"And which is Lucy's? Can it be

That puny fop, armed cap-a-pie,

Who loves in the saloon to show

The arms that never knew a foe."--SCOTT.

"My lady's compliments, ma'am, and she would he much obliged if you

would remain till she comes home," was Coombe's reception of Alison.

"She is gone to Avoncester with Master Temple and Master Francis."

"Gone to Avoncester!" exclaimed Rachel, who had walked from church to

Myrtlewood with Alison.

"Mamma is gone to meet the Major!" cried three of the lesser boys,

rushing upon them in full cry; then Leoline, facing round, "Not the

major, he is lieutenant-colonel now--Colonel Keith, hurrah!"

"What--what do you mean? Speak rationally, Leoline, if you can."

"My lady sent a note to the Homestead this morning," explained Coombe.

"She heard this morning that Colonel Keith intended to arrive to-day,

and took the young gentlemen with her to meet him."

Rachel could hardly refrain from manifesting her displeasure, and

bluntly asked what time Lady Temple was likely to be at home.

"It depended," Coombe said, "upon the train; it was not certain whether

Colonel Keith would come by the twelve or the two o'clock train."

And Rachel was going to turn sharply round, and dash home with the

tidings, when Alison arrested her with the question-"And who is Colonel Keith?"

Rachel was too much wrapped up in her own view to hear the trembling of

the voice, and answered, "Colonel Keith! why, the Major! You have not

been here so long without hearing of the Major?"

"Yes, but I did not know. Who is he?" And a more observant person would

have seen the governess's gasping effort to veil her eagerness under her

wonted self-control.

"Don't you know who the Major is?" shouted Leoline. "He is our military

secretary."

"That's the sum total of my knowledge," said Rachel, "I don't understand

his influence, nor know where he was picked up."

"Nor his regiment?"

"He is not a regimental officer; he is on our staff," said Leoline,

whose imagination could not attain to an earlier condition than "on our

staff."

"I shall go home, then," said Rachel, "and see if there is any

explanation there."

"I shall ask the Major not to let Aunt Rachel come here," observed

Hubert, as she departed; it was well it was not before.

"Leoline," anxiously asked Alison, "can you tell me the Major's name?"

"Colonel Keith--Lieutenant-Colonel Keith," was all the answer.

"I meant his Christian name, my dear."

"Only little boys have Christian names!" they returned, and Alison was

forced to do her best to tame herself and them to the duties of the long

day of anticipation so joyous on their part, so full of confusion and

bewildered anxiety on her own. She looked in vain, half stealthily, as

often before, for a recent Army List or Peerage. Long ago she had

lost the Honourable Colin A. Keith from among the officers of the --th

Highlanders, and though in the last Peerage she had laid hands on he was

still among the surviving sons of the late Lord Keith, of Gowanbrae, the

date had not gone back far enough to establish that he had not died in

the Indian war. It was fear that predominated with her, there were many

moments when she would have given worlds to be secure that the newcomer

was not the man she thought of, who, whether constant or inconstant,

could bring nothing but pain and disturbance to the calm tenour of her

sister's life. Everything was an oppression to her; the children, in

their wild, joyous spirits and gladsome inattention, tried her patience

almost beyond her powers; the charge of the younger ones in their

mother's absence was burthensome, and the delay in returning to her

sister became well-nigh intolerable, when she figured to herself Rachel

Curtis going down to Ermine with the tidings of Colonel Keith's arrival,

and her own discontent at his influence with her cousin. Would that

she had spoken a word of warning; yet that might have been merely

mischievous, for the subject was surely too delicate for Rachel to

broach with so recent a friend. But Rachel had bad taste for anything!

That the little boys did not find Miss Williams very cross that day was

an effect of the long habit of self-control, and she could hardly sit

still under the additional fret, when, just as tea was spread for the

school-room party, in walked Miss Rachel, and sat herself down, in spite

of Hubert, who made up a most coaxing, entreating face, as he said,

"Please, Aunt Rachel, doesn't Aunt Grace want you very much!"




readonlinefreebook.com Copyright 2016 - 2024