"
"Well, but one may be betrayed into doing things by a combination of
circumstances, which one might never have done otherwise."
"Why, yes, a man can't very well steal a bank-note unless the bank-note
lies within convenient reach; but he won't make us think him an honest
man because he begins to howl at the bank-note for falling in his way."
"But surely you don't think a man who struggles against a temptation
into which he falls at last as bad as the man who never struggles at
all?"
"No, certainly; I pity him in proportion to his struggles, for they
foreshadow the inward suffering which is the worst form of Nemesis.
Consequences are unpitying. Our deeds carry their terrible consequences,
quite apart from any fluctuations that went before--consequences that
are hardly ever confined to ourselves. And it is best to fix our minds
on that certainty, instead of considering what may be the elements of
excuse for us. But I never knew you so inclined for moral discussion,
Arthur? Is it some danger of your own that you are considering in this
philosophical, general way?"
In asking this question, Mr. Irwine pushed his plate away, threw himself
back in his chair, and looked straight at Arthur. He really suspected
that Arthur wanted to tell him something, and thought of smoothing
the way for him by this direct question.
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