and F.A.S., was the representative
of an ancient family, and a landed proprietor of some
importance. He had married young; not from any
ardent inclination for the connubial state, but in
compliance with the request of his parents.
They took the pains to select his bride; and if they
might have chosen better, they might have chosen worse,
which is more than can be said for many men who choose
wives for themselves. Miss Caroline Brotherton
was in all respects a suitable connection. She
had a pretty fortune, which was of much use in buying
a couple of farms, long desiderated by the Chillinglys
as necessary for the rounding of their property into
a ring-fence. She was highly connected, and
brought into the county that experience of fashionable
life acquired by a young lady who has attended a course
of balls for three seasons, and gone out in matrimonial
honours, with credit to herself and her chaperon.
She was handsome enough to satisfy a husband’s
pride, but not so handsome as to keep perpetually on
the qui vive a husband’s jealousy.
She was considered highly accomplished; that is,
she played upon the pianoforte so that any musician
would say she “was very well taught;” but
no musician would go out of his way to hear her a
second time. She painted in water-colours—well
enough to amuse herself. She knew French and
Italian with an elegance so lady-like that, without
having read more than selected extracts from authors
in those languages, she spoke them both with an accent
more correct than we have any reason to attribute
to Rousseau or Ariosto. What else a young lady
may acquire in order to be styled highly accomplished
I do not pretend to know; but I am sure that the young
lady in question fulfilled that requirement in the
opinion of the best masters. It was not only
an eligible match for Sir Peter Chillingly,—it
was a brilliant match. It was also a very unexceptionable
match for Miss Caroline Brotherton. This excellent
couple got on together as most excellent couples do.
A short time after marriage, Sir Peter, by the death
of his parents—who, having married their
heir, had nothing left in life worth the trouble of
living for—succeeded to the hereditary estates;
he lived for nine months of the year at Exmundham,
going to town for the other three months. Lady
Chillingly and himself were both very glad to go to
town, being bored at Exmundham; and very glad to go
back to Exmundham, being bored in town. With
one exception it was an exceedingly happy marriage,
as marriages go. Lady Chillingly had her way
in small things; Sir Peter his way in great.
Small things happen every day; great things once
in three years. Once in three years Lady Chillingly
gave way to Sir Peter; households so managed go on
regularly. The exception to their connubial
happiness was, after all, but of a negative description.
Their affection was such that they sighed for a pledge
of it; fourteen years had he and Lady Chillingly remained
unvisited by the little stranger.
Copyrights
Kenelm Chillingly — Volume 01 from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.
