Birtwell.
"This morning," resumed Mr. Elliott, "I received a note from the
doctor, asking me to call and see him. He was much depressed, and
said he had long wanted to have a talk with me about something that
weighed heavily on his mind. Let me give you his own words as nearly
as I am able to remember them. After some remarks about personal
influence and our social responsibilities, he said:
"'There is one thing, Mr. Elliott, in which you and I and a great
many others I could name have not only been derelict of duty, but
serious wrongdoers. There is an evil in society that more than all
others is eating out its life, and you and I have encouraged that
evil even by our own example, calling it innocent, and so leading
the weak astray and the unwary into temptation.'
"I understood what he meant, and the shock of his including
accusation, his 'Thou art the man,' sent a throb of pain to my
heart. That I had already seen my false position and changed front
did not lessen the shock, for I was only the more sensitive to pain.
"'Happily for you, Mr. Elliott,' he went on. 'no such bitter fruit
has been plucked by your hands as by mine, and I pray God that it
may never be. For a long time I have carried a heavy load here'--he
drew his hand against his breast--'heavier than I have strength to
bear. Its weight is breaking me down. It is no light thing, sir, to
feel at times that you are a murderer.
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