Mrs.Vimpany found herself in a false position, due entirely to her own imprudence.
She had been guilty of three serious errors.

In the first place she had taken it for granted that Mr.Vimpany's restorative mixture would completely revive the sober state of his brains.

In the second place, she had trusted him with her vengeance on the man who had found his way to her secrets through her husband's intemperance.

In the third place, she had rashly assumed that the doctor, in carrying out her instructions for insulting Mountjoy, would keep within the limits which she had prescribed to him, when she hit on the audacious idea of attributing his disgraceful conduct to the temptation offered by his host's example.

As a consequence of these acts of imprudence, she had exposed herself to a misfortune that she honestly dreaded--the loss of the place which she had carefully maintained in Miss Henley's estimation.