He was in some sort a family connection; and he saw Lillie's conduct at last, therefore, through the plain, unvarnished medium of common sense.
Moreover, he felt a little pinched in his own conscience by the view which Rose seemed to take of his part in the matter, and, manlike, was strengthened in doing his duty by being a little galled and annoyed at the woman whose charms had tempted him into this dilemma.

So he talked to Lillie like a brother; or, in other words, made himself disagreeably explicit,--showed her her sins, and told her her duties as a married woman.

The charming fair ones who sentimentally desire gentlemen to regard them as sisters do not bargain for any of this sort of brotherly plainness; and yet they might do it with great advantage.

A brother, who is not a brother, stationed near the ear of a fair friend, is commonly very careful not to compromise his position by telling unpleasant truths; but, on the present occasion, Harry made a literal use of the brevet of brotherhood which Lillie had bestowed on him, and talked to her as the generality of _real_ brothers talk to their sisters, using great plainness of speech.

He withered all her poor little trumpery array of hothouse flowers of sentiment, by treating them as so much garbage, as all men know they are.