By his sick wife's bedside he had for the first time in his life given rein to that feeling of tender sympathy which the suffering of others evoked in him; and which he had till then been ashamed of, as of a weakness; and his pity for her, remorse at having wished for her death, and above all the joy of forgiving, in itself gave him not only relief from suffering but inward peace such as he had never before experienced.
Junto al lecho de la enferma se entregó por primera vez en su vida al sentimiento de humillada compasión que despertaban siempre en él los sufrimientos ajenos y del que se avergonzaba como de una perjudicial debilidad. La compasión por Ana, el arrepentimiento de haber deseado su muerte y sobre todo la alegría de perdonar, hicieron que repentinamente sintiera no sólo terminado su sufrimiento, sino, además, una tranquilidad de espíritu nunca experimentada antes.