In another moment, he crumpled up the
slip, and threw it indignantly on the deck. "It's as full of lies as it
can hold!" he burst out.
"It's all over the United States, by this time," Rufus remarked. "And I
don't doubt we shall find the English papers have copied it, when we
get to Liverpool. If you will take my advice, sir, you will cultivate a
sagacious insensibility to the comments of the press."
"Do you think I care for myself?" Amelius asked indignantly. "It's the
poor woman I am thinking of. What can I do to clear her character?"
"Well, sir," suggested Rufus, "in your place, I should have a
notification circulated through the ship, announcing a lecture on the
subject (weather permitting) in the course of the afternoon. That's the
way we should do it at Coolspring."
Amelius listened without conviction. "It's certainly useless to make a
secret of the matter now," he said; "but I don't see my way to making
it more public still." He paused, and looked at Mr. Hethcote. "It so
happens, sir," he resumed, "that this unfortunate affair is an example
of some of the Rules of our Community, which I had not had time to
speak of, when Mr.
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