would never so err again, and as this confidence became strong, I persuaded myself that it was unnecessary to distress my wife by any disclosures. I had only to pay off the debt I had incurred, and there was an end of the affair. That evening, much to my surprise, and very contrary to my wishes, Roberts called upon me. I had no desire to see one who had been an eye-witness of my last night’s madness, and I felt a dread lest he might allude to it in Emily’s presence. There was no occasion, however, for any such apprehension. He talked of various things, and in a most amusing manner, but never referred to the races, except to observe, in a slight and careless way, that I had missed no sport by having been absent that morning. It was not until my wife retired that he touched upon the subject. “‘Why, in the name of common sense,’ he asked, ‘did you leave us this morning so abruptly, W—— or rather, why did you not return?’ “‘Simply,’ replied I, ‘because I was guided by {754} common sense. I had lost enough, and too much, and in a way that my feelings disapproved of, and there was no pleasure to be derived from lingering about the scene of my folly.’ “‘I lost too,’ said Roberts, ‘but I never sit down contented with a loss. He were but a poor merchant, who would fold his arms, and abandon all enterprise, because, forsooth, he found one adventure unsuccessful.’ “‘It is the business of the merchant,’ said I, ‘to take such chances; it is not mine to gamble, and yet I should think that merchant foolish, who should take a hazard where he clearly saw that the chances were against him.’ “‘And how do you know,’ asked Roberts, ‘that the chances are against you?’ “‘Because every one lost last night but the banker,’ I replied. “‘And he had to refund this morning all that he had won,’ said Roberts, ‘and put a good round sum to the opposite side of the account.’