It was I that
kept him up to the mark when he had his lucid intervals; it was I
that had to bear the whole burden of it when he began his
excesses again or took to whining about his miserable condition.
Manders. And this is the man you are building a memorial to!
Mrs. Alving. There you see the power of an uneasy conscience.
Manders. An uneasy conscience? What do you mean?
Mrs. Alving. I had always before me the fear that it was
impossible that the truth should not come out and be believed.
That is why the Orphanage is to exist, to silence all rumours and
clear away all doubt.
Manders. You certainly have not fallen short of the mark in that,
Mrs. Alving.
Mrs. Alving. I had another very good reason. I did not wish
Oswald, my own son, to inherit a penny that belonged to his
father.
Manders. Then it is with Mr. Alving's property.
Mrs. Alving. Yes. The sums of money that, year after year, I have
given towards this Orphanage, make up the amount of property--I
have reckoned it carefully--which in the old days made Lieutenant
Alving a catch.
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