She made Molly sit down near her on a little stool, and, holding her
hand, and looking into her eyes to catch her spoken sympathy from
their expression quicker than she could from her words, she said,--
"Osborne has so disappointed us! I cannot understand it yet. And the
Squire was so terribly angry! I cannot think how all the money was
spent--advances through money-lenders, besides bills. The Squire
does not show me how angry he is now, because he's afraid of another
attack; but I know how angry he is. You see he has been spending ever
so much money in reclaiming that land at Upton Common, and is very
hard pressed himself. But it would have doubled the value of the
estate, and so we never thought anything of economies which would
benefit Osborne in the long run. And now the Squire says he must
mortgage some of the land; and you can't think how it cuts him to
the heart. He sold a great deal of timber to send the two boys to
college. Osborne--oh! what a dear, innocent boy he was: he was the
heir, you know; and he was so clever, every one said he was sure of
honours and a fellowship, and I don't know what all; and he did get
a scholarship, and then all went wrong. I don't know how. That is
the worst. Perhaps the Squire wrote too angrily, and that stopped up
confidence. But he might have told me. He would have done, I think,
Molly, if he had been here, face to face with me. But the Squire, in
his anger, told him not to show his face at home till he had paid off
the debts he had incurred out of his allowance. Out of two hundred
and fifty a year to pay off more than nine hundred, one way or
another! And not to come home till then! Perhaps Roger will have
debts too! He had but two hundred; but, then, he was not the eldest
son. The Squire has given orders that the men are to be turned off
the draining-works; and I lie awake thinking of their poor families
this wintry weather. But what shall we do? I've never been strong,
and, perhaps, I've been extravagant in my habits; and there were
family traditions as to expenditure, and the reclaiming of this land.
Oh! Molly, Osborne was such a sweet little baby, and such a loving
boy: so clever, too! You know I read you some of his poetry: now,
could a person who wrote like that do anything very wrong? And yet
I'm afraid he has."