^OJIIVJJO^ %OJIlVJ-JO^' .. O, ^•LIBRARY?/ & & %0JITV>J^ ^UIBRARY^ § 1 ir ^ojiiya-j^ ,^E UNIVERS/a ^lOSANGElfj> ^mainii^ ^•inSANGElfj> 'O %oi\miti^ %oi\mft& ijiiJl o CAtlF0fy> ^QKAllFOfy* .avaaiH^ #AbvaaiB# AWEUNIVERJ/a OQ ^vlOSAKCElfjv. * e UNIVERSE 30NVS0V .^lOSANCElfjv, 1 ^tllBRARYQ-r ^LIBRARY?/ •SOl^ "^/MAINlia^ ^OJITVOJO^ aweuni ^* as UNIVER% .^AOS-ANGElfo J0NVSO1 .^OFCALIF0%, .^OfCALIF(%, y 0AHViian-# ^Aaviian^ & M-\ LIBRARY^. ^UIBRARY-Oc AWEUNIVERS'/a % UNO-JO^ %OJI1V3-J0^ ' if & UNIVER% o. 13NV--S0V^' v^lOSANCFLfj> ^ainu^ ^•IIBRARY^ ^UIBRARYQr £ >- OS TEEVETHLAN. VOL. I. TREVETHLAN: & GCorntsf) &torg. BY WILLIAM DAVY WATSON, Esq., BABRISTER-AT-LAW. IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. I. LONDON: SMITH, ELDER AND CO., 65, CORNHILL. 1318. London: Printed by Stewart and Murray, Old Bailey. / /v. -US339 t TREVETHLAN. CHAPTER I. " What, am I poor of late ? "lis certain, greatness, once fallen out with fortune, Must fall out with men too. What the declined is, He shall as soon read in the eyes of others, As feel in his own fall : for men, like butterflies, Show not their mealy wings but to the summer ; And not a man, for being simply man, Hath any honour ; but honour for those honours That are without him, as place, riches, favour, Prizes of accident as oft as merit." Shakspeare. Late in September, some thirty years ago, Henry Trevethlan lay dying* in the state- bedchamber of Trevethlan Castle, in Corn- wall. It was a large and lofty apartment, indifferently lighted by Gothic casements overlooking the sea, and wearing a gloomy VOL. I. B 5527S 2 TREVETHLAN. and desolate aspect. Old hangings of tapestry, much faded and worn, covered the walls ; the furniture was scanty and inconvenient ; the floor was bare, and the dark oak had lost its polish ; the very logs in the spacious chimney seemed damped hy the cheerlessness of the room, and threw a dull red glare over the prodigious bed, where death was silently counting the few sands yet remaining in the upper half of his hour-glass. As soon as he found himself seriously ill, Mr. Trevethlan had solemnly charged his medical attendant to warn him of the first approach of danger ; and immediately that the announcement was made, he caused himself to he removed from the smaller but more commodious apartment which he usually occupied, to the dreary greatness of the state-chamber, taking no heed of the remonstrance that the change would probably hasten his dissolution. a Pshaw !" said lie. " What matter a TREVETHLAN. 3 few days ? The Trevethlans always die in the state-rooms." Accordingly their present representative was duly observing* the custom. Four days had elapsed since his removal, and he had sunk so rapidly, that it was now doubtful whether as many more hours remained to him :, but his mental faculties were still clear and unclouded. His son and daughter watched mournfully by his bedside. tt Helen," he said, u Helen Trevethlan, I wish to speak with your brother. Leave us for a while." The girl rose silently, and glided out of the room. As soon as she had closed the door, the dying man turned feebly upon his pillows, fixed his still bright eyes upon his son, and spoke in low but distinct accents : Ci Randolph, I leave you a beggar and a Trevethlan ! May my curse cling to you, if ever you suffer poverty to tamper with pride. Employment will be open to you : may youv appointment be your death- b2 4 TREVETHLAN. warrant. Ay, methinks it may raise my ghost, if Randolph Trevethlan accept a favour from Philip Pendarrel". Live, sir, here, as I have lived. Marry, sir, as I married. Rear an heir to the castle, as I have reared you. Bequeath him the same legacy, which I bequeath you. But there is my fear. How much of your mother's blood runs in your veins ? What base lean- ing's may you not have inherited from her ? Feel you not a love for your peasant re- latives ? Gratifying* my revenge by en- grafting* a wild bud on a noble stem, I for- got that the fruit might degenerate. Speak, sir, is it so 1 Do the honours of Treveth- lan descend upon a dastard ? Say it, that a father's curse may embitter the remainder of your days." u Oh, my father," said the young man, in deep and earnest tones, " never shall our name be degraded while it belongs to me. But may I not strive to restore it to splendour? Must Trevethlan ever be de- TREVETHLAN. solate ? Shall the successors of our race wander in these halls ; only to mourn over their decay ? And is the livery of office the sole passport to the means of renovation ? Have I not hands, and a head, and heart ? " "What would }~ou, sir?" exclaimed the father. a Hands ! would you dig- ? There speaks your peasant mother. Head ! learn- ing' ! profession ! What portrait has its face turned to the wall in yonder gallery ? Mr. Justice Trevethlan, attaint of corrup- tion. Heart ! arms ! Ay, but not in peace. No Trevethlan wears a sword to adorn a levee. And now, sir, the source of your commission would make it a disgrace." a My father," Randolph again said, "to no patron will I be indebted for advance- ment. On myself alone I rely. May I not exert the powers I derive from nature? I thought not of the army : a uniform has no temptations for me. But, gazing on the back of that picture, might I not hope to 6 TREVETHLAN. wipe out the stain incurred in a corrupt age, by rising* to be an example in purer times ?" a Shall a Trevethlan descend among* the paltry Chiquanous?" said the dying* man, with g*reat bitterness. u Shall that name be mingled with the low trickery of the modern forum ; exposed to the risk of failure, and to the mockery of upstart talent? Shall Esther Pendarrel smile at the rude eloquence of her rejected suitor's heir, and exult over the unretrieved ruin of his house? No, sir. Think it not. Starve, sir, here in Trevethlan Castle." u But my father," the young* man urg*ed, u if means could be found whereby all such risk should be avoided ; if success might restore our house, while failure could not degrade it ; might I not venture on a career so g*uarded?" u How, sir, is such a course practicable V 7 " By permitting* me, my father, for a time to wear a mask," answered Bandolph. TREVETHLAN. 7 a The name of Trevethlan may be sup- posed to be wandering abroad, while the estates are recovering themselves at home ; and the real bearer of the name, assuming* one less known, may live obscurely in Lon- don^ struggling' honourably for an inde- pendence. If he fail, the pilgrim returns : if he succeeds, he brings new honour to Trevethlan Castle." Mr. Trevethlan made no answer to this proposition for a considerable time j and his son might see by the varying* expression of his sharpened features, the struggle which agitated his mind. At length he spoke, in tones milder and more parental than he had used previously. " Randolph, I consent. I have watched you well, and, in spite of the. taunts which break from my soured heart, I believe you are worthy of your name." u Father," said the son, " my life must show my gratitude: it shall be passed, as if you still beheld it." 8 TEEVETHLAN. Again there was a long- silence in the gloomy chamber. Then the dying' man spoke anew ; in accents still tenderer than his last. ec Randolph, I mentioned Esther Pen- darrel. You know her not by sight. She was once; or I fancied she was ; very dear to me. She coquetted with me; discarded me, and wedded my kinsman. I never for- gave her ; and; except on one provision; I now forbid all future intercourse with her or hers. But I have sometimes thought I was not so indifferent to her; as she; in her contempt; pretended. If it were SO; she has avenged me on herself, and has my pardon. You know my dying will. As I have consented to the temporary obscu- ration of our race; so do you promise ; with the qualification I mentioned; to have no friendly relations with the family of Philip Pendarrel." Rashly and wrongfully the son gave the pledge wrongfully and deliberately required TREVETHLAN. 9 by the father, and soon afterwards sum- moned his sister back to her place beside the bed of death. The following- morning- the blinds were not raised in the windows of the castle, and the rag-g-ed flag- which waved over the loftiest watch-tower, floated from the middle of its staff. The last sand of the hour-g-lass had run, and Henry Trevethlan was numbered with his fathers. Trevethlan Castle was an extensive pile of Tudor architecture, situate on a bold headland projecting- into the sea between the Lizard and Marazion. The state apart- ments stretched along- the cliff, and com- manded a fine view of Mount's Bay and the surrounding- uplands ; while the other building's of the castle, strengthened at intervals by lofty towers, enclosed an ir- reg-ular court-yard. The remains of walls and ruined turrets, sweeping' inland, marked the circuit of what had once been the base- court — a spacious area, where Owen Tre- vethlan mustered his vassals to pursue 10 TKEVETHLAN. Perkin Warbeck's rebels, obtaining" for his services on that occasion the title of baron. This honour had, however, been allowed to lapse ; and, although it was stated to be easily recoverable, no subsequent head of the family had chosen to moot the question. Perhaps they thought their name sufficiently distinguished without any addition : perhaps the fact that, being a crotchetty race, they were almost always in opposition to the Crown, made them loth to seek even the shadow of a favour, But the days of feudal violence and civil dudgeon were long gone by; and instead of the clang of arms and the tramp of soldiers, the base-court of Trevethlan Castle now echoed no sound more military than the occasional crack of a fowling-piece ; and its silence was more generally broken by the mower sharpening his scythe, or the gardener trailing a roller. Sooth to say, even these peaceful noises had been very rare for a long- time previous to the opening TREVETHLAN. 11 of this tale : the garden which occupied the old place of arms had fallen into neglect \ the ivy, which might have been ornamental to the ruined walls and outworks, stifled the trees and shrubs in its oppressive em- brace ; the flowers struggled hard for life amidst a host of weeds ; the grass of the lawn, unmown since the summer, when it was cut for hay, was rusty and patchy; the gravel walks were green and mouldy. One little plot of ground, however, was an oasis in the general desert : it occupied an angle of the castle, having a southern aspect, and was screened from the sea- breezes by the wall along the cliff: here trim flower-beds were cut in a small expanse of turf, and displayed, even at this advanced season, not a few gems of horticulture. And two or three windows, looking from the first floor on this still blooming garden, presented no less striking a contrast to the rest of the castle, than the garden itself afforded to the remainder of the great court. 12 TREVETHLAN. Their florid decorations were sharp and fresh ; their glass was bright and clear ; and white curtains within might temper the radiance of the mid-day sun. But, everywhere else, the progress of decay was manifest : the Gothic tracery was crumbling away ; panes were frequently wanting- in the casements ; and when they were perfect, the winter spray and summer dust had ren- dered them nearly opaque. Weeds grew between the stones and on the ledges of the walls ; and long creeping-plants hung from the battlements, and waved mournfully in the wind. Desolation reigned paramount over Trevethlan Castle. Nor did the interior of the building belie its external aspect. The state bed-chamber was a sample of all the rest. In many of the rooms the dust had been undisturbed for nearly thirty years. But two were exceptions to the general neglect : one, the gallery to which Mr. Trevethlan referred, where hung the portraits of the family, TREVETHLAN. 18 generation after generation, from the days of Holbein to those of Reynolds. This was the favourite walk of Mrs. Griffith; the wife of the steward, whose office had been hereditary in his family almost from the earliest of those portraits. Mrs. Griffith used to spend much of her spare time in the gallery, walking to and fro with a long flapper of feathers in her hand, gently and reverentially brushing the dust from the pictures, and never passing that which was turned to the wall without a deep sigh. The last Mrs. Trevethlan — a new Griselda — had been treated with civil neglect by her husband, and died under the weight of her position, after bearing him the son and daughter already introduced. She was the child of a small tenant upon the estate ; and Mr. Trevethlan, having* attained the only object of his marriage, checked some presumption of her family with marked disdain. The maternal care and early edu- cation of his children devolved upon Mrs. 14 TREVETHLAN. Griffith, and the portrait-gallery was their usual school-room. Here they learned the history of their family as the history of En o*l and : not a bad memoria technica, hut one attended with some risk. However, it may easily he guessed that they had no hard task-mistress, and that battledore-and- shuttlecock often interrupted the story of Queen Elizabeth's maid-of-hohour, or of the colonel who fell in endeavouring' to rally Fairfax's horse at Marston Moor. And whatever family pride might be acquired in this gallery was chastened in the other apartment exempted from the general desolation. This was the library, the especial domain of Polydore Riches, the chaplain of the castle. Riches held a fellowship at Cambridge, but had incurred, no matter how, the dislike of his superiors ; being somewhat timid and retiring, he there- upon gave up residence, and accepted Mr. Trevethlan's offer of his chaplaincy and the curacy of the hamlet. And when that TREVETHLAN. 15 gentleman's affairs became inextricably in- volved ; the worthy clergyman declined a release from his duties^ and continued to reside at Trevethlan,, maintaining- himself on the proceeds of his fellowship. The people at the village said he might some- times be seen in the dusk of evenings lean- ing* on the tombstone in their churchyard which marked the resting-place of Eose Griffith, a relation of the steward. It was also said that he had positively refused to perform the marriage ceremony between his patron and Margaret Basset ; and it was true. For once, Mr. Trevethlan respected a pride that was equal to his own^ and contented himself with a sarcasm on the eccentricity of poverty. Polydore had now resided nearly thirty years at the castle^ and was more than fifty in age. But time sat light upon him., and he looked much younger. From Mrs. Griffith he received as pupils his patron's children^ and the library took the place 16 TREVETHLAN. of the picture gallery. Polydore was en- thusiastic, and children love enthusiasm : there was a tmsre of sadness in his de- meanour, and childish pity is more akin to affection than that of older persons. It was not wonderful that Randolph and Helen were frequently glad to escape from the presence of the cold and stern man whom they called father, to the teaching* of the tender and o-entle beino- who ruled in the library. Nor was it more strang*e that with such an instructor they made rapid proficiency in whatever pursuit he directed. (( Lonely," he exclaimed one day, when Randolph, then sixteen, inquired if he did not feel so in the solitude of the castle, " lonely with a library like this ! Lonely in the society of those around me ! Of Park, first beholding- the Niger! Of Co- lumbus, seeing the light from the poop of his ship ! Of Watt, contemplating one of our Cornish engines ! Of Newton, ob- TKEVETHLAN. 17 serving- the fall of the apple ! Of Luther, taking* his stand at the Diet of Worms ! Of Shakspeare, g'iving ' to airy nothing A local habitation and. a name !' Of |focon, writing- ' Thus thought Francis of Verulam !' Lonely amidst the triumphs of enterprise, art and science ; of history, poetry and philosophy ! Lonely, where whatever science has discovered, and art applied, and enterprise accomplished * what history has recorded, and poetry exalted, and philosophy ordered, is visibly pre- sented ! Where power, skill, and under- standing', memory, fancy, and wisdom have written their greatest names, their mighti- est deeds, their noblest thoughts ! No, Randolph Trevethlan, there is no loneliness in such society as this." It was his own feeling, perhaps, that Randolph expressed in the inquiry which extracted this speech from the chaplain. For to the buoyancy of youth, the castle vol. i. c 18 TREVETHLAN. might well seem a dreary abode. When a man gives up the world; the world gene- rally returns the compliment ; and in this instance Mr. Trevethlan's violation of the biens^ances in his marriage widened the breach. No friend or relation visited him during the last years of his life. And, indeed^ their entertainment would have been a serious burden on the finances of their host. It is probable that the steward was a much richer man than his master 5 it is not impossible that all the expenses of Trevethlan did not fall upon its lord. Yet the establishment had gradually de- clined to the lowest point. An old porter, named Jeffrey, who occupied the entrance lodge to the inner court, and cultivated a small kitchen garden, was the only male domestic : his wife, and two or three maid- servants performed all the other offices of the castle. People often wondered that Mr. Griffith did not leave such a falling house. But Mr. Griffith was not a rat. TREVETHLAN. 19 He had lived there more than half a century, and was prepared to continue as long- again. Nor let it be supposed that this devotion was entirely due to the place. Proud and reserved as had been its recent master, he was far from being* wholly un amiable ; even his children, to whom he behaved with uniform harshness, reg-arded him with as much affection as awe • and his dependents, whom he treated with almost as constant kindness, served him with real attachment. Well did Griffith recollect the day, although it was five and thirty years past, and he was scarcely twenty at the time, when Mr. Trevethlan g*alloped into the court-yard with his horse in a foam, on his return from Pendarrel, ordered his carriage, paced impatiently up and down the great hall while it was being prepared, and departed to London without uttering another word. Well, too, did the steward remember his father's grief, as missive after missive came c 2 20 TREVETHLAN. to Trevethlan in the few following* years, of which the constant burden was " money, money." Mortgage Tresylty, sell Penrevil, fell Withewood ; so it went on, until the extensive domain, once appended to the castle, was reduced to its immediate pre- cincts. Then Mr. Trevethlan came home, and lived during* the remainder of his days in the secluded manner, which has already been sufficiently described. TEEVETHLAN. 21 CHAPTER II. " Strange is it, that our bloods. Of colour, weight, and heat, poured all together, Would quite confound distinction, yet stand off In differences so mighty." Shakspeare. Randolph Treyethlan was just of age when his father died; his sister ; two years younger. Their singular education had impressed peculiarities upon each of them • but, trained so entirely together, their habits and dispositions had grown into a conformity almost perfect. Their pursuits, their wishes, their attachments were always the same. Their father never allowed them to set foot on any ground which had been alienated from the castle ; and as such sur- rounded it at a short distance, their inland 22 TREVETHLAN. walks were restricted within a very narrow cordon. But the beach, no man's land, was open to their rambles : a winding- stair led from the castle to a portal cut in the face of the rock on which it stood, and a flight of steps descended from this doorway to the shingles, washed by the waves which rolled eternally from the farthest Atlantic. Not far to the south, the rock formed a narrow promontory of inconsiderable height, but running- out some distance into the sea. The rough granite afforded good footing*, and with a little •exertion, it was not diffi- cult to reach the extremity, where there was a small cave. Randolph smoothed the ruggedness of the way, and this recess, which they called Merlin's Cave, became the favourite resort of himself and Helen. From it, they looked straightforward past Mousehole and the Logan Hock to the meeting of sea and sky, while a turn to the right, showed them St. Michael's Mount and the beautiful woods over Penzance. TREVETHLAN. 23 Here, in the warm season, they often sat for many hours together, reading* the leg-ends of Cornubia, and of Armorica across the waters. Here, in the winter, when the wind blew heavily from the west, they came to admire the huge swell of the ocean thundering* idly on the granite be- neath their feet. It might be thought that such a life would produce a dreamy and feeble turn of mind, ill-calculated to with- stand the buffets of the world. And it will be found, in fact, that this result did in some degree follow. But the lessons and conversation of Polydore Eiches, and the cold cynicism of Mr. Trevethlan, furnished a partial antidote to its enervating ten- dency. It made the brother and sister highly enthusiastic, but it did not entirely substitute romance for reality. They knew very little of the world, yet the castles which they built in the air, were of brick and mortar, not of crystal and vapour. The plan which Randolph disclosed to his 24 TKEVETHLAN. dying' father, had been often discussed be- tween himself and Helen. An old edition of Blackstone's Commentaries, and one, equally out of date of Burn's Justice, which he found in the library, attested by their wear and tear, the diligence of the young 1 student, who little thought of the depth to which he must dive, to find the sands of the legal Pactolus. To go to London, to take some suburban lodging, to dwell in frugal retirement, was the scheme arranged by Randolph and Helen Morton. Mr. Griffith and Polydore would be their only confidants ; the former would introduce Randolph to the family lawyer, of course in his feigned name, who would procure his admission at an Inn of Court 5 five years — that was the bitter in the cup — five long years would qualify him for the bar : and then, he should stretch forth his hand and collect the golden grains. When a suffi- ciency of the commodity was stored up, Randolph and Helen Trevetlilan would TREVETHLAN. 25 arrive one fine day at Trevetlilan Castle, which would have been gradually restored to receive them, and there would be ringing' of bells and firing* of cannon ; a new flag would fly from the lofty watch-tower ; Grif- fith and his wife would weep for joy ; Poly- dore would give them his blessing ; and the sun of Trevethlan, long hidden by clouds, would shine out with a glory never to be again obscured. These visions were interrupted by Mr. Trevethlan's illness and death. The prepa- rations necessary for the funeral devolved upon the steward and his wife. Mrs. Grif- fith produced some velvet which had once been black, wherewith to hang the state chamber, and a few tapers lighted up the solemn mockery. The orphan brother and sister sat afar in those rooms, which have been already described as overlooking a small flower garden. The blinds, lowered reverentially, debarred the occupants from beholding the prospect, and seemed to sever 26 TEEVETHLAN. them from all communion with the world. They leant against each other in sad silence, as if they were too feeble to sustain them- selves apart, and required mutual support. Little had they thought how much the loss, even of their father, could add to the loneli- ness of Trevethlan Castle. And the scheme on which they had so long- and so often dwelt in Merlin's Cave, and which then seemed 'so simple and feasible, now assumed a hard and perplexing* aspect. The edifice, which at a distance looked fair and stately, presented on a nearer view the whited wall of the sepulchre. Wrapped in such reverie, with their arms twined around each other, they were sitting- side by side, the day preceding- that ap- pointed for the funeral, when the chaplain entered with a letter in his hand. Yery rare, indeed, was the arrival of such a missive at the castle, and Polydore's ap- pearance roused the mourners from their lethargy. He delivered the epistle to Kan- TREVETHLAN. 27 dolph, and retired with delicate kindness. It was dated from May Fair, London, and was to the following' effect : — " My dear Nephew, a The estrangement, which has so long* and so unhappily divided our families, can- not deter me from offering* you and my niece, the sincere condolence both of Mrs. Trevethlan Pendarrel and of myself, on the recent melancholy event. " Most deeply do I regret that a pressure of engagements will prevent me from at- tending- the last obsequies of my lamented relative ; but Mrs. Trevethlan Pendarrel intends to have the pleasure of calling* at Trevethlan Castle before many clays have elapsed, and of making* the acquaintance of her nephew and niece. " Fearing* that circumstances may render the funeral an embarrassment, and awaiting* a satisfactory arrang'ement for the comfort of yourself and your sister, I have ventured 28 TEEVETHLAN. to direct my bankers, Messrs. , to honour the drafts of Mr. Randolph Tre- vethlan to the amount of £500. (i Mrs. Trevethlan Pendarrel unites in the regard with which u I am, " My dear nephew, u Yours very affectionately, " P. Trevethlan Pendarrel." Helen watched her brother's face as he read this effusion of sympathy, and was almost alarmed at the change which came over it. He held the letter at arm's length, and gazed upon it : the lessons of the por- trait-gallery crowded thickly upon him, and those of the library were forgotten. " May I read it, Randolph ? " his sister asked, timidly laying her hand on his ex- tended arm. a Read it !" he repeated. a A} 7- , read it, Helen ; read it, and learn what we have become ! Well might our father say that a TREVETHLAN. 29 favour received from Philip Pendarrel would disturb him in his grave." " Was it not kindly meant ?" Helen said, gently, after perusing* the letter. " Is insult ever kind V asked her brother in reply. a Think they the spirit of our house is extinct, that they come in such hot haste to exult over its decay ? Helen, the letter gives me heart. Why have we de- sponded of our scheme ? We are not yet absolutely beggars. The last moveable in the castle shall be sold, the last farthing spent, in the struggle for independence. And if it fail, we will come back to our cold hearth, and here, for the last time, our hearts shall beat together as they do now. But, Helen, my dearest sister, we will not fail." "And this promised visit?" his sister said, after a pause. " Mrs. Pendarrel must return as she comes," said Randolph. " She does not cross the threshold of Trevethlan Castle 30 TREVETHLAN. while I am its master. — Come, let us take a turn in the gallery." Helen sighed as she took her brother's arm for the walk he proposed. The conflict which restored his spirit, saddened hers. It seemed a presage of evil, that the first step of the orphans should involve them in a quarrel with their nearest relations. The rowan bends Availing* under the breeze which the oak defies. Several times had the length of the gallery been traversed in silence, when Randolph pro- duced a small miniature, and showed it to his sister. " See, Helen/' he said : " they found this upon him. I imagine it is her likeness — Mrs. Pendarrel's." " It is very beautiful," Helen remarked. "Very beautiful," repeated her brother, " at first sight. But is it not a beauty rather to fear than to love 1 There is strong expression in the face — but of what? Is hatred or affection most apparent in those TREVETHLAN. 31 inscrutable dark eyes ? Is it good-humour or disdain that curls those lips ?" u And why/' Helen asked, " do you think it is a portrait of Mrs. Pendarrel?" " Because, my dear sister, our poor father told me she was once very dear to him : she encouraged him, he said, and refused him. When they brought me this picture, it recalled his words. There is a key to the history which we have dimly heard." Again the orphans made several turns in the gallery, musing in silence. Then Ran- dolph spoke : — u Yes, Helen ! — that was the beauty destined to be the ruin of our house. In each successive crash that broke upon his head, our father hoped to find forgetfulness of the past. But it was too deeply written on his heart. And when the desolation was complete, he came back here to hide anguish under pride, to cover tenderness with stern reserve. Hence that cold de- 32 TREVETHLAN. meanour which kept even his children at a distance, and, seeming* to reject their affection, checked, but did not stifle, its growth. The story has made him more dear to me than ever before. And now she, who broke his heart and drove him to ruin ; insults us with her sympathy and her wealth." " She must herself be old," said Helen. " Perhaps she, too, has had sorrows. I would fain believe you misinterpret that letter." "Your wish is what it should be," ob- served Randolph : K I should be glad to think it well founded. Forgive me, dear sister, if, for once, I differ from you. We must not see Mrs. Pendarrel." The next day Randolph Trevethlan fol- lowed his father's remains to the vault in the village churchyard. It was but a short space from the gates of the base-court, and within the precinct still appertaining* to the castle. Polydore Riches performed the TBEVETHLAN. 33 funeral rites, and the grave closed over the dead. The chief mourner had been too much absorbed in his own emotions during- the ceremony to notice the bystanders ; but when it w r as over, he looked round to thank such as were known to him, for their sympathy and respect. While so engaged, he happened to turn his eye on a couple, who stood a little apart, beneath the shade of an old yew tree. They were a young- man about his own age, and a decrepit old woman. They returned his look with an air which might be termed insolent, and which, under other circumstances, might have provoked his anger. But the features of the youth, although coarse and sinister, seemed vaguely to resemble some with which Randolph was familiar, and as he gazed upon them, he asked the chaplain if he knew who the stranger was. Before Polydore could reply, the old woman an- swered, having seen, not heard, the question. VOL. I. D 34 TREVETHLAN. a Who am I ? Thy mother's mother : thy grandmother. Who is this? Thy mother's sister's son: thy cousin. We were not asked to the burying", but we came. To Aveep for a son-in-law ? To weep for an uncle? Did he weep for his wife? Na, na." Randolph was inexpressibly shocked. "I dreamt not of this/' he said to the chaplain in a low tone. a Something 1 must be done. Are they in distress?" lt Na, na/' said the old woman with a frightful grin, again interpreting the mo- tion of his lips, u we want nothing of you, Mr. Randolph Trevethlan. We belong to Pendar'l now. And so will Trevethlan. ' When the castle a bride from the cot shall claim, Pendar'l and Trevethlan shall own one name.' Margaret Basset's mother seeks not from a son the help which a husband refused." Polydore put his arm throug'h Ran- dolph's, and drew him away. The late Mr. Trevethlan's marriage had been a pro- TEEVETHLAN. 35 hibited subject at the castle, and all that his children knew concerning it, was, that their mother had been of humble birth. So this was his son's first introduction to his maternal relations. " It is thus," thought the* chaplain, "that the sins of the fathers are visited upon the children." The resemblance which Kandolpli had detected in the young- man's features, was to himself. It was of that vague character which the eye often discovers in an un- known portrait, depending not on com- plexion, or lineaments, or even expression, and difficult, therefore, to make visible to another's perception. So now a third person would probably have failed to see the likeness, recognised at once by the heir of Trevethlan. For while candour and courage distinguished Eandolph's counte- nance, cunnino* and meanness lurked in the aspect of Michael Sinson. The development of such traits in the peasant might be owing- to his early life. D 2 36 TEEVETHLAN. When Margaret Basset sorrowfully obeyed the order which seemed to make her mis- tress of Trevetlilan Castle, her family con- ceived great hopes from her elevation, instead of sympathising in her grief. Her nephew, Michael, was trained in the habits they fancied most likely to conciliate the favour of their lord, vulgar obsequiousness and fawning,' dissimulation. For some time after Mrs. Trevethlan's death, he was allowed to hang* about the castle, enjoying the benefit of Polydore's instruction, and encouraged in the idea, that he might grow to be the confidant and companion of the youthful heir. Those who thought so, little knew Mr. Trevetlilan. Pride hates the sycophancy which is acceptable to vanity. He was simply disgusted by the offered homage ; and at once perceiving its drift, excluded his wife's relations from all con- nexion with his household, and ejected them from their little farm. They settled upon the neighbouring estates of Pendarrel, TREVETHLAN. 37 cherishing* a natural enmity against their late landlord, and beholding* his ruin with a certain exultation. They also chose to consider that poor Margaret had been aggrieved by the compulsion in which they themselves participated, and thus sharpened craft and malice with the feeling- of injury. With such spiteful mind old Maud Basset came to the funeral, and flung' in Ran- dolph's teeth a prophecy, which had been much recited of late years among the pea- santry of the neighbourhood. And now Trevethlan Castle re-assumed its usual appearance. One of Randolph's first cares after the funeral was to warn Jeffrey, the porter, that all visitors what- soever who might present themselves at the gates, were to be informed neither he nor his sister was at home, and were not to be admitted on any pretence. Archbishop Seeker is reported to have said, that the first person who used this excuse told a 38 TREVETHLAN. lie. It sorely puzzled old Jeffrey's notions of morality. "Not at home. Master Randolph/' he said* "and are ye and my young- lady to leave us so soon?" " No, Jeffrey/' was the answer ; u we are not going* away immediately. But we desire to see no company, and this is the usual mode of saying* so." a Good truth, Master Randolph, 'twill be a strange thing* for company to come to Trevethlan," said the porter. ''''And where shall I say you are gone ?" u N owhere," replied Randolph. " Say no more than that we are not at home ; and do not open the gates, whoever may ask." u Trust old Jeffrey to obey a Treveth- lan," the retainer said as his master retired ; a and faith, we want no fine folks here spying" out the nakedness of the land. Jeffrey will send them away with a flea in their ear." TEEVETHLAN. 39 CHAPTER III. " Nature never framed a woman's heart Of prouder stuff than that of Beatrice : Disdain and scorn ride sparkling in her eyes, Misprising what they look on ; and her wit Values itself so highly, that to her All matter else seems weak." Shakspeare. u Me. Teevethlan Pendaeeel " — The gentleman so addressed put down an untasted glass of wine with which he was about to give zest to his luncheon, and he looked towards the lady who spoke. She was reading* a newspaper. " Did }^ou observe this?" she continued. " We regret to announce the death of Henry Trevethlan, Esq. ; of Trevethlan Castle!" 40 TREVETHLAN. Ci My poor nephew ! " exclaimed the gentleman. The lady flung- a glance upon him, which made him lower his eyes, and read on. u He is succeeded in his estates — his estates ! — by his son Kandolph Treveth- lan, Esq.., who, with his sister, is now at the castle." Mr. Pendarrel, probably thinking- of the look which had just rebuked him, made no further observation. " Have you nothing- to remark upon this intelligence ?" asked his wife. u No commiseration for your great nephew and niece, as well as their father ? " ei They must be very j)oor," her husband answered. a Anything 1 I can do — " " Anything you can do, Mr. Trevethlan Pendarrel !" the lady exclaimed, interrupt- ing him sharply. " You must buy me the castle, and they may live on the price. ' Pendar'l and Trevethlan shall own one name ! '" She laid aside the newspaper, and rising, TREVETHLAN. 41 walked to and fro in the apartment, speak- ing* in a tone free from the irony and scorn which had given an unfeminine expression to her previous words. " Let me see. Seventeen, ninety-six- seven' — Randolph must be just of age. And Helen a year or two younger. Poor ! Indeed they must be poor. The castle will be very ornamental as a ruin. Already it is more picturesque than habitable. They will be relieved to have it taken off their hands. And we can be generous. If not, what do they know ? Why, Randolph has never slept away. They must be as wild as mountain-g'oats. And their society ! What ideas can they have formed of life ? Yet we may be generous ; if they like, friendly. There is a pleasant cottage on the shore under Pendarrel : comfortable ; suitable for straitened means ; in wild scenery, like Trevethlan. They might have it at an easy rent ; or in part purchase of the castle." 42 TREVETHLAN. Thus, Alnaschar-like, Mrs. Pendarrel accomplished in reverie what had long- been the settled purpose of her mind. Such was the vision that rose from her basket of crockery. She was a woman of genius, and knew it, and loved the knowledge. u Mr. Trevethlan Pendarrel, have you yet finished your luncheon? Then follow me to the library. You must write to Kandolph; and I shall go down to Corn- wall next week, and visit him and his sister." In the library the lady dictated the letter which the reader has already perused. When her husband looked over what he had written, he ventured to remonstrate. " Do you not think, my dear Esther, this is rather, just a little, the least in the world ; you know what I mean." " No, I do not, Mr. Trevethlan Pen- darrel. I am not initiated in the mysteries of your office, where they use language to conceal their thoughts." TREVETHLAN. 43 " Nay, I know it is not your in- tention/' continued her husband ; " but might it not be supposed? It would be quite wrong-, of course. Still, perhaps, they mig-ht think — people do form such curious ideas." C( Your ideas seem very curious indeed," said the lady. * What on earth do you mean?" a Why, my dear Esther, might not this letter, quite undesignedly, quite — might it not wound Mr. Randolph Trevethlan's feelings ? " " Not if I appreciate them rightly, Mr. Trevethlan Pendarrel," answered his wife ; et and it will furnish me with a key to his character. If, as I fully expect, that offer is regarded as kind, and gratefully accepted, the heir of Trevethlan becomes my humble dependent. If, as I think very unlikely, the letter is resented as an affront, then I know that the old spirit still animates the old ruin, and I prepare accordingly. Is it 44 TEEVETHLAN. sealed ? Well : remember to give the in- struction to Messrs " And so saying", the lady withdrew. Her husband was the brother of the late Henry Trevethlan's father, and, therefore, great- uncle to Randolph $ but having- been born more than twenty years after his elder brother, he was but little older than his nephew, and was brought up in companion- ship with him at Trevethlan Castle. Rivalry for the hand of Esther Pendarrel disturbed their affection soon after Henry succeeded to the estates, and it g-ave place to hatred, when Philip carried off the prize and assumed his wife's name. Rumour said, that nothing but Henry's positive refusal to submit to this condition, led to his rejection. For once rumour was probably right. The families of Trevethlan and Pendarrel had long lived in the usual friendship of neighbours, frequently intermarrying, but never united under one head. When, how- ever, circumstances made Esther sole heiress TEEVETHLAN. 45 of her house, it seemed likely that this might at last occur, and that the name of Pendarrel miffht mero-e in that of Treveth- Ian. The lady's own attention was at- tracted to this contingency by a little altercation she happened to overhear be- tween two peasants, respecting the pro- phecy already quoted. u Well, Jem," said one, " ye see Pen- dar'l 's like to come to Trevethlan without a bride from under the thatch. 'T is a bonny lady whereby they'll own one name." " Do not ye think it, Eobin," answered the other. " The saying 's as old as Carn Dew. My lady 's not one to sink her name : there 's that in her eye tells another tale." When Esther heard these remarks, the first rustic seemed to be much nearer the truth than the second ; for Henry Tre- vethlan was so close an attendant upon her, that it could not be supposed that his assiduity was unwelcome. But she had 46 TREVETHLAN. been trained in a sufficiently high sense of her own importance • and the peasant's words made her ponder, and roused the pride which had almost been laid to sleep by love. She quarrelled with Henry, and married Philip. Her first lover endeavoured to forget his disappointment in the excitement of play. She, always hoping* to realize the prediction in her own sense, rejoiced in adding- the estates which he sold, one after another, to the already extensive domains of Pendarrel. By degrees, she thus drove the enemy into his citadel, and beleaguered him on all sides, trusting* at last to starve him into submission. And now that the defence had fallen into young* and inexperienced hands, she rushed eagerly to the assault, heralding it with the demand for a capitulation, con- tained in the letter she caused her husband to write. He, poor man, did not count for much in his wife's arrangements. At home, he TEEVETHLAN. 47 was nearly a nonentity ; abroad, he held a subordinate place of some importance under Government. His official conse- quence consoled him for his domestic in- significance • and some such comfort he needed ; for he had no will of his own whenever Esther interfered, so rigorous was the sway wherewith the strong- mind ruled the weak. Their family — a sore point was this with Mrs. Pendarrel, who foresaw that in some shape her own manoeuvre must be repeated — consisted of two daughters, Gertrude and Mildred. Gertrude was nearly thirty, mar- ried, but without offspring- : Mildred was not quite twenty. In appearance, they both resembled their mother, and mig'ht be imagined to exhibit traces of the ancient people said, in some legends, to have founded Marazion. Esther lost no time in fulfilling' her pur- pose of visiting the orphans. As soon as possible after the despatch of the letter, she 48 TEEVETHLAN. started for Pendarrel Hall, which, unlike Trevetlilan Castle, was a modern mansion, surrounded by a large park. The day after her arrival, she drove to perform her errand. Old Jeffrey had pondered much on the novel instructions received from his young" master ; and every sound of the gate-bell roused him to a gTeat display of vigilance. First, he reconnoitred the party seeking admission, through a loop-hole : if that scrutiny were satisfactory, he opened a slit in the wicket, and held a parley : if this proved equally free from danger, he un- closed the wicket itself, and allowed the visitor to enter. Hitherto, he had not been called upon to pronounce the message of exclusion. But the sound of an approaching* car- riage awoke all the caution of the old warder. Mrs. Pendarrel's chariot wound heavily up the now rugged road, which led through the base-court to the main gate- TREVETHLAN. 49 way of the castle. The lady looked from side to side, and viewed the surrounding- desolation with some secret triumph, as betokening' a necessity which must he glad to accept relief. At length her carriage drew up in front of the arched portal, and a servant alighted, and rang* the hell with correct violence. Old Jeffrey had sufficient shrewdness to know that such an attack as this could not he repelled from the loop-hole • so he de- scended to parley through the opening* in the wicket. a Now, sir," said the invading- servant, u how long* is my lady to wait ? " " Who did you want to see ? " asked the porter in turn. " Open the gates, sir : let us drive to the hall-door." « Troth," said Jeffrey, « this is the hall- door just now. Who did ye want to see ?" Mrs. Pendarrel, slightly impatient, re- peated her servant's demand from the win- VOL. I. E 50 TREVETHLAN. clow of the carriage : Jeffrey met it with the same question. " Mr. Trevethlan," said the lady. " Mr. Trevethlan 's not at home/' said the obstinate warder. u Not at home, sir ! What do you mean ? Where is he V* u He 's not at home/' Jeffrey repeated. Mrs. Pendarrel mused for a moment. " Miss Trevethlan is at home, I sup- pose?" she asked. a Miss Trevethlan is not at home/' was again the reply. u This is insolence," the lady said. " Do you know, sir, who I am ?" " I think I know the Pendar'l liveries/' answered Jeffrey. a Home/'" said Mrs. Pendarrel to her servant. And the carriage rattled down the descent. A young" man was leaning* on the gate of the base-court: as the chariot approached, he opened it, and stood cap in hand while TREVETHLAN. 51 the lady drove through. She pulled the check-string-, and beckoned the stranger to the window. "Do you belong- to the castle?" she asked; when he drew near. "No, in good truth, ma'am/' the youth replied with a peculiar smile : " I am a tenant of Pendar'l." " What is your name ?" " Sinson, ma'am • Michael Sinson at your service, ma'am ; grandson of old Maud Basset." " What !" exclaimed the lady hastily, " a relation " " The late Mrs. Trevethlan's nephew, ma'am," said Michael. " Come to the hall to-morrow," Mrs. Pendarrel said ; " I may be able to employ you." Michael made a cringing 1 bow, and the carriage drove on. " So," mused its occupant, " it is war. The old spirit does animate the old ruin. e 2 52 TREVETHLAN. A pleasant pastime, Henry Trevethlan, have you bequeathed to your children. Long- shall your race rue the day, when you took a woman at her first word. Was not Esther Pendarrel worth asking* twice ? Was it impossible to conciliate her pride, except by the sacrifice of your own ? Was no allowance to be made for the petulance of a girl nursed by flattery? Was there no middle course? Might not Trevethlan have been preserved, yet Pendarrel not ex- tinguished ? I smiled when 3*011 left me : I smiled when I saw } T our rapid gallop down the avenue : I smiled still, when I heard you were departed to London. No fal- coner's voice, methought, will be required^ i to lure nry tassel-gentle back again/ A week — and another, and another — and no news. A month, and news. His kinsman comes. To intercede for him ? Ah, no. To tell me of his folly, and to plead for himself. c There is no fury like a woman scorned.' I listened, but it was long before TREVETHLAN. 53 I consented. A bold wooer truly was my worthy lord ! Did he not venture to urge, that his nephew's passion was so ardent, it would prevent him from any other union 1 That therefore the castle would descend to him 1 That so the properties would he united in my name? That he loved me more — oh, cant and hypocrisy, how I loathed you at the time ! Yet I listened, and listened, and in my wrath and for my sorrow, consented. Did I drive you to ruin, Henry Trevethlan ? Did I embitter your days ? Alas ! mine have been equally dark. Proud man, I ask again, why did you trample on me ? Why mig'ht we not minister to our mutual happiness, instead of running- a race for revenge ? I could not, you knew I could not, unasked, revoke my words. Might I not have had the oppor- tunity ? And should I submit to my doom in patience ? " And you have bequeathed your hatred to your children. To the children of Mar- 54 TREVETHLAN. garet Basset. And, verily, they seem wor- thy of the trust. But they shall find their match in Esther Pendarrel. And now the plan of the campaign. I must learn the nature of the ground. Then, sound trumpets, and no quarter." The following- morning 1 } T oung Sinson ful- filled Mrs. Pendarrel's behest, by calling- at the hall, where he had an interview of some length with its mistress. One of the park lodges, Wilderness gate, happened to be vacant at the time, and was assigned to Michael as a residence, in consideration of services, either past or to come, which were a mystery to the retainers of the family, among whom some jealousy was created by the preference. Within a few days afterwards, Mrs. Pendarrel returned to London. TREVETHLAN. &o CHAPTER IV. t "But can the noble mind for ever brood, The willing victim of a weary mood, On heartless cares that squander life away, And cloud young genius brightening into day ? Shame to the coward thought that e'er betrayed The noon of manhood to a myrtle shade ! " Campbell. The Trevethlans, it lias already been re- marked, were a crotchetty race. One of their peculiarities was displayed in the dis- position of their property. No portion had been entailed within the memory of man, and the whole had very frequently de- scended simply by inheritance. Wills were of rare occurrence among- the family muni- ments, and marked the existence of dis- agreement. And now that cause was active, and produced its effect. A few 50 TREVETHLAN. clays after Mr. Trevethlan's funeral, liis children were summoned by the chaplain to hear the last desires of their parent, Mr. Griffith being' also present with his account books. The will which Polydore produced was very slrort and simple. The testator merely appointed the Rev. Polydore Riches and Mr. Edward Griffith, to be the guardians of his children, in case he died before they were of age, leaving 1 his property to de- scend by inheritance. A short silence ensued when the chaplain finished reading- the document : it was first broken by the steward. u It is but a small patrimony," he said, " Mr. Trevethlan, that you inherit. A very small patrimony for the owner of this castle. And a sad trust is this for me, who can remember, when from the top of the watch-tower, we saw little that was not ours." "Mr. Griffith," Randolph said, "we TREVETHLAN. 57 must think of the present and the future, not of the past. But if the trust is un- welcome, do not undertake it." " The trust is not unwelcome, Randolph/' observed the chaplain, with a slight accent of reproof. a The sadness of which our friend speaks is caused by the lightness, not the oppressiveness, of our duty. We pro- mised to undertake it, and we shall feel pleasure in fulfilling- it, so as most effectually to promote your welfare in every respect." u I know it," said the heir. " I am sure of it; I did not mean to doubt Mr. Grif- fith's g-ood will." u Here," the steward said, opening- one of his books, a here are the accounts of the last few years : and here is an abstract or estimate, which I have prepared from them, showing- the probable receipts and the necessary expenses for the future." Randolph took the paper from Mr. Grif- fith's hands, and perused it attentively, his sister also looking* over him. 58 TREVETHLAN. ec From this/' he said at length, Cl I perceive that our total income is something under seven hundred pounds a year, and the needful outgoings something" more than two ; leaving us a clear revenue of four hundred. Why, Helen, we are rich !" " They are young"," the steward observed aside to Polydore. The brother and sister conferred together for a few minutes in an under tone. Then Randolph spoke aloud : — u Mr. Riches, the expenditure of the castle household, as here set down, is very small. Surely it does not include — " He stopped. "1 know what } r ou would say, Ran- dolph," the chaplain remarked. iC The ser- vices of Mr. Griffith and myself have already been remunerated far in advance. There is nothing- due on our account, nor will there be for a long- time." Metaphorically, this might be true. Randolph looked incredulous. TREVETHLAN. 59 u Mr. Trevethlan," said the steward, " I hope you will not press us into a difficulty. That statement is made up strictly from my books ; and unless you desire to alter the establishment " "Oh, no, certainly not/' Randolph ex- claimed. "I wish everything- to g*o on as hitherto." a And have you formed any plan for the future V 9 the chaplain asked. " Do you propose to live here in retirement, or to g-o into the world?" This question was not answered imme- diately. Randolph's heart was full. He rose from his seat and walked to a window of the apartment, where he leant his fore- head ag'ainst the glass, and gazed upon the sea. A mist clouded his eyes. Helen came softly to his side, and laid her hand on his shoulder, but he turned not towards her, for it was of her loneliness that he was thinking-. "'Tis a hard question for him, Mr. Riches," said Griffith. 60 TREVETHLAN. "He will answer it as he ought/' ob- served the chaplain. " Randolph/' Helen whispered in the mean time, "is this our firmness? Who said, c we will not fail V See, it is my turn now." He turned and looked at her, meeting- a smile so full of hope, that his momentary irresolution vanished at once. The castle rose ao-ain in the air, firm and substantial. He led his sister back to her seat, and resuming his own, said : — "You, Mr. Eiches, and you, my good sir, will not smile at a scheme which has been often discussed by my sister and my- self, and to which our poor father assented almost with his parting words. If we are visionaries, you will be gentle in re- moving the illusion. This then is our plan." And at some length, Randolph unfolded the design with which the reader is already acquainted. Both the chaplain and the TREVETHLAN. Gl steward listened with great interest, al- though the latter could not avoid smiling' to himself, as he perceived the little artifices by which the speaker blinded his eyes to the difficulties of his proposition. Poly- dore was willing* to be also blind to them. u And now, my friends/' Randolph con- cluded, having* talked himself into cheerful- ness, u we will leave you to deliberate on our romance. Helen and I will g'o to the flower-garden, and await the reply of the oracle. Let it be at least decisive." So sayings he took Helen's arm upon his, and led her from the room. Griffith looked at the chaplain, and repeated his previous observation, a they are j^oung-." a Youth and imprudence are not neces- sarily connected, Mr. Griffith," answered Polydore. u And are you disposed to sanction this scheme ?" the steward asked. " Do rfot you see its difficulties ? Are fortunes to be found now as in nursery tales? And at 02 TREVETHLAN. the bar, of all ways ? Even in my narrow experience, what failures have I known ! and with fairer prospects than Mr. Ran- dolph's. It is a lottery, Mr. Riches ; a mere lottery." " It is not the chance of a prize," said the chaplain, "upon which I reckon. I hate lotteries. It is the price which must in this instance he paid for a chance, and which I believe Randolph is prepared to pay, that reconciles me to the speculation." " You mean the labour bestowed and the knowledge acquired," observed Griffith. " Is it of the best kind ? Might not better be obtained here ?" Ci You interpret my meaning- rightly but not completely, Mr. Griffith," the chaplain said. " I include in the term knowledge, knowledge of the world; that knowledge, without which we cannot love the world. A recluse may fancy that he loves his race, but it is not until he has actually felt their kindness, ay, and their unkindness, that he TREVETHLAN. 63 can realize the affection. A man is worth- less until he has experienced some of the buffeting- of the world." " And do you think Mr. Randolph qualified to withstand it to advantage ? " 'the steward inquired. "Do I, Mr. Griffith?" exclaimed Poly- dore. " I should take shame to myself if I did not. He may not succeed at the bar. He may return to Trevethlan Castle as poor as he quits it. As poor, I mean, in worldly g-oods. But he will return to enjoy life : not to mope away a miserable time of idleness amongst these g'ray walls : not to pine for what is unattainable; and sicken with ever-increasino- discontent : not to vanish from the stage an unprofitable super- numerary. No, the habits he will have acquired will accompany him in his retreat ; in his solitude he will still be active ; he will give his thoughts to the world ; he will be a benefactor to his race. Let him g*o ; Mr. Griffith. The very chivalry of the 64 TREVETHLAN. idea is charming* in nry eyes. Believe me, his portrait will one day be an honour to our gallery." The steward was infected with Polydore's enthusiasm. He shook the chaplain's hand with great warmth. u Mr. Kiches," he said, " I know how much Trevethlan owes to you; and your words inspire me with hope. Yet, Miss Helen, is the scheme equally adapted for her ?" " And why not, my good sir?" answered the chaplain. " Where can she be better than with her brother? What can cheer his studies, no trifle, Mr. Griffith, like her company when they are over ? What would not I have given for a sister to make my tea at college ? She will be his comfort and his stay ; his light and his hope ; his joy and his pride. Let them go, my friend ; we shall see a dance at Trevethlan yet." Griffith, a quiet and thoughtful man, was entirely carried away by the increasing TItEVETHLAN. G5 animation of the chaplain. In silence he assented to Polydore's conclusion. a Come/' said the latter, u let us seek them in their garden;" and he took the steward's arm and led him thither. On their way pru- dential considerations again beset the man of business, and he stopped the man of letters to speak of their wards' inexperience. " Inexperience ! " echoed the divine ; u and how shall they gain experience 1 Staying - here, they will always be in- experienced. No fear, my friend ; give them a g*ood introduction to Winter, and they'll do. Winter's the very personifica- tion of prudence." Randolph and his sister were watching* the bees on a bed of mignionettef, one of the pleasantest pastimes afforded by a gar- den in autumn. The eye is gratified by the unceasing flutter of the busy insects ; the ear rejoices in the perpetual murmur accompanying* their industry; a delicious fragrance arises from the gently agitated VOL. I. F 66 TREVETHLAN. florets; and some observers may, perhaps, remember a moral they were taught to lisp in childhood, and cast a fond retrospect over their early years. u Joy for you, Randolph Morton," cried the chaplain ; "and for you, Helen Mor- ton j joy for your old master, and for the towers of Trevethlan. You shall go forth like Fortunio, without needing- his seven servants * like Fortunatus, without requiring- his purse." In his g-lee Pokydore had quitted Mr. Griffith, and preceded him. The brother and sister turned at the sound of his voice, ran rather than walked to meet him, and each seizing- a hand, as they used of old, looked into his face with sparkling- eyes. « Be still," he said, " be still, or Mr. Griffith will declare you must not be trusted alone." "And may we g-o?" Randolph asked. " May I try to be useful upon earth ? " TREVETHLAX. G7 "Stay away, Mr. Griffith/ cried the chaplain to the steward, who was now approaching- ; a stay away ; or } r ou will say that even I am a child. Yes/' he con- tinued, turn in g to Randolph, cc yes, you shall have your wish, and we doubt not that with the blessing- of God, you will prosper to your heart's content." Warm and sincere were the acknowledge- ments paid by the orphans to their guar- dians for this acquiescence in their scheme ; and by Polydore, at least, they were as warmly returned. Child-like, but not child- ish, was the good chaplain in his affections. And if the sanguine ardour of youth is a glorious thing, surely the tempered en- thusiasm of mature age is as admirable, and less uncertain. The preparations for departure were com- menced immediately. Mrs. Griffith was saddened a little when Helen brought her the news; but she recovered her spirits under the influence of her old pupil's ani- f2 68 TREVETHLAN. mation. And strange it would have been, if the anticipation of so great a change had not produced considerable excitement in those upon whom it was about to fall. They had never — as Mrs. Pendarrel re- marked — spent a night away from the castle ; they had seen no town larger than Penzance ; they had been familiar with none save the household around them. Wonderful it would have been, if with a calm pulse they could contemplate abiding in mighty London, among a host of stran- gers, and competing in the great race of life. Yet upon their earnest tempers the prospect produced less effect than it would on dispositions less serious ; and they watched and superintended the necessary arrangements with a foresight which de- lighted Polydore, and was satisfactory even to the steward. At length, these were completed, and the eve of the journey arrived. The autumnal sun was setting in radiance over the oppo- TREVETHLAN. 09 site side of Mount's Bay ; when the orphans^ moved by a sympathetic impulse, took their way for a farewell visit to Merlin's Cave. A purple flush lay on the uplands above Gulvall and Ludgvan ; there was scarce a ripple on the sea, and the fishermen of Newlyn were obliged to use their oars to gain the offing-. The tranquillity of the evening- sank into the hearts of the brother and sister, as they sat in silence, side by side, under their little canopy of rock. But at last, Helen interrupted the reverie. The sun had reached the crest of the hills ; the tower of St. Paul's Church stood out dark against the sk) r , with its edges fringed by the level rays; the flush on the heather had grown deeper and warmer ; when she suddenly began to sing, to an old Jacobite air, a ballad, composed by an ancestor who fled to Switzerland at the Restoration, and known in the family as " Trevethlan's Fare- well :"— 70 TREVETHLAN. " Farewell to Trevethlan ! A farewell for ever ! Farewell to the towers that stand by the sea ! Ah ! hard is my fortune from home so to sever, And seek me a shelter where still men are free ! " No more at midsummer to see our hills lighted With bonfires that welcome the eve of St. John ; No more by old Christmas to frolic invited, To greet our fair orchards with glad benison ; — " Nor yet in the May-time, at Helston's gay furry, With garlands of oak-leaves to dance to the song ; But far o'er the waters an exile to hurry, And pine for my kinsmen strange faces among. " Ay, sad as the children of Morvah retreating To Pendeen's dark caverns beside the sea-swell, While the crags of Penvonlas bewailed the fierce meeting, And Men Skryfa marked where Rialobran fell. " The sun will still brighten St. Michael's high tower, And redden at setting the rocks of Trereen ; The billow lave gently Lamoma's soft bower, By banished Trevethlan no more to be seen. " The maidens of Madron will hie to their fountain, And drop the smooth pebble his fortune to tell — Ah ! glad for the exile, afar on the mountain, The day when no ripple shall ruffle the well. TREVETHLAN 71 " But, hark ! 't is the signal from home now to sever— O'er ruin Tregagel is howling his glee : JFarewell to Trevethlan ! A farewell for ever ! Earewell to the towers that stand by the sea ! " The last note of Helen's sono- had some time died away, and the sun had sunk behind the hill ; hut the western sky was still ruddy, and the warm tint still lingered on the moorlands. a Surely, my dear sister/' Eandolph said, with a g-entle smile, " your song 1 is not of g-ood omen for our exile." a Oh ! yes/' Helen answered quickly ; a recollect that Reg-maid survived the Re- volution, and ended his days happily at Trevethlan." a 'T was a long- banishment, Helen," ob- served her brother. u But the sun has set. Let us return to the castle." And, making* not a few pauses, they pursued the path homewards. 72 TREVETHLAN. CHAPTER V. " Then hope grew round me like the twiniug vine, And fruits and foliage, not my own, seemed mine." Coleridge. The promise of the red evening- described in the last chapter was faithfully kept, and a splendid day witnessed the departure of the heir of Trevethlan and his sister from their ancestral home. At their earnest request; Polydore Riches accompanied them as far as Falmouth^ from whence places had been secured for London by the mail. The chaplain thought that the more sudden the change, the better it would be borne ; and would g*ladly at once have cast the orphans upon their own resources ; but he succumbed to their entreaties. And if a TEEVETHLAN. 73 tear glistened in Polydore's eye when the mail had disappeared round the first corner, it surely will not be thought to bring- dis- credit upon his head. In subdued sadness the chaplain returned to the castle. There it was generally un- derstood that Mr. Randolph and Miss Helen were o-oino- to travel abroad for some years. And this impression was confirmed by the following' announcement, which ap- peared in the local journals, and was copied into some of the metropolitan : — u We are informed that Mr. and Miss Trevethlan have left Trevethlan Castle, to make a sojourn of some duration in the South of Europe." The paragraph flavoured many a cup of tea at Helston and Penzance, and attracted attention at one house in May Fair. But the mail is rattling along, to the music of the guard's horn and the quadru- pedant sound of the horses, heedless alike of local verjuice and of London pride. Not 74 TREVETHLAN. yet had it been polished into the dashing- Quicksilver, but it rattled along- very re- spectabry, contented with itself, and despis- ing- the heavy Subscription. Poor thing- ! — its vanity has been severely punished. Needless it is to dwell on the incidents of the journey. Long- and wearisome it was, and g-lad were the orphans when the wheels had made their last turn, and they alig'hted about daybreak in the yard of the old Bull and Mouth, St. Martin's-le- Grand. Slumber soon broug*ht oblivion both of care and fatig-ue. When Randolph, leaving- his chamber near noon, was shown into a sittingvroom, he found Helen already there. She was looking* out of the old-fashioned window, the heavy wood-work of which mig-ht re- mind her of farm-houses in her own country. Traffic was in full vigour in the street below, and the noise and hurry so confused her, that she was not aware of her brother's approach until he stood by her side. TREVETIILAN. 75 w Welcome to London, Miss Helen Mor- ton/' lie said, becoming* in turn amazed at the scene beneath his eyes. They breakfasted with considerable gaiety in the excitement of their new situation ; and then Randolph started to discover Mr. Winter's offices in Lincoln's Inn ; while his sister sat down to write Polydore an ac- count of their safe arrival at their journey's end. Griffith had already written to the at- torney, requesting* his services on behalf of the son of an old friend, recently deceased. Mr. Morton, he said, possessed a small competence, and was desirous of proceeding* to the bar. He would be in town with his only sister in a few days, and any kind- ness which Mr. Winter could show them would confer a great favour upon his cor- respondent. Winter has been spoken of by the chap- lain as an impersonation of prudence. The description was just j but it was a prudence 76 TREVETHLAN. untainted by the slightest selfishness. He was a man of a large, liberal, and honour- able nature, without a trace of the narrow- mindedness so often and so erroneously thought inseparable from his profession ; he was so genial, withal, in his temper, that his friends used to quote him as a notable example of the rule, that surnames go by contraries. Spring, they would say, was the proper season for Winter, and Winter was proper for all seasons. Happy were they, privileged in July to sip his claret in the arbour of his garden at Hampstead — there was a touch of the Cockney about him — and in December to quaff his old port in his sanctum within-doors : hours never grudged by Mrs. Winter, who was as cheerful as her spouse. For several generations the legal busi- ness of the Trevethlan family had been managed in the office over which Mr. Winter now presided ; and it was with a sad heart that the worthy attorney effected TliEVETHLAN. 77 the alienations ordered by the late owner of the castle. He entertained a hio-h regard for the steward^ and was quite prepared to extend it to the son of his friend. No time elapsed after Randolph had sent in his name, before he was ushered into Mr. Winter's private room. " Welcome, my young* friend/ 7 the lawj^er cried ; extending- his hand, and looking- with satisfaction on Randolph's open counte- nance, a welcome to town. I have been expecting* you : it is a pleasure to know a friend of Griffith's. How is the worthy steward ? He has had his trials, poor man ! Trevethlan is not what it was — Ah me ! The young- squire g-oing- abroad, I understand. No use. He should marry, Mr. Morton. There's many a girl would jump at the castle, even yet. — So you are for the bar. A fashionable profession just now, Mr. Morton. Red coats are cheap. Cornets from Waterloo — midshipmen of Trafalgar — all rushing- to the law. Un- 78 TREVETHLAN. commonly martial it is just now. JY'im- porte : there ? s room for all. But this by- and-by. — Miss Morton came with you — Where have you left her ? — Not over- fatigue cl, I hope V f The attorney's volubility was meant to give his new acquaintance time to over- come his first diffidence, and effected its object. Randolph thanked him, and gave the information asked for. a Lodgings/' said "Winter, " that 's what you want, I suppose 1 There is a friend of mine on Hampstead Heath, who might perhaps suit you. An old clerk in one of the great city houses, and a sterling fellow ; with an amiable old maiden sister. Would you like to try it ? " a Surely, my dear sir," Randolph an- swered. "I thought bo/' Winter said. "Then just observe : here is the precise address. A porter of the inn will put you and Miss Morton into a coach, which will drop you TEEVETHLAN. 79 at Peach's door. Tell Clotilda, Miss Peach, I mean, you are from me. If you like it, well. Let Miss Morton take possession then and there. You come back for the luggage. If it does not suit, ask Miss Peach the way to my house — I live at Hampstead — leave your sister there, and equally come back for the traps. I shall be home by six. So, you understand. And now excuse me. There is no time to lose. There never is. Good morning'." Randolph left the gloomy chambers with much the same feeling-s, that a patient experiences, when after long- suffering' on a sick bed, he is at last bid " throw physic to the dog-s," and begone to the sea. He seemed to be already at work, and enjoyed the exhilarating" effect. With lip*ht feet and as light a heart, he hurried back to the Bull and Mouth. Helen had finished her letter, and g-ave it him to read : she looked over his shoulder while he wrote a post- script, saying* in hyperbolical terms, how 80 TREVETHLAN. delighted he was with Mr. Winter. A porter guided the young- pair to a Hamp- stead coach, in which they were the third part of a half dozen, and in no long* time the vehicle rumbled over the stones towards Camden Town. A squalid part of the metropolis it was they traversed, but it was forgotten when the conveyance stopped, and the announce- ment " Mr. Peach's, if you please, sir," summoned Randolph and Helen to alight. Clotilda was at the parlour window, and came to meet her visitors. Mr. "Winter had prepared the way for them, and Ran- dolph had only to mention his name to g*ain a welcome. " Walk in, my dear sir," said the spins- ter, a walk in, my dear young" lady. I wish Cornelius was at home. Mr. Winter spoke of Cornelius, I suppose. The lodg 1 - ing's? yes, it is all the first floor. Two bed-rooms and sitting-room. Cornelius says " TREVETHLAN. 81 JNo matter what. Miss Peacli had pre- ceded her guests upstairs. Helen walked to the drawing-room window, and uttered an exclamation of surprise. Buried in that old six inside convenience, she had not observed that it had been ascending' a con- siderable hill. The front of Mr. Peach's cottage looked on a sandy lane. But the drawing-room was at the back, and well might Helen be startled, for the window she stood at commanded a view of the rich landscape lying- between the heath and Harrow. Five minutes afterwards the bargain was struck, and in five minutes more Randolph was on his way back into the city in quest of the boxes and bags, leaving Helen to become acquainted with their future hostess. A quaint but genial pair of humourists were Cornelius and Clotida Peach. Mr. Shandy would perhaps have attributed some of their oddity to the chance which gave them their names. A row of folio volumes VOL. I. G 82 . TEEVETHLAN. in the parlour might afford some key to the brother's tastes, and would intimate that he was fond of old poems, old plays, and old divinity. Here and there a bit of paper peeping' from the leaves, and written upon, betrayed some scribbling* propensity on the part of the owner. Manly and kindly were all his favourite authors, and if the latter quality predominated in himself, it was only perhaps because the former had never been called into activity. Everyone who knew him loved Cornelius Peach. And his sister loved him best. She looked up to him also, as something* great. She never contradicted him, except at whist, a g*ame in which they both rejoiced. In all other matters, when she had quoted the opinion of Cornelius, she considered the question at issue decided. A small garden was attached to the cottage, and Clotilda piqued herself on her pansies and carna- tions, but never grudged a flower for her qrother's button-hole. Sometimes, but very TREVETHLAN. 83 rarely, her sisterly care was tried by the effect of a social party upon his upright- ness, on which occasions Cornelius was apt to become sentimental about a certain Mabel whom he said he ought to have married, but whom his friends believed to be a mere phantom of his imagination. They never could learn her sirname. Such were the worthy couple with whom the orphans of Trevethlan were now to be domesticated. When Randolph returned with the luggage, he found dinner ready for himself and Helen ; and after the re- past, he inquired his way to Mr. Winter's — the Elms — and left a message there, ex- pressing his thanks, and saying how com- fortably his sister and he were settled. Later in the evening- a note invited them to dinner at the lawyer's the following day, which engagement they accepted with plea- sure. And then, till bed-time, they were busied in arranging their goods and chat- tels. Mr. Peach, with thoughtful polite- G 2 84 TKEVETHLAN. ness, deferred an introduction till the morn- ing-. When it came, Cornelius made his bow, and a very awkward one it was, to his new lodgers. "Good morrow, Mr. Morton/' he said, looking- nowhere straight, but at Helen sidewa}^s • " good morning, Miss Morton. c Pack clouds away, and welcome day.' I trust you have rested well. Some never can sleep in a strange bed. Yours I hope will not have that fault long*." Randolph thanked him: they had slept very well. u Ahj Miss Morton," continued the land- lord, " I would you had come earlier in the year. The fall is a sad season. Nothing* in the garden but Michaelmas daisies, those miserable old bachelors of flowers ; and a few chrysanthemums, the showy old maids. You will never be a chrysanthemum. Miss Morton." The ponderous machine which called at TREVETHLAN. 85 the cottage every morning to convey Mr. Peach to the city, was now heard lumber- ing along" the lane, and the iocund little man took his departure. So far Randolph and Helen had scarcely found time to breathe, much less to think ; but when they strolled out upon the heath in the course of the day, reflections came crowding* upon their minds. The founda- tion of the aerial castle was fairly laid : did it promise as well, as when viewed from Merlin's Cave ? Not quite perhaps. Some- thing- grated on their feelings ; it might be they missed the sound of the sea ; it might be the flurry through which they had passed ; it might be such a trifle as the oddities of their host and hostess. The total dis- ruption of all their old habits was more violent than they had expected. They ex- perienced a vague uneasiness. They almost began to regret the calm of Trevethlan Castle. And when they gazed down upon the vast city, veiled by the clouds that roll 86 TREVETHLAN. continually from its myriad hearths, through which the dome of St. Paul's loomed in ex- aggerated dimensions, it must he confessed that their vision of the future wore a doubt- ful and variable hue. Their looks were downcast ; gravity took the place of ani- mation in their faces ; and it was with some anxiety that they set forth on their way to the Elms. This feeling was soon charmed away by the perfect quiet of their reception. Mr. Winter at Lincoln's Inn, and Mr, Winter at Hampstead, were very different men : there, he considered the moments as precious for work ; here, they were only precious for enjoyment : there, he governed them ; here, he yielded to them. A shade of impatience mio'ht be detected in his manner at chain- bers; nothing ruffled him at home. And Mrs. Winter, accustomed as she had always been to see only the sunny side of things, ministered admirably to the happiness of all around her, and particularly of her husband. TItEVETHLAN. 87 Thev and their eldest daughter Emily, a blue-eved £ - irl with lio-ht hair, were in the drawing-room, when Randolph and Helen arrived. Before dinner was announced, the orphans had forgotten all their soli- citude. And except that they talked with rather too much preciseness, too much like a book as people say ; they acquitted themselves very well in the gentle stream of conver- sation which their host kept tranquilly flowing*. And by the time that Mrs. Win- ter rose to retire, they felt that they had been introduced to a new pleasure, that of agreeable society. " So, Mr. Morton," the lawyer then said, u you wish to prepare yourself for our English forum : as honourable an arena as the Roman, although our advocates do accept of fees. Are you acquainted with the mysteries of initiation?" Randolph referred to the old editions of Blackstone and Burn. Mr. Winter appre- 88 TREVETHLAN. hended, but did not say, that there might be something* to unlearn. " Faith/' said he, "the process has more to do with beef than with Blackstone ; you eat your way, rather than read it. True, the sig'n-posts and mile-stones are not to be neglected, but you may arrive at the full dignity of wig* and gown, without having turned a leaf. I don't say that is the way to turn a penny." u It is with the last purpose that I aspire to the dignity," Randolph said, " and very much obliged to you shall I be for any advice which may further it." u And happy I shall be to give the best I can, Mr. Morton," observed Winter. " The first step is to enter at an Inn of Court. There are four. Divers bits of doggerel describe their respective merits. Have you any predilection ?" " No, Mr. Winter/' Randolph answered, " none : I am ignorant of their distinguish- ing* peculiarities." TREVETHLAN. 89 u Lincoln's Inn is the largest, Gray's the smallest of the societies/' said "Winter. The Temples are intermediate. The Mid- dle famous for its fine hall, the Inner for its fine garden. No well-defined profes- sional advantages attaching* to any one. It is a matter of whim. What say you?" a One of the Temples/' replied Ran- dolph, "and I prefer the garden to the hall." u So be it/' the law}^er said. u Any- thing* but indecision. The Inner Temple wins. Come down to town with me in the morning, and I will introduce you. And after that you must, in the first place, work • and in the second place, work ; and in the third place, work. Fill your glass, Mr. Morton." " The work should be directed, I sup- pose," Randolph observed, obeying the in- vitation. "Certainly," said Winter. "But I'll tell you what. Let me direct you for two 90 TBEVETHLAN. months or so. Take the run of my office. See a little of the actual practice of the law. And then you will go into a pleader's chambers,, with a sense of the reality of your business, which increases at once both its interest and its profit." In accepting- the offer thus made, Ean- dolpli little thought how short lived its fruits were destined to be. Man proposes, Heaven disposes. There was a certain poetry in the visions of Trevethlan Castle, which veiled the real prosiness of the orphans' scheme. They knew nothing* of the world. And as they walked home that evening* under the stars, and thought that so they were shining upon their native towers, the doubts of the morning* again beset them, and they retired to rest with foreboding hearts. The next day Mr. Winter drove Ean- dolph to Lincoln's Inn. u Now," said the lawyer, when they alighted in Chancery Lane, ''''that is the way to the Temple. TREVETHLAN. 91 Prowl about ; look at the garden, and the dingy buildings around it. Ask for the treasurer's office. There say you wish to enter as a student for the bar. They'll give you a paper. Bring- it to me. But take your time. Be here again at one." Obeying' these instructions, the neophyte traversed the hurrying throng- of Fleet Street, and passed under the ancient arch that forms the portal of Inner Temple Lane, not without a momentary recollection of Dante's famous "All hope abandon, you who enter here." He felt immediately that he was in the toils ; law stationers on each hand showed their red tape, and quills, and parchment, polite slips of the latter pre- senting* King* George's greeting to his sheriff of what county you will j dapper clerks were bustling along* with bundles of paper ; every door-post was crowded with a host of names, among which Randolph might recognize some he had been used to read in the newspaper. He passed 92 TKEVETHLAN. under the porch of the church, recalling* the days when the sword was more power- ful than the pen ; read the inscription re- cordino- the fire and rebuilding of the cloister* and looked with respect on the powdered wigs in the hairdresser's window. He felt benumbed by the high, dismal, worm-eaten building's, but was relieved when the sound of falling* water attracted his eye to the fountain, flinging* its column of silver into the air amidst elms and sycamores. Hastening towards this green spot, he saw the hall of which Mr. Winter had spoken, and proceeded to the stairs leading* to the quiet little garden, one of the pleasantest retreats in all London. Ran- dolph gazed some time on this oasis in the legal desert, and then turned to fulfil the rest of his mission. And now he marked the many sing-ular dials, fixed aloft against the buildings, so that one or other was always available, reminding* the denizens of, the value of the minutes by their dry TREVETHLAN. 93 mottos, " Time and tide tarry for no man," a Pereunt et imputantur/' they perish and are laid to charge. Retracing* his steps, he surveyed with pleasure the more spa- cious garden which had decided his choice of 'a society for his studentship. The office which he sought was close at hand, On making- his application he was provided with a printed form, and in- structed to fill up the blanks and return it. With this he obtained admission to the o-arden, and sat down in one of the alcoves bv the river-side to examine the document. Perplexity fell upon him as he read. Two barristers were to certify that they knew him, and believed him to be a gentleman. The expression awoke all the pride of a Trevethlan. "Was my father, then, right?" he thought, gazing moodily on the water. (e Is this a course meet for one of our name ? To skulk among men in disguise ? To beg certificates of honour? Believed to be a 94 TREVETHLAN. gentleman ! Already my dream is fading* away. Oh ! my own sister, would we were back at Trevethlan ! Yet shall I vex you too with my doubts? . . . Know me? Who knows me? Who in London knows Ran- dolph Morton ? " Irresolute and half desponding, Randolph returned to Mr. Winter's. That gentle- man soon solved the difficulty implied in the conclusion of the above reverie. " Come with me," he said ; conducted the neophyte to some neighbouring* chambers, presented him to Mr. Flotsam, and told his errand. u Happy to oblige a friend of } T ours, Win- ter," said the conveyancer^ signing* the paper; "hope Mr. Morton will prosper." The second signature was still more a mat- ter of form, Mr. Winter merely sending* the paper to Mr. Jetsam, with his compliments. " There," said he to Randolph, " now take it back to the Temple ; refer to Mr. Flot- sam as your acquaintance ; and in a week or so y ou will hear of your admission." TREVETHLAN. 95 It was as the lawyer said. But the new student received the announcement with feelings very different from those he had so long- cherished in his home by the sea. 96 TREVETHLAN. CHAPTEE VI. " Yon bosky dingle still the rustics name ; 'Twas there the blushing maid confessed her flame. Down yon green lane they oft were seen to hie, When evening slumbered on the western sky. That blasted yew, that mouldering walnut bare, Each bears mementos of the fated pair." Kirke White. Wilderness Gate was the most pic- turesque, although not the principal en- trance to the park of Pendarrel. The en- closing- wallj formed of rough gray stones, and coloured with mosses and ferns, there swept inwards from the public road, leaving a space of turf, usually occupied by the geese of the neighbouring cottagers. The gate was in the centre of the recess, and opened on a long winding avenue of Scotch TKEVETHLAN. 97 iirs ; the branches of which met overhead, and made the path slippery with their fallen spines. On either hand the eye mig'ht glance between their straight stems to some open ground beyond, of uneven surface, mostly covered with tall ferns, and chequered with birch-trees. A streamlet might be heard, but not seen, rippling along- not far from the walk. Here and there the antlers of a stao- would rise above the herbage, and a hare or rabbit might be occasionally seen to bound across an exposed plot of grass. The scene wore an air of neglect. The dead leaves were not swept from the paths; the brambles ex- tended their long shoots at pleasure ; the ruggedness of the ground was the work of nature. But the avenue wound gently up an eminence ; the wood on each side became deeper, until, on arriving at the summit of a ridge, the visitor emerged suddenly from the dark firs, and gazed VOL. I. H 98 TREVETHLAN. clown upon the trim plantations and nicely- shorn lawns immediately surrounding* the Hall. The portion of the park through which he had passed was called the "Wilder- ness, and gave its name to the gate by which he entered. Beside this gate, and close to the park- wall, was the lodge which Mrs. Pendarrel assigned as a dwelling to Maud Basset and Michael Sinson. They had previously resided at the farm-house occupied by the Young man's father, the brother-in-law of the hapless Margaret. But the gloomy firs of Wilderness Lodge were more congenial to the disposition of the old woman than the cheerful garden of the Priory Farm, and the idle life of a gate- keeper suited Michael's habits better than the activity of his father's employment. The instructions also, which he received from Mrs. Pendarrel, raised vague ideas of future consequence in the young man's TREVETHLAN. 99 mind, and revived the hopes which had originally sprung" from his connection with the family of Trevethlan. His new mis- tress discovered that he possessed some edu- cation, the abiding- result of Polydore's teachings and desired him to improve it, and to attend to his appearance, hinting" at the same time rather than saying*, that he might unobtrusively watch the proceed- ings at Trevethlan Castle, and report any changes he detected. These orders grati- fied his vanity, suited his meanness, and raised his expectations. But the departure of the orphans seemed to deprive him of his occupation ; nothing- transpired to contradict the newspaper account of their intentions ; and, indeed, these appeared so entirely natural, that a suspicion of incorrectness could hardly arise. None, at least, was likely to be suggested in the country. But only a brief space had elapsed, when a summons from Mrs. TT o 100 TEEVETHLAN. Pendarrelj requiring* young* Sinson to re- pair immediately to the metropolis, dis- turbed the serenity of Wilderness Lodge. His grandmother exulted in the news. Her onlv reading was in that fanatical literature, the study of which is apt either to find men mad, or to leave them so ; and she was, besides, deeply versed in all the local superstitions of the district. Such lore had given her mind a sombre hue, and inclined her to indulge in the practice of vaticination. She had foretold a career of distinction for her grandson, and she fancied that he was now about to enter upon it. On the eve of his departure, his mother Cicely came to Wilderness Lodge to bid him farewell. She did not share in Maud's gratification. " So," she said, sitting under the thatched verandah, " Mercy Page may suit herself now, I suppose ; and Edward Owen need not fear another fall?" TREVETHLAN. 101 " Mercy should know her own mind better/' said Michael. a She might have had me long* ago, if she pleased ; 't is her own fault if it 's too late now. Eut I don't think Owen '11 win her, if I never try a fall with him ao-ain." " Let her 'bide/' muttered Maud - " let her 'bide. What want we with the folks of Trevethlan?" u And what seeks my lady with you in London, Michael ?" Cicely asked. u I shall know when I get there, I dare say/' he answered. " My lady's secrets are mine." Cicely sighed. " I thought you might let us know/' she said. " What I know not myself. Some office, my lady speaks of, I am to fit myself for." " Ah ! my son/' continued his mother, 11 1 do hope you '11 not forget the country as well as Mercy Pag-e. Life is wild in 102 TREVETHLAN. London, they say. Think of the poor squire." " Think of my winsome Margaret/' Maud exclaimed fiercely. a Think of her that the squire murdered ! Wild ! Na, na \ he 11 see the light." Cicely was the only one of the family exempt from that hatred of the Trevethlans, which darkened the hue of the old woman's otherwise harmless enthusiasm, and burnt sullenly in her gTandson. She had not long" said her parting* words, when Michael threw on his hat, shook himself free from the de- taining* grasp of old Maud, and walked briskly away in the direction of Trevethlan. About a mile from the castle, a rugged strip of waste land skirted the edge of the cliff over the beach, and supported a number of aged thorns, stunted and bent by the sea-breezes. It was to this spot that Michael turned his steps. The landscape was growing gray when he reached it, but there was yet TREVETHLAN. 103 sufficient light to discover the object he sought. A few strides placed him by the side of a young - girl. u Mercy/' he said, in a low voice, " the first at a tryst ! It is something new." * The days are short/' replied the girl, with affected indifference : u I should not have waited. Besides, you are going* away, so one does not care." " Is that your farewell, Mercy?" Michael asked. "And why not?" she said, tossing her head. " You are a fine gentleman : going to London : to forget Mercy Page." u Yes," answered Michael — his com- panion started at the word — "to forget the Mercy of to-night, but to remember another — the Mercy of old days ; to forget her conceited and wilful, to remember her kind and winsome. You would not wish me remember the first — would you, Mercy?" The maiden said nothing in reply ; and 104 TKEVETHLAN. Sinson, encouraged by her silence, drew her with gentle force to a seat on a bank of turf. " Do you smell the wild thyme, Mercy ?" he continued. a They call it a figure of love, rewarding* with sweetness even what bruises it. It is so I have answered all your coldness. Mind you not the St. John's Eve, when the folks had caught you in the rope ? Who fought his way to your help 1 And then you sat by my side on this very bank under the hawthorn ; and when I asked, might I woo you ? — you know what you said. And have I ever failed in my suit ? Did I ever court an- other? When you were cross, and would not dance with me, did I seek any one else ? Whose colours did I wear when I threw, one after another, all the best of Penwith ? Yet, from that first evening, never could I win a civil word. And now I am called far away, Mercy will give me TREVETHLAN. 105 no hope. When I come back, she will he another's." " No, " said the maiden, and stopped short. " Then why will she not be mine now ?" asked Michael. " Why will she not g-o with me to London ) there to be wed, and live tog-ether in happiness ? Shall it not be so, dear Mercy ? Alone in the great town, I shall always be thinking* of Mercy — be thinking* that she may be listening* to Edward Owen, whom he has often thrown for her sake " "And shalt throw him again," inter- rupted a manly voice. " Shalt throw him again, or take a fall thyself. " The individual whom Michael had named stood before the astonished pair. Sinson sprang* to his feet. Was it the duskiness of the evening*, or passion, that made his face so dark? ie Owen," he said, in a fierce whisper, 106 TREVETHLAN. "thou wert best stand off now, or mayst get more than a fall." " Come on !" cried his antagonist, without attempting to disguise his anger. " Come on, villain ! I mi ready for you." Fortunately perhaps for Michael, who was not in a mood to fight or wrestle fairly, Mercy interposed. " Hoity-toity ! " she cried ; " pray, Master Edward, where did you learn to give such names to your betters ? And where did you learn to follow honest people's steps, and watch them? And think you, my — do you hear ? — my Michael is to fight with such as you? Go home, and learn manners." "Oh, Mercy!" cried Owen, "you know not what you say. You know not what be means. But my part is done. Remem- ber, Edward Owen's is not the only heart you '11 break. And so, good-night." He turned and walked steadily away. TREVETHLAN. 107 Michael endeavoured to resume the thread of his previous discourse. But his lis- tener's mood was entirely changed. a Saucy fellow !" she cried ; laughing- and looking* after Owen ; u he 's a rare one to come and rate me. But do you know, Mr. Michael, I believe he 's a better man than you. There, that will do. To London to be married ! No, Mr. Michael, not quite so far, if you please. Oh, yes, of course. D' ye think I like fighting* ? There. Good- night, Mr. Michael. No. If you follow me, I shall call him back." She disengaged herself from her suitor, and tripped lightly through the gloom in the footsteps of Owen. Michael watched her retreating form with a scowl darker even than that with which he rose to meet the intruder upon his courtship. u Shalt rue the day" — he mut- tered, "shalt rue the day that saw thee cross my wooing. A better man than me, 108 TREVETHLAN. did she say? Look to thyself, Master Edward Owen." With a heaving- breast and an irregular gait, Sinson paced to and fro for some time along- the edg*e of the cliff, and then turned moodily to Wilderness Lodg-e. The next day he departed on his way to London. TREVETHLAN. 109 CHAPTER VII. " II y a dans un mariage malheureux une force qui depasse toutes les autres peiues de ce moude." Madame de Stael. The summons which called Michael Sinson from the far-west to the metropolis, was the result of impulse rather than of settled de- sign on the part of his patroness. Quick in reading- the characters of all who crossed her path, in her first brief colloquy with the rustic, Mrs. Pendarrel detected his ani- mosity towards Trevethlan ; and in his sly but fierce countenance, in his well-built but cringing- form, she saw the traits of one who would not be scrupulous in his mode of attacking* an enemy. From the very first, she suspected that the announced conti- 110 TREVETHLAN. nental tour of the orphans was a ruse, and the notion gained strength whenever it re- curred to her mind. But if they were still in England, they were probably abiding* in London. She caught at the idea, and thought suddenly it would be well to have some one at hand who knew them per- sonally. Suspiciousness is natural to tyranny : spies are the agents of despots. Love of rule, said by the fairy to be the universal passion of the sex, was undoubtedly domi- nant in Mrs. Pendarrel. But it is a desire which, at least in youth, will find one powerful rival. And so she proved. The haughty beauty kept her affection down with a strong hand, but it stung her never- theless. The wound rankled ever in her heart ; and many a time and oft she cast a rapid glance upon her life, and in momentary weakness compared what was indeed a dark reality, with a visionary TREVETHLAN. Ill possibility whose very glory made her sad. But though such reflections mio-ht sad- den, they were far from softening- her. They always terminated in the conviction that she had been ill used. As years sped b}^ and each showed her more plainly the vacancy of her existence, this feeling- deep- ened into a quenchless thirst for reveng-e. Was she to be the only victim ? Man had a hundred means of quelling- or forgetting- a hapless passion. Should he who had so lightly forsaken her — should he triumph while her heart was broken ? He threw the g-ame into her hands, and died. Towards his children she entertained at the moment no very definite feeling-. She had scarcely thoug-ht of them. But she had long cherished the idea of becoming- mistress of Trevethlan Castle, and at last she deemed the hour was arrived. Met according to her expectations, she would 112 TREVETHLAN. probably have been kind to the orphans. Spurned, as she felt it, from their door, hatred burnt again fiercely in her breast. And it was quickened by a strange jealousy she conceived against their mother, whom she had only despised before, but now bitterly envied as the wife of her lover. Could domestic happiness be expected with such a parent ? Alas, for the answer which would come from Mrs. Pendarrel's children ! The angry passions which raged in her breast gave an unmotherly hardness to her love of rule. And why were they daughters ? He had a son. She, the wretched peasant, was the mother of a son. Thus did the effects of Esther's blio-hted affection fall even upon her offspring. But Gertrude rebelled from early childhood against the capricious rigour with which she was treated. She succumbed at last, however, and that in the most important event of her life. In obeying the mater- TKEVETHLAN. 113 nal command to many Mr. Winston, she thought she stooped to conquer. Gertrude Winston would be her own mistress. And so she was ; but at what a price ! Ay, what an account must they render, who degrade marriage into a convenience ! who banish the household deities, so dear even to ancient paganism, from their place beside the hearth, and fill it with furies and fiends ! who know not the meaning* of our sweet English name of home ! Five years had not reconciled Gertrude to a union in which her heart had no share. Her husband seemed to her cold, prudent, and dull. She was enthusiastic, generous, and clever. He was easy and good-natured, and his very submissiveness fretted her. He was, or pretended to be, fond of meta- physics, and was always engaged upon some terribly ponderous tome, while she participated in the popular fury for Byron and Scott. He liked a level road, and vol. i. I 114 TREVETHLAN. a a'ood inn : she delighted in romantic scenery, and was half careless about the accommodation. They continually pulled against each other ; but the husband was insensible to the chain which galled the wife to the quick. Yet Mr. Winston possessed qualities, which only required to be known to be beloved, and if Gertrude was ignorant of them, it was in no small degree her own fault. And she had not, like Mrs. Pendarrel, to contend with the memory of a previous attachment. But, however bitter might be the feelings with which she contemplated her own position, there was one dear affection which she cherished with the utmost fondness. Nothing could exceed her solicitude to preserve her sister from the snares into which she had fallen herself. She kept a watchful eye upon all the society espe- cially favoured by her mother, and observed Mildred's feelings with the warmest inte- TREVETHLAN. 115 rest. And she was met in the same spirit. Sisterly love was the one humanizing- tie in that broken family. Each sister possessed great personal attractions * but though their features were strikingly alike, the character written on their faces was by no means the same. Gertrude's showed haughty indifference, Mildred's wishful thoughtfulness. The elder's smile was generally sarcastic, the younger's sympathetic. Knowledge of her situation, and consciousness that others knew it, flashed in defiance from the dark eyes of Mrs. Winston, and lent a liardiesse to her tongue, which occasionally seemed unfeminine. Trust and hope beamed from beneath the long lashes of Miss Pendarrel, and her speech was commonly soft and gentle ; but in society she was lively and witty, and there was a spirit lurking in her heart, which might one day confound even her mother. t o 116 TREVETIILAN. Coming- one day about this time to May Fair, Gertrude found a gentleman of her acquaintance sitting with Mrs. Pendarrel and Mildred. " Dear mamma/' Mrs. Winston said, as she entered, " I am come to claim Mildred for an hour's drive. — Delighted to see you, Mr. Melcomb. You can settle a little dis- pute for me. 'Tis about the colour of the Valdespini's eyes." 11 1 would prefer to leave it to Mr. Winston/' answered Melcomb. " He has some strange theory about colours, that they are in the eyes of the seer and not in the seen. It is dangerous to speak after such an authority. Your best referee is at home, Mrs. Winston." " Not so," said the lady, a for he is one of the disputants. One said blue, another grey. None agreed. Some one suggested a reference to you, and it was voted unanimously. c He knows the TREVETHLAN. 117 colour of all the eyes at the opera/ they said." (i No one can mistake that of Mrs. Win- ston's/ 7 Melcomb said, rising* and bowing-. "My dear Mrs. Pendarrel, suffer me to take my leave." (i 'Now, Mildred dear, away and make ready/' said Gertrude, smiling", and her sister immediately complied with the wish. (i Mrs. Winston !" exclaimed the mother. ic Yes, dear mamma," Gertrude answered. "Am I the mistress of my own house?" 11 1 presume so, dear mamma." " Then note me. My visitors shall not be affronted here by you." " Surely, mamma, Mr. Melcomb would thank me for a compliment. Every one knows he is proud of his reputation." a Every one knows your sarcasm," said Mrs. Pendarrel, " and I, at least, perfectly understand your meaning-. Once for all, Mrs. Winston, I will suffer no interference 118 TREVETHLAN. with my intentions for Mildred. Why, I almost think you would not have her set- tled at all. Very sisterly indeed, Gertrude. Yet in your situation " " Mother/' exclaimed Mrs. "Winston, "not another word. But listen. Bather than see Mildred settled even as I am, without offence, as without affection, I know not to what I would not doom her ! Bather than see her wedded to one like Melcomb, would she might die in my sisrht ! You know me, mother. She is here." " There 's no danger, Gertrude," said Mrs. Pendarrel, as Mildred entered ; " au revoir." The sisters then descended the stairs. As they passed through the hall, they might have observed the presence of a young* man, not in liver}-, plainly dressed, having- an appearance of mavraise honte not often imputable to the denizens of TEEVETHLAN. 119 London. They might have noticed that after the first glimpse he caught of Mil- dred, his gaze was rivetted upon her face, and the colour deepened in his cheeks as she approached and swept by him, almost brushing* him with the trimming; of her mantle. But in fact, they saw nothing of the kind, passing along in polite indifference to Mrs. Winston's carriage. " And so, Mildred/' that lady said, as they drove away, u another admirer ! You are growing quite a coquette." "Not exactly/' answered the younger sister. fe But I like to amuse myself with the vanity of men. After all, I wish I were married." Mrs. Winston sighed. (t At another time, Mildred dear/' she said, u I might rally you for the avowal. But beware. Marriage is a sad lottery." u You are happy, Gertrude," said Mil- dred with some surprise. 120 TREVETHLAN. Mrs. Winston looked out of her window. ce Melcomb will never make a woman happy/' she said, after a pause. "He will certainly never make me happ} r /' exclaimed Mildred, half laughing*. u But really, Gertrude, how silly I am ! What does Mr. Melcomb care about me ! " "Very little, I dare say, not to flatter you, dear. Very little about Mildred : a good deal about Mildred's money. And perhaps mamma would not care to add Tolpeden to Pendarrel. You know they join. There's something for your cogita- tion." For a while the sisters were silent. Then the younger spoke. " Dearest Gertrude," she said, u believe me I will never marry without — believe me, I have not yet seen anyone whom I would marry. When I spoke just now, I hardly knew what I meant." TREVETIILAN. 121 Poor Gertrude knew her sister's meaning 1 perfectly well. She recollected the weight of the chain from which she had recklessly made her escape, without calculating the cost. "Mildred/' said she. "let me ever be your confidante as now." And so in a less serious mood, the sisters pursued their way round the November dreariness of Hyde Park, at the season when — " Remote, unfriended, solitary, slow, Scarce one lone horseman paces Rotten Row." The stranger they had passed in Mrs. Pendarrel's vestibule was Michael Sinson, newly arrived in London, and come with proper diligence to pay his respects to his patroness. The young- countryman was completely overwhelmed by the vision of the two fine ladies who swept by him. But his wonder was not indiscriminatmg-, 122 TREVETHLAN. and it was Mildred who fixed his gaze. He had seen her at Pendarrel, but not with the same impression. In kind and familiar intercourse with the tenantry^ she was a very different person. Here she seemed almost a creature of another sphere. With her mien, ^so quiet and yet so proud ; her step, scarcely touching- the ground, yet appearing* to spurn it ; her repose, exhibit- ing* a security which it was impossible to disturb. Michael followed her with his eyes until she had entered the carriage and continued looking* vacantly in the same direction, even after the hall-door was closed. A tap on the shoulder roused him from his abstraction, and he followed a servant into the presence of Mrs. Pen- darrel. The interview was of no great duration. Sinson's patroness was pleased to notice with praise that he was improved in ap- pearance and address ; and asked him a TREVETHLAN. 123 few questions respecting the country, which he answered to her satisfaction. She made no allusion to the peculiar services she ex- pected from him, hut referred him to her husband at his office for information re- specting" his promised employment. It was necessary to know a little more of his temper and disposition before making* him her confidential agent. The new Cymon, as in one sense the young' rustic might be called, quitted the house in May Fair, filled with vague admi- ration and ambition. In the fascinations surrounding Miss Pendarrel, he recognised a power superior to anything within his experience ; and he framed fantastic ex- pectations from the career he supposed opening before him. But the lover of Iphigenia had concealed a noble heart under a rugged exterior, and his passion developed its high qualities. Michael Sin- 124 TREVETHLAN. son was a very different character from Boccaccio's hero. And was Mercy Page already forgotten ? — Happy, perchance, for the too faithful maiden, if so it were. TREVETHLAN. 125 CHAPTER VIII. " Nam veluti pueri trepidant, atque omnia ccecis In tcncbris inetuunt, sic nos in luce timemus Interdurn, nihilo qua? sunt metuenda magis, quaui Quae pucri in tenebris pavitant, finguntque futura." Lucket. As children tremble, and in darkness quake At ail things near, so we too sometimes shake At daylight fancies, vain as those which scare Children in darkness with foreboding fear. They were not halcyon days in England that succeeded the termination of the Ions* struggle for liberty and existence, which, during- more than twenty years, had taxed to the uttermost all the resources of the country ; and which, as a whole, must always he regarded by Britons with pride and exultation. We had given peace to 126 TREVETHLAN. the world j but we were unable to preserve tranquillity at home. War is } at the best, a bad education, if sometimes a necessary one, for a young 1 people ; and a mature nation will find that its costs are not onlv mi money and men. It is a lottery on the grandest scale, both of fortune and life, inducing' waste of the one, and recklessness of the other \ removing*, therefore, in a great measure, the vulgar motives of action, and importing a general laxity of principle. In various ways a long* war produces an intestinal feverishness, aggravating any incidental disorder, and favourable to the designs of incendiaries. The peace was followed by a general fall in wag*es. It was a result beyond the control of legislation 5 and it would pro- bably have been unfelt, if prices also had fallen, as naturally they should have done. But the legislature was able in part to pre- vent this decline, and exercised its power in TREVETHLAN. 127 favour of agricultural produce. Flaming- homesteads and shattered machinery soon proclaimed the discontent of the labouring- population. Political agitators sought to turn this discontent into disaffection. Parliamentary reform was demanded Avith a considerable show of violence. There was much fierce speaking- ; numbers of clubs started into existence ; individuals disfigured themselves with strange costumes ; mobs collected in great multitudes. Presently budding La- fayettes discussed the most convenient length for pikes, and would-be Buonapartes mustered their platoons by moonlio-ht. There was a good deal that was wicked, and not a little that was grotesque, in these proceedings. One party persisted in seeing only the white side of the shield, and de- clared they were merely ridiculous ; another had eyes only for the black, and exagge- rated their danger. Nothing is so fatal to 128 TREVETHLAN. the cause of civil liberty as the abuse of the privileges which it confers. The nation consents to wear chains, to control a rebel- lious member. Having* the gout in its great toe, the body politic restricts its in- dulgences. It was so at the period of which we are treating. The real amount of danger is a question which the candour of posterity will admit could hardly be discussed with tranquillity at the time. Certain it is, that alarm was very great and very general, and under its pressure the nation resigned for a season some of its dearest birth-rights. Personal liberty was endangered by the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act 5 the press was shackled j the right of meeting was limited. Arrests were made far and wide. A north-country squire, trotting quietly along upon his hack to meet the hounds, was swept off to jail, instead of sweeping after the fox, suspected of a design to raise the shepherds. It was TREVETHLAN. 129 a mistake, and it is probable that such were not rare. The practice of receiving- information from spies, and still more the air of mystery assumed by those in au- thority, multiplied the apprehensions which might justly be excited by any tumultuous proceeding's. Cornelius Peach was one of those who were willing- to believe the alarm to be in the main unfounded, and he used good- humouredly to quiz his sister for the timidity with which she adopted every rumour of the day. The worthy clerk was clearly in some matters a follower of the philosopher of Abdera. He very much preferred laughter to tears ; regarded public affairs with a lofty disdain, so long* as his roast, boiled, or hashed was ready at the right time ; lived in a Utopia of his own, and was more likely to die of seeing an ass eating figs than of any ordinary calamity. He could not understand why an individual VOL. I. k 130 TREVETHLAN. should fret himself concerning- parliamentary corruption, tyranny of government, abuse of patronage, or any other stalking-horse of sedition. No one had attempted to bribe him ; he felt indifferently free ; he was a candidate for no place • he had no vote for anything, and rejoiced that he had not, His even cheerfulness was wont to make his friends declare, that their Peach was all sunny side- there were no signs of shade about him. His lodo-er was of a less contented mood : the symptoms of effervescence had assumed a somewhat menacing aspect around his home. For some time much disquiet had prevailed among the miners of Somerset- shire, and the same was now rapidly spread- in o* amonsf their Cornish brethren, from Redruth to St. Ives. Minor outrages were of no uncommon occurrence. The dread which Miss Peach seemed to entertain of seeing* a modern Jack Straw encamped on TREVETHLAN. 131 Hampstead Heath; was felt on better grounds in the far-west; and caused tre- pidation among- the tea-sipping* gossips of Kerrier and Penwith. So the orphans learnt from the letters of Polydore Riches. And they were made rather anxious by perceivings that the good chaplain seemed in writings to disguise the real amount of his apprehensions. Often in reading* his missives^ did Randolph and Helen turn their thoughts fondly towards Trevethlan; and wish they had never left the towers by the sea. And in the brother such yearnings were quickened b}^ an ever-increasing discontent with his position. This feeling had soon driven him from "Winter's chambers; and he was now reading with Mr. Travers, an eminent special pleader. But dissatisfac- tion was again creeping* over him. It was true he did not neglect his studies, and he had duly eaten his dinners to keep Michael- K 2 132 TREVETHLAN. mas Term. Surely there is no fear that any of our old institutions to which a dinner is attached will wholly die. There is a strength in the British appetite, against which utilitarianism may struggle in vain, till hunger and thirst are no more. So at the Inns of Court. The exercises, and moots, and even the revels have vanished, but the dinners remain. Attend- ance on the former has been commuted into fines to maintain the latter. And lono- may they endure, those social meeting's, where many a lasting friendship is formed, and the bonds of brotherhood cemented, which in England unite an order, declared by D'Aguesseau, aussi ancien que la magis- trature, aussi noble que la vertu, aussi necessaire que la justice. As a novice, Randolph was partly inter- ested and partly disconcerted on his intro- duction to these assemblies. He felt a reverence for the old hall, standing on the TREVETHLAN. 133 site of that of the knights whose dust reposed in the neighbouring" church. He looked with respect on the coats of arms of the successive treasurers, emblazoned on the oak panelling' of the walls, and sub- scribed with many a name of high distinc- tion. On the dais, beneath the portraits of Littleton and Coke, sat some of the leading- advocates of the day, partaking a more luxurious repast than that allotted to the occupants of the floor below. And on the opposite side to the young student were the juniors of the bar, men who had risen, were rising, had not begun to rise, and never would rise. It was all curious and new. The very gown in which Eandolph dined, rustled on his shoulders with a forensic feeling*. The repast was apportioned to messes of four, all of which had precisely the same fare. The attendants were called paniers ; be- cause — an enemy has suggested — supported 134 TKEVETHLAN. by donkeys. The platters were of Peter Piper's metal, and the cups were earthen- ware. As at the table of Prior's poco- curante couple — "Their ale was strong, their wine was port, Their meal was large, their grace was short." Trifles all these: forgotten perhaps by the fortunate lawyer, whose clerk groans under the weig-ht of his brief-bag-; ridi- culed by the disappointed man, whose early clients have long* disappeared; but inter- esting* and entertaining- to the neophyte, whose ambition foresees the career of the first, whose self-reliance is too strong- to fear the fate of the second. These last were the feelino-s which had inspired Randolph in the solitude of Tre- vethlan Castle, and conjured up those airy visions which seemed so fair in the sisrht of himself and his sister. The ve^ first en- counter with the world had dimmed the prospect for a moment, and the brother's TEEVETHLAN. 135 subsequent intercourse with it confirmed rather than diminished his disappointment. It was not that he was disheartened by perceiving' how very inadequate an idea he had formed of the labour necessary to . attain his object. The long- rows of law- calf on Mr. Travers's shelves had no terrors for him. Nor was it that he felt as yet any decided uneasiness at living" under a feigned name. He had never for an in- stant imagined it was wrongs and it had his father's sanction. Yet this circumstance mis'ht be a chief source of his discontent. He had not known the levelling- tendency of a public school; nor the freedom of col- leg-e. From those early lessons in the pic- ture-gallery at Trevethlam, he had silently grown up in the consciousness that he should be the head of an ancient race, and perhaps, in building* his castle in the air ; he regarded himself as an architect in the midst of masons. He never thought of 136 TEEVETHLAN. himself as Morton, humble and unknown, but as the representative of a high family, recognized and honoured. So Mr. Griffith was right, and Polydore Riches wrong*. But the worthy chaplain was in no fault. No education could have prevailed against the circumstances of the case. A youth spent in isolation and reverie, is almost certain to lead to a man- hood of irresolution. The habit of think- ing* becomes a curse, when it is developed too early. Such precociousness is apt to result in a purely negative character. This was the misfortune of Randolph. And although he carefully pursued his studies, "' and concealed his disquietude from Helen, he often sighed for the peace of his home, and' sometimes even thought of abandoning his scheme, and returning* thither. The same feelings made him distant and reserved in his intercourse with the men in Hall and at Mr. Travers's chambers. TREVETHLAN. 137 He had no sympathy with their buoyancy, and he disliked their familiarity. There was, however, one of the latter, with whom he grew gradually intimate, having- been introduced to him by Mr. Winter. Sey- mour Rereworth was a man of calm but decided opinions, of quiet and diligent habits, of polished manners, and of great attainments. He possessed also the advan- tages which Randolph missed so much, having been educated at Eton, and having obtained high honours at college. Look- ing- to his profession for distinction more than actual maintenance, he earnestly and steadily pursued his aim, never revolting" from the weary drudgery, never disheart- ened by the thorny intricacies, through which the lawyer is doomed to plod in his way to eminence. Very particular in his choice of friends, he was interested by the mixture of enthusiasm and embarrassment which he detected in Randolph, and sought X38 TREVETHLAN. his friendship. Where llereworth sought, he won. And he was of great service to his companion, supplying- his want of know- ledge of the world with his own, which was of the best kind ; not consisting- in a fami- liarity with knavery and vice, but able to foil the one and repel the other ; and ex- celling- in all those qualities which are com- prised in the word, tact. He had a large acquaintance in society; was himself very well connected; was always a welcome guest, and, when he chose to throw away an evening, had always an invitation avail- able. Him did Eandolph once or twice, during the winter, persuade to come and spend an evening- at Hampstead. And it must be confessed that Seymour paid his second visit at least as willingly as his first. If he liked the brother, he no less admired the sister. He mused sometimes on the circumstances of so singular, he might say TREVETHLAN. 139 so romantic, a pair. Helen's dark and gentle eyes, and soft and pleasant tones, haunted him occasionally in his studies, and kept his pen suspended in the midst of many a tedious draught. But Rere- worth was not a man to fall in love in a hurry. For Helen, she was always glad to see him. In spite of all her brother's precau- tions, she sometimes detected the gloom and discontent which hung upon his brow, and she saw that Rereworth's society always charmed them away. Her own life was so tranquil and uniform that she had soon ceased to regret the quiet of Treveth- lan, and she roamed about the vicinity of Hampstead, seeking a spot she might liken to Merlin's Cave, and only occasionally dis- turb ed by the letters of Polydore Riches. 140 TREVETHLAN. CHAPTER IX. Romeo. — What lady's that, which doth enrich the hand Of yonder Knight ? Servant. — I know not, sir. Romeo. — 0, she doth teach the torches to burn bright ! Her beauty hangs upon the cheek of night, Like a rich jewel in an Ethiop's ear : Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear ! Shakspeare. So the winter passed on. Christmas might remind the orphans of a custom which pre- vailed in the Cornwall of old times, and which may possibly still survive in some localities, when the family of each home- stead bore a bowl of cider in jocund pro- cession to their orchard, and, selecting- the most respectable apple-tree, splashed his trunk with the bright liquor, and wished TREVETHLAN. 141 him g-ood luck in the comino- season. u Would/' exclaimed Cornelius Peachy with great miction, when Helen told him the story, " would that I had been born in some strange, half-barbarous land ! These gTeat towns kill all good customs. Even what little carol-singing* there is, is a mere trade." Christmas passed, and the new year was destined to introduce Helen to another order of singing-. Thirty years ago the London season began earlier than at pre- sent. January was not over, when a note from Mrs. Winter invited the brother and sister to accompany her to the opera. A vao-ue excitement rose in Helen's breast, and sparkled in her eyes, as she gave the note to Eandolph. She felt that she should like to go, but a certain shyness made her timid. She watched her brother's face while he glanced over the invitation, and saw with some regret that he did not par- 142 TREVETHLAN. take her anticipations. But he said that it was very kind of Mrs. Winter ; and that of course they would go. On the appointed evening- the lawyer's carriage called for the orphans, and they joined him and his wife. It was a gloomy ride. The night was foggy and dark. The mist condensed on the windows, and per- mitted nothing to be seen hut the general glare of the lamps. This sort of isolation, and the continuous rumble of the carriage, suited Randolph's mood. He was haunted by forebodings of evil. He was angry with himself for accepting the invitation. He felt an indefinite fear of the crowd with which he was about to mingle. It was not as Morton that he ought to appear in public. Yet should his selfish pride debar Helen of the offered amusement? He leant back in his corner of the carriage, abstracted and silent. His sister on the other hand was gay TREVETHLAN. 143 and excited. She kept up a lively con- versation with Mr. and Mrs. Winter, and peered through the window at what was to her an unknown world. So it was until the carriage turned a corner, and entered a broader and better-lio-hted thoroughfare than those it had traversed previously. Its speed abated : it even stopped — were they there ? No, it moves again: papers are pressed against the glasses : another pause, and another advance : and now Mr. Winter has lowered his window, the door is opened, the steps let down, and before Helen has time to think, she finds herself leaning upon his arm, and ascending- a spacious staircase. She looks round, and sees her brother and Mrs. Winter close behind. A few minutes more, and she stood in the front of a box, and gazed on a vast area, dimly lighted by a circle of small lustres immediately beneath her, and an immense chandelier far above. Thev were 144 TItEVETHLAN. very early 5 but few boxes were occupied, the foot-lights were not raised, and the orchestra was nearly empty. The dark green of the great curtain seemed almost black in the gloom; Helen asked Mrs. Winter if it were not very dark. " Ah ! wait a moment," said that lady. And in fact, even as she spoke, a row of bright lamps rose in front of the curtain, and a flood of splendour from the central chandelier irradiated the whole house, dis- playing the occupants of the boxes, as por- traits set in frames of rich crimson. A rustle of conversation murmured from the pit, but was soon lost in the confused sounds which came from the orchestra, now rapidly filling. With a wild kind of surprise Helen listened to those discordant tones, and noted how by degrees they melted into harmony with the leader's long-drawn note. At length there was silence ; a gentleman with a small wand took his place at a desk in TIIEVETHLAN. 145 front of the musicians, talking; and laughing* with those near him • a little bell rang- behind the curtain ) and after three taps of the wand, the orchestra whirled away into the overture to an opera then new to a London audience, never to become antiquated. The foot-lights sank, and the great green curtain rose. The stage was nearly dark. A droll-looking' personage came stealthily forward, bowing* in acknowledgment of the applause, or of the laughter, which greeted his appearance. Helen laughed, without knowing- why. She had a book, but she was too much absorbed to consult it, and kept her eyes fixed on the stage. The droll-looking- man sang- a whimsical com- plaint, and retreated from approaching- foot- steps. There was a struggle between a gentleman and a lady, interrupted by an old man in a night-cap. The old man was killed. There was passionate lamentation over his bodv. There were scenes, of which VOL. I. L 146 TKEVETHLAN. Helen scarcely knew whether they were comic or serious. Then came a. rural fes- tival which raised her spirits • the gentle- man she had seen at first, now courted one of the country gills ; hand in hand they quitted the stage, amidst a hurricane of applause. But Helen was unconscious of the enthusiasm around her, so strongly was she impressed by the music. She had heard Ambrogetti and Foclor sing La ci darem. The duet was repeated with nearly the same effect. And for the novices, for Ean- dolph as well as Helen, this was the great stage sensation of the night. Other por- tions of the opera, Zerlina's touching re- monstrance with her jealous lover, the prayer, the whirlwind of passion in which the first act terminates, the semi-grotesque marvels of the second with their wonderful music, all excited more or less emotion ; hut none so fresh and absorbing as that TREVETHLAN. 147 induced by the immortal duet between the peasant-g'irl and the profligate. And a particular circumstance distracted i Randolph's attention during* the second act. In the interval which followed the first, Mrs. Winter called her young- friends' notice to the house, then very well filled, instructed them in its technicalities, and pointed out a few notable personages among* the audience, whom she happened to know by sight. While in this manner she was directing* Randolph's eye along* the tier of boxes level with her own, his regard fell upon a young lady of so remarkable an aspect, that after mechanically following Mrs. Winter's instruction, he turned hastily to look once more at his fair neighbour. Never in his life, he thought, had he seen so attractive an object. She was evidently engaged in an animated conversation with some one in the back of the box whom he could not see. Playfulness sparkled in her L 2 148 TREVETHLAN. otherwise soi't eyes, archness curved her brows, and Eandolph almost imagined he could hear the silvery laugh which parted her lips. He tried to obtain a glimpse of the happy person to whom she was talking*, but the attempt was vain. He could only discover that with her there was an elderly lady, whose back was turned towards him. It was not to her that the sallies of the young" one were addressed. Randolph began to construct a romance, still gazing' on the interesting* box. Sud- denly he caught his charmer's eye. It was but for a moment ; he could not see that the expression of her face varied in the most trifling particular * yet he felt that he blushed like fire, and he perceived that the elder lady leant forward, and looked to- wards him. What, thought he, lowering his eyes for an instant, and pursuing* his romance, is she so quick in detecting a o-lance? It must be the mother. The TREVETHLAN. 149 thought passed, and he looked up. He encountered the supposed mother's gaze fixed full upon his face. Had he not seen those features before ? Ideas raced through his mind with a dream-like rapidity. Some theorists say that the visions of a night are contained in the moment of falling- asleep. Surely equally swift was the flight of that lady's thoughts ; or why, after a look of a single second, did her countenance assume that expression of scorn or defi- ance 1 An expression quite apart from any which mio'ht have rebuked the intrusive stare of a stranger ; which even attracted the notice of her companion, who glanced again at Randolph, and then at his sister. From that time, Randolph's attention was almost entirely engrossed by his fasci- nating neighbour. He missed the statue's nod, and lost his share of the laugh at Naldi's comic terror. His sister observed the cause of his abstraction, and looked in 150 TREVETHLAN. the same direction, at a moment when the elder lady happened to turn towards her. " Surely," Helen exclaimed, " I have seen that face before ! Yet how can it be?" Randolph knew rig-ht well, but he was silent. " Do 3'ou know those ladies, Mrs. Win- ter ?" Helen asked. " No, Miss Morton. It is really a beau- tiful girl." " Beautiful!" Randolph thoug-ht; "beau- tiful ! Ay, she is more than beautiful." And the presentiment he had felt before came gloomily back upon his heart. But the fair stranger was not the only damsel who attracted admiration in the opera-house that nig-ht. "Who is that, Melcomb ?" asked a portly, g-ood-humoured personag-e, leaning- on the rail of the orchestra,, and looking- TREVETHLAN. 151 towards Mrs. Winter's box. " A new face, is it not ?" " The girl with the bird of paradise in her hair?" answered Melcomb. "Fie! Winesour. Have yon forgotten Cressy ? — Though, to be sure, the gentle Cressida may have a new face to-night, or any night." 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