Her face had a shrunken
aspect, like the face of one who had been sick; and it showed also
the marks of great suffering.
"'You may trust me as your own sister, Delia,' said I, 'and if in my
power to counsel or to comfort, both will be freely accorded.'
"I called her Delia, instead of Mrs. Dewey; not from design, but
because the old name by which I had known her was first on my lips.
"I thought there was a sudden lifting of her eyes as I pronounced
this name. The effect, if any followed, was not to repel, but to
draw her closer.
"'I am standing,' she said, speaking slowly and solemnly, 'at the
edge of a deep abyss, my way hedged up on both sides, and enemies
coming on behind. I have not strength to spring over; and to fall is
destruction. In my weakness and despair, I turn to you for help. If
there is help in any mortal arm, something tells me it is in yours.'
"She did not weep, nor show strong emotion. But her face was almost
colorless, and presented an image of woe such as never met my eyes,
except in pictures.
"'You have heard, no doubt,' she went on, 'some of the stories to my
discredit which have been circulated in S----.
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