MY DEAR NIDDERDALE,--
Pray come to the Board to-day;--or at any rate come to me in the city. I specially want to speak to you.
Yours,
A. M.
This he wrote, having made up his mind that it would be wise to make a clear breast of it with his hoped-for son-in-law. If there was still a chance of keeping the young lord to his guns that chance would be best supported by perfect openness on his part. The young lord would of course know what Marie had done. But the young lord had for some weeks past been aware that there had been a difficulty in regard to Sir Felix Carbury, and had not on that account relaxed his suit. It might be possible to persuade the young lord that as the young lady had now tried to elope and tried in vain, his own chance might on the whole be rather improved than injured.

He thought that it would be wise to make a clean breast of it with his hoped-for son-in-law. The young lord would of course know what Marie had done. But Nidderdale had already known that there was a difficulty in regard to Sir Felix Carbury, yet had not given up his suit. It might be possible to persuade him that his own chances might now be improved rather than injured.
