CHAPTER XII.—(Continued.)

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2045, 15 August 1885, Page 5 (Supplement)

CHAPTER Xll.—(Continued.)

It was characteristic of her that she did not give one thought of the graudenr of the future ; she never aaid to herself that if all went well she should one day be Lady Oarsdale or Couatess of Waldrove. She never remembered it ; she never eaid to herself that she should be raktresri of Eoacncath Abbey— that she should have jewels, carriages, horHe«, all that wealth oould purchase and luxury invent ; she only thought of the time when she should win his love— when he should go to her and say : " I marrigrt you, dear, for honor's sake ; I love you for your own." God speed the time, for she loved him very dearly —loved him so well it was hard to be parted from him. "It was bo strange," she thought to herself, " that he should never suspect her great love for him." He sever appeared to think that it waa in the bounds of possibility for any love to enter into the matter. She would hope, and wait, and pray. " Wives have prayed for many things," ■he Baid. "It will not, surely, seem strange if one prays for her husband's love." Lord Oarsdale felt inexpreaibly thankful to leave Rude3well and its associations behind. He had done his duty — carried, it, periiarM. a tittle to excess ; bnt then every man does that, or should do. The glow of satisfaction that comes from duties done was still warm within him, yet the mlief was great. Ailio, in her way, was graceful and refined, beiatiful and clever; she was ignorant of many things— the little niceties of etiquette, the great charm that arises from a perfect knowledge of society, were wanting ; but she waa never vulgar— her words and actions did not jar upon him as Hetties did ; besides which, he had really a gooi-tempered, kindly liking for her, M people often have for those whom they have laved from great dangers. The rest of the family were intolerable ; it was certainly a relief to get away, to leave the gloomy atmosphere and return to the scenes long familiar to him. Every mile that he travelled brought him a deeper senee oi happiness and seourity. He was received with open arms at stately Roseneath. Lord Waldrove had p r ouliiu ideas of hi* own ; one was that it was not wise to be too severe with young men ; he fancied that treating them with kindly indulgenoe won their eonfidenoe ; 10 when his son returned, altar a long absenoe of some weeks, he merely said to him : " Ton hate been to Paris, then, my boy ?" 11 Yes," was the reply ; " and from Paris to Switzerland. lam very glad to be at home agaia ; there is no place like home." The carl was delighted ; to love home was a virtue in his eyes— one that covered many faults. " Tear mother seemed to think it strange thai 70a did not oome straight baok from the docter's ; bat I told her, after a long spell of reading, too would naturally require & little holiday/ His conscience reproached him; a keen, sharp pain almost stabbed him as he thought how he had deceived this indulgent, kindly father: his lips quivered with pain. Then he said to himself it was all for honor, for honor's sake ; he had no cause for regret ; before now, kings had given their crowns, men had poured out their lives like water for honor's sake ; be might easily bear the pain of having deceived those who trusted him most and loved him best. Reseneath has been for long years one of the most .beautiful and celebrated mansions in England ; there is no book descriptive of English life in which a vignette of Ro^eneath does not find a place. It stands on tha brow of a hUI, and is said to look over three counties. The abbey itself existed before the reign of Henry the Eighth, who after destroying it as a religious house, beautified it, and soon after it Game into the possession of the Waldroves. The graat beauty of the place was the quantity of rose? that grew there. Through the lanes and the meadows the hedges were covered with wild roses ; the walls of the abbey were covered by them ; they climbed the windows, the towers, the turret?, beautiful roses of every ibade ; in the gardens the; abounded ; there were white rose? and red, the lovely gloire de di'pn, maiden's blush, musk roses, damask loaes, and moss roses ; the air for miles around seemed to be perfumed by roses. The abbey was a grand building, gotbic in style, with gloriously arched windows, with tall towers and fine gateways. The rooma were all lofty, large, aud light, They were famished with the utmost magnificence, the Earl of Waldrove being one of the wealthiest peers in England. The grounds around the abbey were magnificent; the park, the ploa<»ure-;;round6, the terraces leading from the abbey to tha pinooth lawn below, terraces on u hich the lovalieit flowers bloomed, whilo stately cedars bbaclud j the lawn. The deep, clear waters of the lake shone between tha treea; antlered faer browsed under the tall trtcrf. Tht?re were long ranges of conservatories', fcraeriM, hothouses—all kinds of ornau^nial proutiCU, beautifully laid out. Tao trees that surrounded rt'jseneath Abbuy wro a for!a ,0 in themselves ; their nge vms not tightly ! nowri, but they wore the :n>tH or.hb cl-n- in England. Same ot tho oak treia wcic largf enough and hollow enough to form small rooms. There, to this day, they Bhow a

superb, massive oak, in which they deolare King Charles slept more than onoo. The family aifttohedth* mansion ; they were among the oldost and most conservative in the land. The present earl— Stephes, Lord Waldrote— was a good-tempered, easy, indulgent man, only firm and bevere where his family honor was at stake— then he had no pity, no mercy ; and Lucid, hia wife, was, if posaible, more uncompromising than himself. To them the earth and all that it contained had been made for the Waldroves ; they considered themselves seoond only to royalty; tkey were prond to the proudest degree; either of them, father or mother, would rather have seen one of their children dead than married beneath them. In their children this exaggerated sense of honor existed, although it took with them a different shape. It was to this family, prouder than the proudest, that Vivian, Lord Carsdale, was to introduce tha dancing-master's daughter as his wife.