Anne kissed us all round, and augured cheerfully that
she should lay up a store of shells and rocks by
the seaside to make ’a perfect Robinson Crusoe
cavern,’ she said, ’and then Clarence can
come and be the Spaniards and the savages.
But that won’t be till next summer,’
she added, shaking her head. ’I shall get
Ellen to tell Emily what shells I find, and then
she can tell Martyn; for mamma says girls never write
to boys unless they are their brothers! And
now Martyn will never be my brother,’ she added
ruefully.
‘You will always be our darling,’ I said.
‘That’s not the same as your sister,’
she answered. However, amid auguries of the
combination of robbers and Robinson Crusoe, the parting
was effected, and Anne borne off by the maid; while
we had Martyn on our hands, stamping about and declaring
that it was very hard that because Griff chose to
be a faithless, inconstant ruffian, all his pleasure
and comfort in life should be stopped! He said
such outrageous things that, between scolding him
and laughing at him, Emily had been somewhat cheered
by the time we reached the house.
My father had written to Griffith, in his first displeasure,
curt wishes that he might not have reason to repent
of the step he had taken, though he had not gone
the right way to obtain a blessing. As it was
not suitable that a man should be totally dependent
on his wife, his allowance should be continued; but
under present circumstances he must perceive that
he and Lady Peacock could not be received at Chantry
House. We were shown the letter, and thought
it terribly brief and cold; but my mother said it
would be weak to offer forgiveness that was not sought,
and my father was specially exasperated at the absence
of all contrition as to the treatment of Ellen.
All Griff had vouchsafed on that head was—the
rupture had been the Fordyces’ doing; he was
not bound. As to intercourse with him, Clarence
and I might act as we saw fit.
‘Only,’ said my father, as Clarence was
leaving home, ’I trust you not to get yourself
involved in this set.’
Clarence gave a queer smile, ’They would not
take me as a gift, papa.’
And as my father turned from the hall door, he laid
his hand on his wife’s arm, and said, ’Who
would have told us what that young fellow would be
to us.’
She sighed, and said, ’He is not twenty-three;
he has plenty of money, and is very fond of Griff.’
’And my friend rose up in the shadows,
And turned to me,
“Be of good cheer,” I said faintly,
For He called thee.’
B. M.
Mr. Fordyce waited at Hillside till after Sunday,
and then went to Bath to hear the verdict of the
physician. He returned as much depressed as
it was in his sanguine nature to be, for great delicacy
of the lungs had been detected; and to prevent the
recent chill from leaving permanent injury, Ellen
must have a winter abroad, and warm sea or mountain
air at once. Whether the disease were constitutional
and would have come on at all events no one could
tell.
