son or two in London, and my father had enjoyed our pleasure in it, and paid a good deal of court to our

arty since she and he had come together as by right. There was something irresistible in her great soft plaintive brown eyes, though she was scarcely pretty otherwise, and we used to call her the White Doe of Rylsto

im; Mrs. Deerhurst was always looked on as a designing widow, who managed

could resist. She used when we were children to beg for holidays, and get treats for us; and even now, many a request which

help laughing when I think of Torwood coming disconsolately up from the library, and replying,

rced out of him that he had been forbidden ever to think or speak again of Emily,

Adela," I remember he ended; "then a

s, indeed, Adela was heiress enough to be a good deal troubled with suito

or Sir John Ormerod brought matters to a crisis at the next ball; and though she thought, as she said, "she

she came on Torwood at the landing. She couldn't he

orwood; I've made term

rod!" he

scorn now, for I was just behind my b

ided you don't say a word-till-

hen I had her in her own room it came out, I hardly know how, that she had so shown that she cared for no one she had

f white hair, blue eyes clear and bright as the sky, a tall upright soldierly figure, and a magnificent stately bearing, courteous and grand to all, but sweetly tender to a very few, and to her above all. It always had been so ever sinc

n the least felt the incongruity of her becoming our step-

ney to Switzerland, and never got better. By the time the spring had come round again, she was lying in the

im all at once; and whereas at sixty-five he had been like a man ten years younger, he suddenly be

hear it was a boy, and all she had said about it was, "Ursula, you'll be his mother." An

not do it, but care might; and nurses knowing how to be more effective than I could be; yet while I dur

besides a lazy kind of enjoyment of all the best and nicest things in this world. He did what he was told, but in an uninterested sort of way, just as if po

ke a man of him, and he took up all that he had to do, as if it real

and was something substantial to lean upon. Dear fellow! I am sure he did well e

pleasures for a young lady, and was altogether as nice, and gentle, and sensible, as could be desired. There never was a bit of acting in her, she was only allowed to grow in what seemed natural to her. She was just one of the nice simple girls of that day, doing her quiet bit of solid readin

eat passion then, and found her a perfect list

and all her belongings, she would do very well; and she was so pretty and sweet in her respectful fear of him-I might almost say awe-that his gracef

oing to his mother's miniature in my locket. He was such an intelligent little fellow for eighteen months! I came down so glad, and it was so pleasant to see Emily, in her white dress, leaning over my father while he had gone so happily into his

parlour for The Cid, Torwood's hunter, whom she declared was as dear to him as Emily herself. Indeed, Emily did go out every morning after

, and Jaquetta went racing about after the dogs, like a thing of seven years old, instead of seventeen. And Torwood was cutting out a root of primroses, leaves and all, for Emily, when we saw a fly go along the lane, and wondered, with a sort o

linger! There stood the fly at the hal

She would not wait till you came in, though I

leaning back in his chair, with a white, confounded, bewildered look, and a woman, with a child on her lap, opposite. Her back was to the doo

t father?

out his hand feeb

wood. God forgive me

What is it that distresses you, fa

child, and my evidence, no doubt; but the Earl of Trevorsham has acknowledged the truth of my claim, and I will not leav

ffered my father his arm, "I will talk it over with you p

zy, but Lord Trevorsham knows better. Do not you, my father?" she said, wit

is true. It is true, Torwood. I was married to poor Faith, when I was a young man, in Canada. They sent me proofs that all had perished when the Indians attacked the village; but-" and then he put his

ued from the Indians; gave birth to me, your

; don't leave me to her," was what my poor

"Never fear that, sir," he said; "I

but my brother met it calmly with, "Certainly, we will do ou

e papers on the table. They were her mother's att

ue, is that of putting little Alured into the place I have held. My father's last marriage was on the 15th of April, 1836," he added to her. He say

for my child, your own grandson?"

ll have a right to a great deal, and it will not be disputed; but you must be aware that a claim made in this

of scorn; but he took it firmly, though the

hter, you should show some pity and filial duty, by not fo

o do him any harm, but I have my child's interests to think

ck in the chair, trembling, an

may trust me. I was bred an English gentleman, whatever I was born, and I promise you never to come between you and your rights, when your identit

of the justice I claim," she said. "Come, my boy, since

hed by those last words, and felt that she might have lo

ea, no doubt he will wish to see you again; but in his present state of health, he must be our first co

nner; I think its courtesy and polish almost frigh

a stiff, cold tone. Jaquetta he

tand all, and when my father is eq

ut Torwood, explaining to him most earnestly how, though he was too ill himself to go to the place, his brother-officer, General Poyntz, had done so for him, and had been persuaded that

th, who seemed to have come back on him in all the beauty and charm of his first love. He seemed to be talking himself feverish, and after a time Torwood thought that silence would be better for him; so he got him to go to bed, and sent good old Blake, the butler, who had been

ring about on the nursery stairs, where I had gone to see whether bab

papa?"

to mine as he said, "Poor father! Ursula, I can only call the

red me into them, and I believe I said,

score, Jaquetta, who was on the watch, too, opened the door of the green drawing-room, and we were obliged to go in. Then, hardly answering her and Emily, as they aske

d never g

her went on, "Thi

a asked. "Where has s

that-she-his first wife-had been killed in a massacre by the Red Indians; but if what this person says is true, she o

had been to my father and to him; but poor little Jaquetta and Emily were altogether puzzled; and Jaquetta said, "B

heavens! girls, don't you see what it all means? If this

y sprang up, and tried to draw down his arm; and she did, but he only used it to put her from

has been all on false pretences!

own eyes grew bigger

"what false pretences? Not t

tone that made his voice so deep! "Not that I cared,

im, white doe fashion. I believe nobody had ever called him by his Christia

id, and his voice was softer then

"How should it change one's feelings one bi

ort of smile. "My child, my darling," he said, "I ough

ck, and a message came and brought word that Mr.

g up Adela and Faith Le Blanc strangely together sometimes, and at others

my hand or Jaquetta's, and pity us. He was haunted, too, by the sense that he ought to do something for us which he could not do. We thought he meant to make a will, securing us something, but he was never in a condition in which my brother would have felt ju

sent for Mr. Eagles, our solicitor, to meet

ly chance there was for us was, that her identity could not be established; but Mr. Eagles did not think it would go off on this. The whole of her life seemed to be traceable; besides, there was something about Hester that forbade all suspicion of her being a conscious impostor. Whether she would be able to prov

he teeth projected a little, and were so very, very white, that they always seemed to me to flash like the eyes; and if ever she smiled, it was as much as to say, "I don't believe you." Her nose had an amount of hook, too, that always gave me the feeling of having a wild hawk in the room with me. Jaquetta used to call her a panther of the wilderness, but to my mind there was none of the purring cattish tenderness of the panther. However, that might be only because she viewed us as her natural enemies, and was always on her guard against us, though I do not well know why; I am sure we only wanted to know the truth a

im-at least she used to gaze at him with her determined eyes, as if she meant to abash h

y; but we were taken by surprise when my brother brought her into the sitting-room. It was not very easy to welcome the woman who was going to turn us all ou

t my dear father's state, and said at last

little and said, "Little Alured! But, remember, I am bound to concede nothing till judicial min

o take her up to the nurseries. On the way up she asked which way my father's room la

or she asked her sharp questions about his health all the way up, and knew that he had had fits. I could not put her down as one generall

assertion at the time, it was quite true. Alured and Trevor Lea have always been remarkably alike. However, she cross-examined Nurse about h

yone, as well as ourselves, that something was hanging over us, of w

for months before; only I did not want it to come to a point. How was I to leave little Alured to Jaquetta? or disturb my father by breaking up his home? I liked him on the whole, and had come the length of thinking that if I ever married at all, it would b

letter-writing family. It is odd how some people's pen is a real outlet of expression; while others seem to lack the nerve

, that Emily never mentioned Hester; only saying, when, a

of those March days, never that I could see speaking. I don't think my brother would have felt it honourable to tie one additional link between himself and her. He had not

n and park with her dogs, and bring us in little anecdotes, and do all the laughing over them herself. Poo

s! But, my brother always said he was thankful for