George was ready to offer any terms, if only she would come back
to his home. They might live separate lives for as long as
Henriette wished. They would have no more children until the
doctor declared it was quite safe; and in the meantime he would
be humble and patient, and would try his best to atone for the
wrong that he had done her.
To these arguments Madame Dupont added others of her own. She
told the girl some things which through bitter experience she had
learned about the nature and habits of men; things that should be
told to every girl before marriage, but which almost all of them
are left to find out afterwards, with terrible suffering and
disillusionment. Whatever George's sins may have been, he was a
man who had been chastened by suffering, and would know how to
value a woman's love for the rest of his life. Not all men knew
that--not even those who had been fortunate in escaping from the
so-called "shameful disease."
Henriette was also hearing arguments from her father, who by this
time had had time to think things over, and had come to the
conclusion that the doctor was right. He had noted his son-in-
law's patience and penitence, and had also made sure that in
spite of everything Henriette still loved him. The baby
apparently was doing well; and the Frenchman, with his strong
sense of family ties, felt it a serious matter to separate a
child permanently from its father. So in the end he cast the
weight of his influence in favor of a reconciliation, and
Henriette returned to her husband, upon terms which the doctor
laid down.
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