Vellenaux A Novel - Edmund William Forrest (7 ebook reader txt) 📗

The

Probability Of Their Meeting In The Land Beyond The Seas. After A Few

Weeks' Longer Residence In devonshire,  The Pretty Little Wife Of The

Judge,  Accompanied By Edith,  Left By The Overland Route To Return To Her

Home In The City Of Palaces. And Such Was The Effect On Edith Of Change

Of Scene And A Life So Entirely New To Her,  Among A People Whose Habits,

Manners And Customs Were Strangely At Variance With Anything She Had

Hitherto Experienced,  And She Now Remembered,  With Feelings Of Emotion

Softened By Time,  That Uncle,  Whose Death She Had So Deeply Lamented,

That Her Health And Spirits Gradually Returned,  And With Them That

Beauty,  Which Had Adorned Her Before Her Sad Bereavement,  And For A Few

Years Her Residence In India Was In No Way Distasteful To Her. During

This Time She Had Frequently Heard Of Arthur Carlton,  But They Had Only

Met Twice,  His Regiment Being Employed At So Great A Distance From

Calcutta In Settling Some Disturbances Among The Rohillas Of Rohilcund,

That It Was Very Difficult For A Subaltern To Obtain Leave Of Absence.

 

A Few Weeks After Her Return,  Mrs. Barton Had Written To Arthur,

Acquainting Him With The Fact Of Edith'S Being In The Country,  And

Certain Circumstances Connected With The Death Of Sir Jasper Coleman,

And Wound Up By Giving Him A Special Invitation To Chowringee For A Few

Weeks. This She Had Done Out Of Kindness To Edith,  For She Had Some

Suspicion Of How That Young Lady Might Be Influenced By The Presence Of

The Playmate Of Her Childhood.

 

Carlton Received This Intelligence With The Utmost Astonishment. He Had

Been In complete Ignorance Of The Baronet'S Death And The Changes That

Had Taken Place At Vellenaux. His Last Two Letters To Edith Had Remained

Unanswered,  Or At Least He Had Not Received Them. But He Little Knew

That Mrs. Fraudhurst Had Taken Possession Of The Post Bag And Abstracted

Therefrom Edith'S Letters To Him As Well As Those He Had Sent To Her.

Chapter 7 Pg 57

She Had Some Apprehensions That He Might Contrive To Make His Appearance

At Vellenaux At A Time It Was Least Expected Or Desired By Either

Herself Or Sir Ralph Coleman. His Next Feeling Was That Of Joy At The

Thought Of Again Meeting Her,  And At The Idea That She Was To Remain In

The Same Country Perhaps For Several Years. As Has Been Mentioned

Before,  No Direct Words Of Love Had Passed Between Them,  And It Was Not

Until The Mighty Ocean Had Divided Them That He Had Realized How Dear

She Was To Him,  Or The Strength Or Depth Of His Love For Her. In His

Heart He Secretly Rejoiced That Sir Jasper'S Estate Had Passed Into

Other Hands,  For What Chance Had He,  A Poor Lieutenant Of Dragoons,  In

Aspiring To The Hand Of The Beautiful Edith,  Heiress Of Vellenaux.

 

He Lost No Time In Procuring The Required Furlough,  And At Their First

Meeting,  The Four Missing Letters Were Commented Upon,  And Their

Non-Delivery Ascribed To The Right Party,  Namely,  Mrs. Fraudhurst,  As

They Wandered Together Down The Pomegranate And Orange Groves In The

Cool Of The Evening,  Or Pacing The Broad,  Open Verandah Beneath The Star

Lit Sky.

 

"I Think,  Carlton,  You Must Be In High Feather With The Colonel,  Or Your

Lucky Star Is In The Ascendant," Said Captain Hastings To Our Young

Hero,  A Few Days After His Return From Calcutta,  As They Rode Home From

Stables Together.

 

"How So? What Is In The Mind Now?" Enquired Arthur,  As He Reined His

Horse Nearer To That Of His Companion.

 

"Why,  There Is Another Row Among Those Fellows In bundlecund,  And A

Squadron Of Our Regiment Has Been Ordered Out. My Troop And Yours Have

Been Selected For The Business,  And As Your Captain Is In europe And The

Other Two Troop Commanders Absent From Headquarters,  You Are To Have

Charge On,  This Occasion. I Command The Squadron,  So They May Look Out

For Hard Knocks If We Get A Chance At Them. I Will Teach The Blackguards

A Lesson They Will Not Forget For Some Time. They Will Find No

Philanthropy Or Mistaken Clemency About Me,  And To Tell You The Truth,  I

Would Rather Have You For My Second In command Than Either Dalzell Or

Harcly."

 

"Many Thanks For Your Good Opinion; And Depend Upon It I Shall Not Be

Backward In Proving Its Correctness,  Should An Opportunity Offer,"

Responded Arthur,  As They Entered The Mess Room.

 

The Affair In bundlecund Proved A More Obstinate Contest Than Had Been

At First Expected,  And Lasted For A Considerable Time. But The Coolness

And Determination Of The Light Dragoons Were Too Much For Them,

Consequently The Disturbance Was Quelled,  But Not Before A Large Number

Of The Rascals Had Been Made To Bite The Dust. Here,  As In

Chillianwalla,  Carlton'S Bravery And Skill,  As A Troop Leader,  Were

Conspicuous,  And He Well Merited The Encomiums That Were Poured Upon Him

By His Brother Officers On The Return Of The Squadron From The Disturbed

Districts,  Now In a Tranquil State.

Chapter 8 Pg 58

Such Of Our Readers As May Have Been Acquainted With The West End Of

London Some Thirty-Five Years Since,  Must Recollect Old Cavendish

Square. Prior To That Date It Had Been Very Exclusive,  But On Belgravia

And Tybernia Springing Into Existence,  The Nobility And Aristocratic

Families Moved From There To The New Suburban Localities,  And Their Old

Quarters Were Occupied By Quite A Different Class,  Which Had Migrated

Principally From That Region East Of Temple Bar,  Such As Merchants,

Bankers,  Eminent Barristers,  And Physicians Of First Standing. One Of

The Main Avenues Leading From This Square Westward,  And Known As Harley

Street,  Was Inhabited By Another Set,  Usually Styled Very Respectable

People,  Chiefly Consisting Of Maiden Ladies Of Doubtful Ages,  Who Kept

Their Carriages And Lived In Good Style,  Whist Playing Dowagers,  Who

Kept Their Carriages But Hired Job Horses,  When It Was Necessary To

Visit Their Friends Whose Circumstances Were More Flourishing Than Their

Own,  And The Families Of Country Members Who Usually Remained In Town

Daring The Session Of Parliament,  And Often For A Much Longer Period. It

Was In This Street And In This Circle That The Cotterells Lived And

Moved. Mr. Cotterell,  The Father Of Kate--The Prettiest Kate In all That

Locality,  At Least,  So Tom Barton Said,  And He Ought To Know For He Had

Seen Her Often,  And Never Failed To Get His Face As Close To Hers As

Possible Whenever A Chance Presented Itself For His So Doing--Was A

Retired Stock Broker Who,  Having Made A Considerable Hit In a Great

Speculation By Which He Realized A Handsome Sum,  Prudently Took The

Advice Of His Spouse And Let Well Enough Alone,  Retired From Business,

Left Their Dusky Residence In The City,  And Moved To Their Present

Abode,  No. 54 Upper Harley Street. Mrs. Cotterell Was The Youngest

Sister Of Mrs. Barton Of The Willows,  In devonshire,  Hence The

Relationship Between Our Friend,  Tom Barton,  And Pretty Cousin Kate,  The

Charm Of Whose Gay And Lively Manners Had Made Quite An Impression On

The Susceptible Heart Of Cousin Tom,  Which Increased And Strengthened

During The Frequent Visits Of That Young Lady To Her Aunt'S In

Devonshire. Nor Was It A One Sided Affair,  For She Had Been Captivated

By The Handsome Person And Agreeable Address Of Her Cousin,  But Being

Petit In Stature,  She Was Like Most Little Beauties,  Very Arbitrary And

Capricious Towards Her Lover,  Yet,  With All This,  She Was A Girl Of

Good,  Sound Sense,  And Knowing That Her Portion On The Death Of Her

Parents Would Be But Small,  Would Not Consent To Entangle Herself In The

Meshes Of Matrimony Until Tom Had Established Himself In His Profession,

And There Was A Fair Prospect Of Their Succeeding In Life.

 

It Will Be Remembered That Tom Barton Left For London About The Same

Chapter 8 Pg 59

Time That Arthur Carlton Started For India. He Had Been More Fortunate

Than Could Have Been Expected In The Profession He Had Chosen,  For He

Had Scarcely Been Three Years Turning Over Musty Deeds,  Copying Legal

Documents And Other Drudgeries Appertaining To A Lawyer'S Office,  When

His Employer Died,  Leaving Him The Business And Recommending Him To The

Notice Of His Clients Generally. Now,  Although Tom'S Chambers Were

Situated In Lincoln'S Inn Fields Which Everybody Knows (Who Knows

Anything Of London) Is A Large,  Airy Space,  Surrounded With Iron

Railings,  Wherein There Are Plenty Of Trees,  Flowers,  Grasses,  And

Gravel Walks To Stroll About In,  All Of Which Could Be Seen From His

Chamber Window. But This Was Not Sufficient For Him. He Wanted Something

More Suburban And Evidently Considered The Atmosphere North Of Oxford

Street More Conducive To His Health,  Or He Would Never Have Imposed Upon

Himself The Task Of Walking From Lincoln'S Inn So Far Westward Up Harley

Street. Yet,  Although The Air Must Have Been More Pure Some Half A Mile

Further On,  He Never By Any Chance,  Succeeded In Getting Beyond No. 54.

 

There Was Also Another Gentleman Who Found It Convenient And Agreeable

To Walk In The Same Direction And Stop At The Same House. This For Some

Time Perplexed Our Friend,  Tom,  And Gave Him Considerable Uneasiness In

The Region Of The Heart. His First Business Was To Discover Who He Was;

This Did Not Take Long To Accomplish,  But He Was More Puzzled Than Ever;

There Was No One Ill At No. 54,  And The Gentleman Turned Out To Be A

Physician Of Good Standing,  Residing In cavendish Square. He Dared Not

Speak To Kate On The Subject,  For Fear Of Committing Himself And

Becoming Exposed To That Little Lady'S Raillery,  For He Well Knew That

She Would Torment Him Unmercifully If He Betrayed The Least Sign Of

Jealousy. Wishing To Be Satisfied On A Point That So Troubled Him,  He

Determined To Sound His Aunt On The Matter. He Was A Great Favourite

With Her,  And She Was Not Likely To Betray Him To His Lady Love.

 

"Very Quiet,  Gentlemanly Sort Of Person,  Doctor Ashburnham; Don'T You

Think So," He Enquired Of His Aunt One Evening,  As They Were Seated

Alone In The Drawing Room On Harley Street?

 

"It Is Well That You Are That Way Of Thinking,  For He Has The Same

Opinion Of You," Remarked Mrs. Cotterell With A Quiet Smile. "Do You

Remember To Have Met Him Anywhere But In London?" She Asked,  After A Few

Moments' Pause.

 

Tom Shook His Head And Replied,  "I Think Not,  But