Ormond by Charles Brockden Brown

Here ended this conference. She had, by no means, suspected the manner in which it would be conducted. All punctilios were trampled under foot, by the impetuosity of Ormond. Things were, at once, and without delay, placed upon a certain footing. The point, which ordinary persons would have employed months in attaining, was reached in a moment. While these incidents were fresh in her memory, they were accompanied with a sort of trepidation, the offspring at once of pleasure and surprise.

Ormond had not deceived her expectations, but hearsay and personal examination, however uniform their testimony may be, produce a very different impression. In her present reflections, Hellen and her lover approached to the front of the stage, and were viewed with equal perspicuity. One consequence of this was, that their characters were more powerfully contrasted with with each other, and the eligibility of marriage, appeared not quite so incontestible as before.