“She fell on her knees before me, and begged and implored me to listen to her—to believe her. She called on God to witness and attest her innocence. But I mocked at her, and told her that after such conduct as hers had been, a falsehood was as nothing; that I would not believe her if the angel Gabriel came down from heaven to testify in her behalf. I bade her begone from my sight, that I might not so far forget myself as to punish her crime with violence. Then she begged, if she must leave me, that I would let her have the children. Finally, as I remained obdurate, she prayed only for the one little girl, the youngest, three years old—the baby, and most helpless one. The boys might stay with me, but this little one, her baby, she could not give up. She should die without her baby, and she pleaded as only a mother can plead for this one boon, the privilege of caring for her own child, which she had herself brought into this cruel world.” Here the Major’s voice faltered, and there was a sympathizing moisture in Nathan’s eyes as he continued: “A shame upon such laws as give any one, even a father, the right to deprive a mother of her God-given privilege!” “Amen!” said Nathan under his breath. “Finally I promised her that if at the end of six months I heard no report of her holding any communication with Teasdale I would let the little Eva go to her mother; but if I learned of her seeing or having anything to do with that creature I would never allow the child to even see her. With that she must be content. I had a sort of fiendish delight in the thought that through the mother’s love for her child I might keep her from the arms of her paramour. “Finally I left her, saying that I should expect her to take the next boat back to her father’s and that I would make suitable provision for her maintenance so long as she remained away from Teasdale; and that I desired that she should take with her everything belonging to her or that might help to remind me of her who was once my wife. That was the last time I ever met her. “When I came back in the evening the nurse told me the mistress had gone away, and the children were in the nursery crying for mamma. “Here was a feature of the case I had not, in my anger, counted upon. What should I do to appease the children? I concluded to transfer my business to other hands for the time, shut up the house, and take the children to my parents, thinking that perhaps grandma might be the best substitute for mother. This, as soon as I could make the necessary arrangements, I did.