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 UN IVLRSITY 
 or ILLINOIS 
 
 CsascT 
 
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A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
LONDON ; 
 PRINTED BY SAMUEL BENTLEY, 
 
 Bangor House, Shoe Lane. 
 
A^ 
 
 *^^-^r- /^^"^ 
 
 A GOOD MATCH, 
 
 THE 
 
 HEIRESS OF DROSBERG, 
 
 AND THE 
 
 CATHEDRAL CHORISTER. 
 
 BY LADY CHATTERTON, 
 
 AUTHOR OF '^ RAMBLES IN THE SOUTH OF IRELAND." 
 
 IN THREE VOLUMES. 
 VOL. L 
 
 LONDON: 
 RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET. 
 
 1840. 
 
8^^ 
 
 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Marriage is not a lottery — as we sow, and above all as we cultivate 
 the seed, so shall we reap." 
 
 '^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 VOL. I, 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 O Happiness ! our being's end and aim — 
 Good, pleasure, ease, content! vvhate'er thy name : 
 That something still which prompts th' eternal sigh, 
 For which we bear to live, or dare to die; 
 Which still so near us, yet beyond us lies, 
 O'erlooked, seen double by the fool and wise ; 
 Plant of celestial seed! if dropped below, 
 Say in what mortal soil thou deign'st to grow ? 
 
 Pope. 
 
 There are few things which inspire such 
 feelings of melancholy, and of the vanity and 
 instability of all earthly enjoyments, as the 
 sight of a deserted ball-room the morning after 
 a fete. The smell of dust, oil, and withered 
 flowers, — the fragments of ribands, combs, or 
 feathers, which may be generally seen on the 
 floor, — all speak powerfully to the iniagina- 
 
 B 2 
 
4 A GOOD MATCH, 
 
 tion of those whose minds are inclined to sad- 
 ness. When to the impression which all these 
 objects produce is added the depression of spi- 
 rits which is usually felt, even by those whose 
 enjoyment of the preceding night may have 
 been most keen, there is something peculiarly 
 painful in the feeling. 
 
 The ball at Baynton Hall had been one of 
 the most splendid ever known in the county. 
 It w^as given to celebrate the introduction of 
 Helen Baynton to the world. She was a beau- 
 tiful girl of eighteen, and sole heiress to the 
 large possessions of her father, an old gentle- 
 man of singular habits and eccentric character, 
 who had, for the last forty years, represented 
 the county in parliament. 
 
 Helen Baynton had for months looked for- 
 ward to this ball as to the commencement of 
 a new era, in which all the happiness of life 
 was to begin. She now sat on a bench of the 
 deserted saloon ; three of the high spacious 
 windows were closed, a single gleam of bril- 
 liant sunshine found its way through the 
 
A GOOD MATCH. O 
 
 fourth, which had just been opened, and illu- 
 mined the figure of the young girl, causing 
 her light brown hair to shine like gold. Her 
 face was averted from the cheerful beam, and 
 her eyes were fixed on a crushed rose-bud 
 which lay near her feet on the floor. There 
 was a listlessness in her attitude as she leaned 
 forward, and an expression of melancholy on 
 her countenance, peculiarly striking, from its 
 contrast to features which seemed formed for 
 the dwelling of buoyancy and mirth. 
 
 Near the window stood a tall girl, whose 
 style of beauty, though extremely different, 
 was thought by many to surpass that of the 
 heiress. The prospect without seemed to en- 
 gross all her attention, and long were her dark 
 eyes fixed on the spire of a distant church 
 which rose up from the midst of a grove of 
 elms. The reflections which this object seemed 
 to excite in her mind, were of a more cheerful 
 cast than the thoughts that occupied her listless 
 companion ; yet the joy which illumined her 
 countenance, appeared almost as much at vari- 
 
6 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ance with its usual thoughtful expression, as 
 the sorrow which depressed the lively Helen. 
 A smile played round her beautiful lips, and 
 the blood mounted to her usually pale cheeks, 
 till, as if half ashamed of the thoughts which 
 had so powerfully excited her imagination, she 
 suddenly turned round, and almost started when 
 she beheld the melancholy expression which the 
 attitude of Helen evinced. Suddenly the joy 
 which had so lately illumined her own coun- 
 tenance disappeared as she approached the 
 disconsolate girl, and was replaced by a look 
 of kind commiseration, as she imprinted a 
 gentle kiss on Helen's brow. 
 
 "Dearest sister, what has happened? I am 
 afraid you are dreadfully tired." 
 
 " Oh no, not in the least," said Helen, while, 
 with an impatient gesture, she stooped to pick 
 up the crushed rose-bud, and averted her head 
 as if the sunbeams were disagreeable, but in 
 reality to hide the tears which now glistened 
 in her long eyelashes. 
 
 " You are disappointed, dear Helen ; the 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 7 
 
 ball was not quite so pleasant as you 
 expected, and I think I, know why," said the 
 other, with an arch smile, as she placed her 
 arm round Helen's neck, and sat down by her 
 side. 
 
 " Oh yes, it was quite as pleasant as I ex- 
 pected," exclaimed Helen, in a pettish tone. 
 Then, after a few moments' consideration, as 
 if ashamed of the fretfulness she had given way 
 to, she suddenly burst into tears, and sobbed 
 on the bosom of her companion. 
 
 " Forgive me, dearest Laura, I was vexed 
 with you for disturbing me, or rather I am 
 angry with myself; I never felt so miserable 
 in all my life." 
 
 '^ I knew it, dear Helen, I was sure." 
 
 " What could have changed him so com- 
 pletely .? " interrupted Helen raising her head. 
 " His very features seem altered since we met 
 him last summer at Cheltenham. When he 
 asked me to dance one would have thought 
 he was conferring a favour ; and then he, Ed- 
 ward Melville, who used to be so civil to papa, 
 
8 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 and so afraid of mamma, talked to them last 
 night in quite an insolent manner." 
 
 " It was indeed, strange," said Laura, sink- 
 ing into a reverie. 
 
 There was a long silence, which was at last 
 disturbed by the sound of a carriage driving 
 to the door. The two girls jumped up; and, 
 running to the window, saw a chariot and 
 four, with an earPs coronet emblazoned on it, 
 pass rapidly by. 
 
 " Who can it be ?'" exclaimed Helen. " It 
 is not Lord Newlan's carrriage, and I never 
 knew there was another earl in this neigh- 
 bourhood ; yet they are not post horses, so 
 it cannot have come from a distance. Let 
 us go and peep into the hall.'' 
 
 " Stay, dear Helen ; you know mamma does 
 not like us to be seen till she sends for us.'* 
 
 At this moment an old man in a grey flannel 
 dressing-gown, with a bundle of papers under 
 his arm, and holding a tin shaving-pot in 
 his hand, entered the room. 
 
 "Oh, papa!" exclaimed Helen bounding 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 9 
 
 towards him, and kissing his unshaven cheek, 
 " do tell me whose carriage is that ?" 
 
 " Hush, hush," whispered the old gentle- 
 man hurrying across the room, *' don''t detain 
 me, for he wants to see me ; and I must go 
 and dress." 
 
 "But who is it?" said Helen following 
 her father to the door. 
 
 " Who ? why Lord Nightingford, to be 
 sure," said Mr. Baynton, as he stopped with 
 a gratified air to gaze on his beautiful daugh- 
 ter's countenance, then with a mysterious smile 
 he stroked her blooming cheek. 
 
 " Lord Nightingford !" said Helen in a 
 tone of indifference, while her thoughts seem- 
 ed far away. 
 
 " Lord Nightingford !" said Laura, " where 
 can he come from? I think I have heard 
 Hen — Mr. Rookraore mention that name." 
 
 " By the by," exclaimed Helen, " why did 
 not Mr. Rookmore come last night ? I can- 
 not imagine how you could enjoy the ball 
 without him." 
 
 B 5 
 
10 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " I did not enjoy the ball," said Laura ; 
 but, as if ashamed at something which her 
 words seemed to imply, she added with a 
 blush, '* you know I never do enjoy balls." 
 
 And yet you looked very happy ; but 
 tell me what prevented him from coming?" 
 
 " You know he does not think that sort 
 of dissipation accordant with his profession ; 
 nor indeed do I," continued Laura, her fea- 
 tures brightening as she spoke. 
 
 " Oh, you are quite made for a clergy- 
 man'^s wife ; and yet, dear Laura, I should be 
 sorry to see you buried there in that dull 
 parsonage, among those gloomy elm trees, 
 with all the school children." 
 
 '' I am sure it is anything but gloomy ; 
 nothinoj can be more cheerful than the dear 
 old house, with its stone porch and bay win- 
 dows to the south, covered with roses and 
 jasmine." 
 
 " Stay, stay ; you are talking of it exactly 
 as if it was really to be your future home, 
 and look as pleased as if mamma had con- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 11 
 
 sented to the match. Ah, now you are blush- 
 ing; nay, don't look distressed, but tell me, 
 has he not asked you to become his wife ?" 
 
 " No," exclaimed Laura ; " and I should 
 be very sorry if he were, it would be so 
 painful to refuse." 
 
 " And would you really refuse him ? — and 
 why ? for you are not afraid of mamma ; you 
 never tremble at her anger as I do, — and I 
 know the reason ; it is because you never 
 feel to be in the wrong, you know she is 
 angry unjustly, and therefore you can look 
 as calm and proud, — no, not proud, I don't 
 like that word, — but as commanding as you 
 do now. As for me, I am so frightened at 
 her, she can make me do anything she chooses ; 
 indeed, she even contrived to make me uncivil 
 to Mr. Melville last summer. It was the last 
 time I saw him," continued Helen musing 
 deeply, " and perhaps he was offended, and 
 that made him behave so oddly last night. 
 But, then, what could induce him to come.? 
 and how strange he should drop down in 
 
12 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 that sudden manner from the clouds, when 
 I thought he was in the south of France. 
 Well, I wonder if we shall ever see him 
 again ?" 
 
 " My child, my darling Helen !"* exclaimed 
 Mr. Baynton rushing into the room, and em- 
 bracing her affectionately. " I am so glad ; 
 there, go to your mamma, she is waiting for 
 you in the drawing-room. Good b"*ye. I am 
 going off with Lord Nightingford : he has 
 allowed me to excavate the Cheselto i barrow 
 on his estate; and, as he will pass by it on 
 his road to Exeter, I am going as far as that 
 with him. You know it is a thing I have 
 always been most anxious to do ; and the late 
 lord was such a strange man, he could not 
 bear the idea of his steward*s lodge being dis- 
 turbed, though I proved to him incontestably 
 that some Roman antiquities must be found 
 under the ground. This dear good man has 
 given me leave even to pull the house down, 
 and excavate, if necessary, under his orna- 
 mental dairy," and the old gentleman rubbed 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 13 
 
 his hands with delight, and animated by the 
 prospect of discovering some valuable anti- 
 quities, he bounded out of the room with an 
 activity quite at variance with his years. 
 
 In a few minutes Lord Nightingford's car- 
 riage drove off, and Helen slowly obeyed her 
 father's command, and went into the drawing- 
 room. She trembled as she approached the 
 door ; for when Mrs. Baynton sent for her in 
 that sort of way, she was generally doomed 
 to receive what in common language is termed 
 a scolding. Indeed, so great was the terror 
 and awe she felt for her step-mother, that on 
 the present occasion she scarcely ventured to 
 look towards that part of the room where 
 Mrs. Baynton was seated, but stood still 
 near the door with an air of childish fear 
 and pettishness, waiting as if prepared for 
 the worst. 
 
 " Come here, Helen, and sit down by me,'"* 
 said Mrs. Baynton, in a voice of unusual kind- 
 ness ; " what makes you look so frightened, 
 eh ? Has your father told you ?" 
 
14 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " He only told me he was going to excavate 
 the great barrow at Cheselton." 
 
 " Poor dear man !" said Mrs. Baynton with 
 a contemptuous smile ; " he thinks more of his 
 old broken pottery, and rusty spear heads, than 
 of his daughter's fate. 'Tis fortunate, Helen, 
 you have a step-mother who thinks for you, 
 and who, indeed, I may fairly say, has been 
 more than a mother to you, or you would 
 have grown up to be as ignorant and spoilt, 
 as I found you at eight years old. Your 
 father would have let you run completely 
 wild. Well now, my dear, I have to inform 
 you of an important event," continued Mrs. 
 Baynton in a solemn tone. " The Earl of 
 Nightingford, who has lately succeeded to the 
 title of his cousin, and an unencumbered estate 
 of twenty thousand a year, has proposed for 
 you. It is in every way a most eligible match ; 
 and though you are heiress to the Baynton 
 property, is really more than you could have 
 expected. My dear Helen, I heartily wish 
 you joy/' 
 
A GOOD MATCH. io 
 
 The words " I will not marry Lord Night- 
 ingford," were striving for utterance on the 
 pretty lips of Helen ; but there was some- 
 thing in the unusual kindness of Mrs. Bayn- 
 ton's manner which imposed on the young 
 girl more than her most severe and angry 
 humour. The surprised Helen ventured, how- 
 ever, to say in a meek tone of voice, "But 
 I really — I cannot — I do not wish to marry 
 Lord Nightingford." 
 
 " But of course you will wish it, and in- 
 deed your father has already given his consent ; 
 so do not be so capricious, or take up any 
 foolish ideas, but try and be grateful for the 
 good fortune Providence has allotted you. 
 Now go and put on your things for a drive ; 
 the carriage will be at the door in five mi- 
 nutes."' Helen, who longed to communicate 
 these astounding tidings to her dear Laura, 
 hastened away without making any observa- 
 tion. 
 
16 A GOOD MATCH, 
 
 CHAPTER ir. 
 
 La crainte est de toutes les fetes : 
 Jamais iin jour calme et serein 
 Du choc tenebreux des tempetes 
 N 'a garanti le lendemain. 
 
 Tleboul. 
 
 " I THINK it really very hard I should be 
 obliged to marry that Earl of Nightingford ; 
 a man, too, that I do not remember to have 
 ever seen — very hard indeed," said Helen for 
 the hundredth time to her dear Laura when 
 they retired to rest. " You really do not 
 seem to feel for me. I am sure if you were 
 obliged to marry any other person but Henry 
 Rookmore you would be miserable." 
 
 " I do indeed feel for you most deeply, my 
 dearest Helen ; but just consider this, have 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 17 
 
 you any reason now to suppose that Mr. Mel- 
 ville continues to love you ; has he not shown 
 himself capricious ? Indeed, even last sum- 
 mer I always thought it was principally your 
 fortune which attracted his admiration. You 
 know I never thought him worthy of my dar- 
 ling Helen ; yet he is certainly very handsome 
 and agreeable, and I do not wonder at your 
 preferring him to any man you have yet seen. 
 Do not look so miserable, dearest ; try to 
 banish all this from your mind till you again 
 see Lord Nightingford ; I hear he is to come 
 next week." 
 
 " Well, I will try to be satisfied; and, after 
 all, what does it signify ? I do believe I would 
 marry the man I hate most, if I could not have 
 the one I love. Yes, and then it would spite 
 Edward Melville, too.'' 
 
 Laura shook her head with a mournful air. 
 '* Ah, my dear Helen, I cannot bear to hear 
 you utter such sentiments. How can you 
 expect any happiness in this world, still less 
 in the next, if spite against the man you love, 
 
18 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 and premeditated hatred against the man your 
 parents wish you to marry, are to be your mo- 
 tives in this most important action of your life ? 
 Dearest girl, pray to your heavenly Father 
 for guidance ; implore him to remove these 
 bitter feelings from your heart, — to enable you 
 to pursue steadily the right path, — not to be 
 terrified by your fear of my mother to do a 
 thing which you really dislike ; and, above all, 
 do not sacrifice your whole existence, and en- 
 ter into the sacred duties of married life, merely 
 to gratify a momentary feeling of bitterness 
 against Edward Melville. Dear Helen," con- 
 tinued Laura, while her beautiful features were 
 illumined with an expression of enthusiastic 
 fervour, " dear Helen," try to pray for a better 
 heart;' 
 
 " I cannot !"" exclaimed Helen, bursting into 
 tears. " I feel too wicked ; I am full of hatred 
 and spite ; I love nothing — no, not even Ed- 
 ward ; all, all my feelings are turned to bitter- 
 ness by his cruel conduct last night." 
 
 Laura said no more that evening; but dur- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 19 
 
 ing the following days she was unceasing in 
 her endeavours to improve to the advantage of 
 her mind, this first grief that Helen had ever 
 experienced. 
 
 Helen Baynton was one of those engaging 
 and captivating characters which are called 
 natural : every emotion that agitated her mind 
 was plainly depicted on her ever-varying coun- 
 tenance ; she could never conceal her feelings 
 or repress them. These aforesaid natural cha- 
 racters, though amiable in appearance, are ge- 
 nerally essentially selfish, and in the changes 
 and trials, and rubs of life, are rarely to be 
 depended on ; being solely under the domi- 
 nion of impulse, they are by turns victims to 
 the good and the bad, to hatred or to love. 
 
 Laura's disposition, as well as her appear- 
 ance, was in most things the reverse of that of 
 the girl who called her sister. She was — but 
 I do not like descriptions, particularly of cha- 
 racters I love, so I will let the actions of my 
 dear Laura show her character, and only say 
 that she was daughter to Mrs. Baynton by a 
 
20 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 former marriage with Captain Copley, a naval 
 officer of good family but small fortune. 
 
 Mrs. Baynton was one of those good though 
 uninteresting women who invariably act up to 
 what they consider their duty. It is easy for 
 persons who have no partiality, who love no 
 one intensely, to do their duty to all. Mrs. 
 Baynton never thwarted her husband's fancies ; 
 she never showed more favour or kindness 
 to her own daughter Laura, than she evinced 
 towards the child of her husband''s former 
 wife ; she managed the household with eco- 
 nomy, keeping everything and everybody in 
 order more by terror and method than by 
 love. Mrs. Baynton had a high respect for 
 fortune and rank, and her impartiality was 
 such, that she had bestowed more pains on the 
 education of Helen Baynton, because she was 
 heiress to eight thousand a year, than she had 
 on that of her own pennyless child. By pains, 
 I mean, that she gave Helen the advantage 
 of masters in all the usual branches of .instruc- 
 tion, and placed her for five years at Mrs. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 21 
 
 Camilla Lionel's, one of the most fashionable 
 establishments for the education of young 
 ladies in the neighbourhood of London, where 
 the terms, were three hundred per annum, ex- 
 clusive of washing, German, and the harp. 
 
 Laura Copley, on the contrary, had been 
 sent to one of an inferior kind, where the Miss 
 Straightboards professed to instruct in all the 
 rudiments of polite education for sixty pounds 
 a year. 
 
 Whether the Miss Straightboards were more 
 conscientious in fulfilling their engagement 
 than Mrs. Camilia Lionel I know not ; but the 
 result was, that Laura contrived to acquire 
 much solid information during the three years 
 of her abode at Clapham, while Helen Bayn- 
 ton returned home at seventeen without know- 
 ing much. I must not, however, wrong my 
 heroine, who was pronounced by every one to 
 be a very accomplished young lady, who could 
 sing, and play on the harp divinely, paint 
 flowers from nature, and more important still, 
 was M^'S Michau's best pupil in dancing. 
 
22 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Mr. Baynton was so deeply engrossed by 
 the glorious discovery he had made of a Ro- 
 man road and milestone under Lord Nighting- 
 ford's dairy at Royston Park, that he remained 
 to prosecute his excavations until the day 
 ap})ointed for his future son-in-law to visit 
 Baynton Hall. This engagement he would 
 most probably have forgotten but for the re- 
 turn of Lord Nightingford to his castle, who, 
 with a smile at the enthusiasm of the old gentle- 
 man, offered, as he was on his way to Baynton 
 Hall, to take with him its eccentric owner. 
 
 " I will come in one half hour,"" said Mr. 
 Baynton ; " but allow me first to show you 
 an undoubted piece of Roman wall : here, you 
 see, are the real bricks ; and I make no doubt, 
 we shall find some tessellated pavement in the 
 direction of that old oak." 
 
 " But you surely would not cut down that 
 beautiful tree : there is a tradition in our 
 family, that it was planted by one of our 
 ancestors who came over from Normandy in 
 the suite of William the Conqueror." 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 23 
 
 " It is a venerable tree," said Mr. Baynton 
 with an embarrassed look — whose respect for 
 anything which dated from the Norman con- 
 quest was very great — " and one of compara- 
 tively high antiquity ; bat then, my dear lord, 
 just consider, if we were to find a temple of the 
 age of Antoninus, or indeed from the forma- 
 tion of these bricks I should almost pronounce 
 it to be of the period of Titus, just consider 
 what a glorious " 
 
 " Well, we will consider of it," said Lord 
 Nightingford ; " but, in the mean time, I am 
 afraid we shall be late — you said your dinner- 
 hour was six." 
 
 " Ah, true ! and you have not yet seen 
 my daughter since you proposed : I nearly 
 forgot all about it — she is a dear child ! 
 Here ! look at the piece of ancient vase I 
 found in the large barrow, with the head of 
 a spear, and the bones of a female. Have a 
 care there !" he exclaimed, suddenly turning 
 to one of the workmen : " do not strike the 
 ground so hard vvith your spade, but lift the 
 
24 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 earth so. Stay ! you had better not pro- 
 ceed' in this direction till I return to-morrow, 
 lest any of the pavement I expect to find 
 should be injured. Be here ready for work 
 to-morrow morning at nine o'clock, but do 
 nothing till I arrive." 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 25 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Though times may change, and friends may range, 
 
 What fear can overwhelm, 
 If we but know, 'mid every woe, 
 
 Our Father 's at the helm ? 
 
 Miss Boyle. 
 
 As the day approached on which Lord 
 Nightingford was to arrive, Helen''s agitatioQ 
 increased to such a degree that she became 
 really ill, and declared she would not appear 
 at dinner. When the dressing-bell rang, Mrs. 
 Baynton came into her room to feel her pulse, 
 and see whether her indisposition was real, or, 
 as had been sometimes the case before, merely 
 imaginary. 
 
 ** I do not think it would do you any harm 
 to come down to dinner," said Mrs. Baynton, 
 
 VOL. I. c 
 
%b A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 after feeling her pulse. '' Come come, this is 
 nothing !" she continued, with an air of se- 
 verity on seeing Helen prepared to remon- 
 strate. " Lord Nightingford would think it 
 very odd if you were not to appear. Now 
 dress yourself at once, I insist upon it." 
 
 The poor girl tremblingly obeyed, and al- 
 lowed herself to be adorned by the tasteful 
 hands of Mad^^^ Felicie. Just as the last pin 
 was placed in the band which encircled her 
 slender waist, a carriage drove up to the door. 
 Helen ran to the window, but she was only 
 in time to see the skirt of a coat ascending 
 the hall steps. 
 
 " Come, dear Helen,"" said Laura, " let us 
 
 run down, for you know mamma will 
 
 But. bless me, what ^s the matter ; you look 
 as if you had seen a ghost .?*" 
 
 '' Melville — Edward Melville is with him !" 
 exclaimed Helen ; "he has just followed him 
 up the steps : cruel unfeeling wretch to come 
 here with my future husband ! Oh, dearest 
 Laura ! what can I do ? — it is impossible to 
 go down." 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 27 
 
 "How very strange ! " said Laura. "But 
 are you sure you saw Mr. Melville arrive with 
 Lord Nightingford ? Well, I will not try to 
 persuade you to come down now — I will go 
 and say you are worse." 
 
 " Dinner is on the table," said the butler, 
 knocking at the door ; " and mistress told me 
 to say they were all waiting." 
 
 Laura gave one tender embrace to her agi- 
 tated friend, and hurried into the drawing- 
 room. When she was gone, Helen threw her- 
 self on the bed, and tore with vexation the 
 roses which had so lately been placed in her 
 hair. 
 
 " It is Melville, Edward Melville himself !" 
 exclaimed Laura, bursting into the room, her 
 countenance radiant with joy. " Edward 
 Melville is now Lord Nightingford !" 
 
 Helen started up, scarcely able to believe her 
 senses, or to comprehend the sudden change 
 from so much misery to the happy lot which 
 now awaited her. " Let me see him, dear, 
 dear Edward ! " was all she could say as the 
 
 c2 
 
28 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 tears of joy started to her eye ; and, supported 
 by the scarcely less agitated Laura, she entered 
 the drawing-room. Her first impulse would 
 have been to run up and express all she felt 
 to Lord Nightingford ; but she met the cold 
 scrutinizing gaze of her mother-in-law, which 
 checked the display of her affectionate feelings, 
 and, with an embarrassed and constrained air, 
 she received the formal salutation of Lord 
 Nightingford. 
 
 As she was conducted by her future husband 
 — her own dear Edward Melville — into the 
 dining-room, she gradually became less em- 
 barrassed ; and when they were seated at 
 dinner, she soon began to ask him a thousand 
 questions. All was satisfactorily explained by 
 Lord Nightingford. He had been suddenly 
 recalled from the south of France by receiving 
 intelligence of the unexpected death of his 
 distant cousin, the late Karl of Nightingford, 
 who, with his only son, was drowned while 
 sailing in their yacht in the INIediterranean. 
 
 "Well, it is all very delightful now !" ex- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 29 
 
 claimed Helen, after she had detailed to him 
 all the fears and apprehensions she had suf- 
 fered for the last week. " How strange I 
 should never have discovered the real state 
 of the case during that time ! I wonder that 
 when mamma saw how miserable I was at 
 the idea of marrying Lord Nightingford, she 
 did not imagine that I must be ignorant who 
 you now are but these things don't strike 
 her ; and then dear papa has been absent 
 ever since. I shut myself up in my room 
 in despair, and Laura has never left me, so 
 we had no way of hearing anything about 
 you. But why were you so stiff and formal 
 on the night of the ball ? — you did not seem 
 the least glad to see me." 
 
 If Helen had not been so deeply absorbed 
 in her own feelings of happy surprise, she 
 might have remarked the same expression of 
 cold hauteur on the brow of her lover at this 
 very moment ; and she might have felt that the 
 decided tone in which he now spoke, was very 
 different from the soft and insinuating accents 
 
30 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 which had awakened such powerful emotions 
 in her heart the preceding summer. Had 
 she known much of the world, too, she would 
 have attributed to its true source the changed 
 manner of a man who, in a few short months, 
 had risen from the struggling barrister with 
 three hundred a year to an earldom with 
 twenty thousand. 
 
 When dinner was over, and all was ex- 
 plained ; when the guileless Helen had, by 
 her unreflecting observations and inquiries, 
 shown to her future husband all the deep 
 affection which had long dwelt in her young 
 bosom ; when all this excitement was over, 
 and, leaning on the arm of Laura, she saun- 
 tered into the conservatory, there was a slight 
 expression of doubt and disappointment on her 
 countenance. This did not escape the affec- 
 tionate and w^atchful eye of her more than 
 sister, whose deep and penetrating intelligence 
 divined both the feeling and its cause, though 
 to Helen herself they were scarcely percepti- 
 ble ; but Laura said nothing ; the fate of her 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 31 
 
 dear Helen was now decided : the match con- 
 sidered so good by her parents, proved to be 
 also the one which Helen herself had for the 
 last six months secretly desired. All remon- 
 strances, all words of caution, would now be 
 useless ; and Laura felt that to pray fer- 
 vently for the dear, but thoughtless Helen, 
 was all that remained for her to do. 
 
 The two girls walked up and down for some 
 time in silence, amid the flowers in the con- 
 servatory. Helen's step became more and 
 more languid. " It is so hot here," she at 
 last said in a dis-spirited tone ; " let us go out 
 on the terrace." 
 
 They left the conservatory, and sat on a 
 bench under a wide-spreading chestnut tree. 
 The evening was beautiful ; the moon-beams 
 illumined with their silvery touch the lovely 
 view seen from the terrace at Baynton Hall, 
 and shone brightly on the old towers and 
 gable ends of that Elizabethan structure. It 
 was a scene which could not fail to call forth 
 poetic and enthusiastic feelings even in minds. 
 
32 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 the least sensitive to the calm beauties of 
 nature. 
 
 *•' I wonder if Edward will come to us 
 here ?'* said Helen, in a low melancholy 
 tone. 
 
 While the sisters were still on the terrace, 
 lights were brought into the sitting-rooms, 
 which illumined the low casements of the old 
 library, and the oriel windows. Soon Helen 
 saw the gentlemen pass through the long libra- 
 ry, and anxiously traced their slow, talking pro- 
 gress into the drawing-room. She saw Lord 
 Nightingford and Mr. Denman, the master 
 of the fox-hounds, retire into one of the deep 
 bay windows. They seemed to be engaged 
 in an interesting conversation. 
 
 " He is not thinking of me, nor is he even 
 looking at the beautiful view," thought Helen, 
 as a sigh heaved her bosom ; but she did not 
 like to utter the thought, though she looked 
 for consolation into the beautiful countenance 
 of Laura. It was more than usually sad. 
 
 "What are you thinking of.'^'"' inquired 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 33 
 
 Helen. '' Ah, I know, for I detected your 
 eyes fixed on the old twisted chimneys of the 
 parsonage : they really do look picturesque 
 by moonlight, and how pretty those lights 
 are in the Gothic windows of the church. I 
 suppose Mr. Rookmore is teaching the chil- 
 dren to sing ? Oh, this is Saturday night. 
 I am sorry to-morrow will be Sunday." 
 
 " Why should you be sorry, dearest Helen ?" 
 
 " Oh, because it is such a dull day, and I 
 
 know dear Edward could never bear it ; and 
 
 he only went to church, because you and 
 
 mamma used to look so grave if he did not." 
 
 Laura sighed, then said in a gentle yet 
 solemn tone, " Can you expect, dear Helen, 
 that those who have no regard for the religion 
 which they profess to believe, will have much 
 respect for the faith they swear at the altar 
 of their God. Do vou not wish that Edward, 
 that Lord Nightingford, should always con- 
 tinue to love you, in sickness, in health, for 
 better, for worse, in sorrow or joy, even unto 
 death ? Will those words be binding on one 
 
 c5 
 
34 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 who thinks the service of prayer and praise 
 irksome, and who would prefer to be occupied 
 in some trifling pursuit, rather than to return 
 thanks for all the blessings of this life in the 
 house of God ? Oh, dearest Helen, I tremble 
 for you both. If he cease to love you, if you 
 should be treated with contempt, and that a 
 rival — " 
 
 " Oh, do not draw such a horrible picture. 
 I should die. I could never live to see my 
 husband's affections given to another.'' 
 
 '' And do you think, were you to leave this 
 world, your soul would then be happy in 
 heaven ?" 
 
 " Oh, no, I can imagine no happiness with- 
 out Edward'*s love. Oh, if I thought religion 
 would ensure his constancy, I would become a 
 saint this very instant. Tell me," she continued 
 with eagerness, " do you really think he will 
 not be faithful unless he be religious ? Oh, 
 I will try and persuade him, and yet I fear 
 it would make him hate me.'' 
 
 " 1 would not wish to see you become ex- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 35 
 
 actly like those people who are usually termed 
 saints, no ; but, dear Helen, I wish you would 
 try to feel pleasure in thinking of your Saviour, 
 and endeavour to look for your chief happiness 
 to him alone. Then, in the hours of darkness, 
 — when all you love best will vanish before 
 your eyes, — when friends fail, and tempta- 
 tions beset your lonely path, then you would 
 find in God a sure and certain refuge, and in 
 His service a dehghtful peace and joy/' 
 
 " But how can I make Edward religious ? 
 that is by far the most important ; because, you 
 know, I am sure of my own love and constancy 
 to him." 
 
 " It is always in our power to influence in 
 some degree those with whom we live. If 
 Lord Nightingford should know that you 
 enter the house of God with reluctance, if 
 he see you falling asleep during the sermon, 
 and inattentive to the prayers, is it not an 
 encouragement to his indifference ? " 
 
 " That is true," exclaimed Helen : " I will 
 really try to-morrow and follow your advice. 
 
36 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 I will pinch my arms or bite my lips all church 
 time, that I may not fall asleep." 
 
 Laura shook her head mournfully, though 
 she could scarcely help smiling at this new 
 mode of becoming religious. 
 
 *' How very provoking that Edward will 
 not come out to us ! and yet I am sure he 
 must have seen us sitting here all this time. 
 There, the tea is going in now ; I think he 
 must come to tell us it is ready. How tire- 
 some of that nasty Mr. Denman to engross 
 so much of his attention ; what can they be 
 talking about .? Oh, there he comes at last!"''' 
 she exclaimed, jumping up and bounding 
 across the lawn towards a figure that was 
 crossing the dark shade cast by a high tower 
 of the building. 
 
 " Mistress desired me to say tea is ready. 
 Miss," said the loud nasal voice of John the 
 footman. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 37 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Who may misprize Dorchestrian hills ? What though 
 
 They tower to no such height as looks with scorn 
 
 Over a dwindled plain ; what though no crags 
 
 Be there to fortify ; no forest belts 
 
 To gird them midway round; yet theirs, instead, 
 
 Are graceful slopes with shadowy dips between ; 
 
 And theirs are breezy summits, not too high 
 
 To recognise familiar sights, and catch 
 
 Familiar sounds of life, the ploughman's call, 
 
 Or tinkling from the fold. 
 
 Kenyon. 
 
 With a slow step and- pensive air, the two 
 girls entered the drawing-room. 
 
 " Hey-day ! what's the matter?" exclaimed 
 Mr. Denman, '' you both look as sentimental 
 as if you had been singing ditties to the moon 
 in company with bats and screech-owls ;" and 
 he approached Laura, of whom he was a great 
 
38 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 admirer, and engaged her in a conversation 
 which was intended to be very witty. 
 
 Besides being the best fox-hunter in the 
 county, Mr. Denman was reckoned a wit ; 
 and if unvarying good-humour, and a buoy- 
 ant flow of animal spirits, can entitle a person 
 (as it often does) to be called clever, Mr. 
 Denman was decidedly so. That he was good- 
 natured and generous, no one could doubt ; 
 and he was the only man in the county who 
 maintained, that the pennyless Laura Copley 
 was by far more beautiful and clever than the 
 heiress of Baynton. This evening his atten- 
 tion to Laura was more than usually marked, 
 and she seemed to listen to his discourse with 
 more pleasure. If, however, Mr. Denman 
 had possessed much penetration (which, by 
 the by, is a quality that seldom belongs to 
 what are called good-natured people), he might 
 have perceived that, though his companion 
 smiled in the proper place at his sallies of 
 wit, and made fitting observations at the right 
 time, her thoughts were engrossed by two peo- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 39 
 
 pie who sat near the piano at the farther end 
 of the room. 
 
 Mr. Baynton's attention was wholly absorbed 
 by the examination of some ancient coins. His 
 wife had, after her second cup of tea, fallen 
 quietly asleep in an easy chair, so that nothing 
 now interfered to divert the attention of Lord 
 Nightingford from his intended bride. 
 
 His answer to her request that he would 
 accompany her in one of the duets they used 
 to sing last summer, was, that he had quite 
 given up music. This reply reached the watch- 
 ful ears of Laura ; but as they then approach- 
 ed the piano, she could not distinguish the 
 conversation that ensued, though she could 
 perceive that it seemed almost entirely sus- 
 tained by Helen. Laura saw with pain and 
 regret the same expression of ennui on the 
 countenance of Lord Nightingford, while he 
 was listening to the lively conversation of 
 Helen, as she used to observe on his features 
 when Dr. Chum was preaching one of his 
 longest sermons at Cheltenham. There was 
 
40 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 the suppressed yawn, the half-vacant stare, 
 though he could not avoid reading an expres- 
 sion of such deep devoted affection in the eyes 
 of his future bride, as would have transported 
 most men out of ^heir senses with delight. 
 
 The following was, as Helen had predicted, 
 a dull day, and on Monday Lord Nightingford 
 departed. He kissed Helen, and expressed a 
 wish as he bid her good b'ye, that an early 
 day might be fixed for the marriage, as he 
 thought courtship a great bore. 
 
 Helen, who began to be accustomed to the 
 cold indifference of his manner, was pleased 
 by even this allusion to a marriage, which she 
 almost began to think, from his apparent un- 
 concern about it, would never take place. 
 
 " Will you write to me.^" she ventured to 
 inquire in a meek tone, as he was about to 
 enter his travelling carriage. 
 
 " Yes, if you wish it; but I shall scarcely 
 know what to say. You know I am going to 
 shoot with my friend Lord Moredale : we 
 shall be out from morning till night on the 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 41 
 
 moors, and of course tired to death when I 
 come home for dinner, and too sleepy in the 
 evening ; however, I will see. Good b'ye, 
 good b'ye, — I shall be late." 
 
 The carriage drove off, and Helen ran to 
 shut herself up in her own room. 
 
 The next day, Mr. Grifnal, a thin-faced, 
 
 blue-nosed lawyer from D , came to arrange 
 
 settlements &c. with Mr. Baynton, or rather 
 with his wife; for the former was too much 
 engrossed by his excavations under Lord 
 Nightingford's dairy to bestow much attention 
 to law proceedings, and accepted, with extreme 
 joy, his wife's offer of arranging the whole bu- 
 siness. 
 
 And here I must do my friend Mrs. Baynton 
 the justice to say she was most liberal in the 
 pecuniary arrangements, as she caused all Mr. 
 Baynton's fortune to be settled upon Helen, 
 even to the exclusion of herself. These pro- 
 ceedings, and, above all, a variety of patterns 
 of silks and dresses, which, by order of the 
 thoughtful Mrs. Baynton, arrived from Lon- 
 
4f2 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 don, tended to raise the drooping spirits of 
 Helen. Like most young beauties whose 
 minds have not been highly cultivated, she 
 was fond of display. When the interesting 
 occupation of ordering a trousseau reconciles 
 many girls to a marriage against their inclina- 
 tion, can we wonder that it proved a great 
 consolation to Helen, who was about to be 
 united to a man, changed indeed most strange- 
 ly, but who was still the object of her first 
 choice. Visions, besides those of affection, be- 
 gan to mingle among her ardent imaginings. 
 A heart so buoyant, so full of innate happiness 
 as that of Helen, grasps with eagerness at 
 every prospect of joy; it is often almost un- 
 consciously diverted from the object which at 
 first it considered alone worth living for, and 
 thus, with the sportive lightness of a butter- 
 fly, seeks for sweets from various and most 
 opposite sources. 
 
 Helen had never been out in London, but 
 her beau ideal of its joys was most captivating. 
 For a time, however, her ambitious views had 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 43 
 
 been checked by the consciousness that Edward 
 Melville was poor ; but, though she knew that 
 with him she could never shine as a star in 
 fashionable life, her love was so pure, so de- 
 voted, that she regretted it not. In order to 
 marry him, she might have been easily persuad- 
 ed to relinquish all ambitious dreams, and run 
 the risk of being disinherited by her father. 
 Love had worked this in the mind of a girl, 
 whose naturally ingenuous and kind-hearted 
 disposition was spoilt by early indulgence, as 
 well as by the very injudicious treatment of 
 Mrs. Camilla Lionel, at her " establishment for 
 young ladies." 
 
 Whilst the marriage preparations were in 
 progress, Mr Denman proposed, one fine morn- 
 ing, to Mrs. Baynton, that her daughter Laura 
 should become mistress of his house and for- 
 tune. Mrs. Baynton was delighted — this would 
 be even a better match than Helen's ; she could 
 scarcely believe her ears, and all the reply she 
 could for some moments make, was, " But 
 Mr. Denman, are you aware that my daugh- 
 
44 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ter*s fortune is only one thousand pounds? and 
 even that will not come to her till after my 
 death ; for, as Mr. Baynton has settled all his 
 fortune on Helen, I shall have only — " 
 
 " Stay," said Mr. Denman, '' I am quite 
 aware of all this, and that you have made Mr. 
 Baynton behave most generously to his daugh- 
 ter ; but, happily, my fortune is such that I do 
 not require any addition. Now then to the 
 point, — do you think your daughter will accept 
 me?" 
 
 " Accept you, dear sir ! do you imagine she 
 would be such a fool as to reject such a splen- 
 did match ? " 
 
 " Then I will go to her immediately. I see 
 she is sitting on the bench at the end of the 
 terrace," said Mr. Denman, his red face beam- 
 ing with joy, and his little grey eyes twinkling 
 with good-nature. 
 
 Mrs. Baynton observed that this proceeding 
 was rather against rule — it was her part, she 
 said, to inform Laura of the proposal; but 
 when she saw the impatience depicted on the 
 
A GOOD iMATCH. 45 
 
 cuuntenance of Mr Denman, and that, heedless 
 of her remonstrances, he was about to leave 
 the room, she made no further objections. 
 Indeed Mrs. Baynton felt so happy, that for 
 once she almost forgot the rules of duty she 
 had laid down for her conduct. Maternal 
 affection would break out ; and in spite of all 
 the schooling she had given herself, the pro- 
 spect of her own daughter's happiness gave 
 her more joy than even the thoughts of Helen's 
 brilliant match. 
 
 " Why, to be sure it is a better match," 
 thought she, as the tears of joy started to her 
 eyes. " No wonder I should feel so pleased," 
 she continued, as if to find an excuse for a 
 feeling so like culpable partiality ; " who 
 would have expected such a thing ? one thou- 
 sand pound, and her schooling only cost sixty 
 guineas a year ! To be sure she 's a good girl, 
 and yet [she likes her own way, — can't manage 
 her so well as Helen, who was such a spoilt 
 child. — But, bless me, what are they about ?" 
 she continued, looking towards the terrace." 
 
46 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Mrs. Baynton could not hear their conver- 
 sation, but the bench at the end of the terrace- 
 walk, on which her daughter and Mr. Denman 
 sat, was near enough to afford a clear view of 
 their countenances. The expression on that 
 of Mr. Denman was changed indeed since he 
 left the drawing-room : disappointment, sorrow, 
 and even a shade of anger, were visible on 
 features which seemed made for mirth. 
 
 There is something startling in the sight 
 of an expression of feeling in a person to whose 
 nature it seems quite foreign. Mrs. Baynton 
 was by no means a keen observer of the human 
 countenance, and yet she was much astonished 
 by the alteration on that of Mr. Denman. 
 
 "What can the foolish girl be saying to 
 him ? " thought she ; '' Laura is telling him 
 some long story, — how odd ! what can she say 
 to make him so angry ? Come, he is beginning 
 to be pacified again. Ah, well, it 's all right 
 now, as he is taking her hand and kissing it." 
 
 But Mrs. Baynton's calculations were wrong. 
 All was not right, in the manner at least she 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 47 
 
 supposed. Laura Copley had firmly, though 
 with expressions of sincere gratitude, refused 
 the offer of Mr. Denman. This had at first 
 excited a feeling of anger in the breast of her 
 good-natured, but hot-tempered suitor, who 
 was little accustomed to have his wishes 
 thwarted, and who, moreover, entertained a 
 tolerably good opinion of his own importance 
 and attractions. He expressed his vexation 
 in no very measured terms ; but his heart 
 was too kind to harbour long a feeling of 
 enmity to any person or thing; and when he 
 heard the meek tone of Laura's melodious 
 voice asking his forgiveness, while in a timid 
 and embarrassed manner she hinted that her 
 affections had been long engaged by another 
 person, he could not resist experiencing both 
 pity and admiration for the interesting girl. 
 He in turn craved pardon for his harsh words, 
 and taking her hand pressed it respectfully to 
 his lips. 
 
 " Your mother seems to know nothing of 
 this sad impediment to my wishes,'' continued 
 
48 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 he, while a tear glistened in his usually laugh- 
 ing eye. " I know she will be greatly dis- 
 appointed after all she said to me. Is she 
 acquainted with the happy man who — "" 
 
 " Yes : but she is not at all aware of — 
 indeed, nothing has ever passed, and I scarcely 
 know — " 
 
 Laura's embarrassment was so great, she 
 could say no more ; but Mr. Denman, whose 
 benevolent countenance again gleamed with a 
 something of its wonted cheerfulness, said in 
 a tone softened by kindness, " Do not be 
 afraid : tell me your' real — or, stay, — I think 
 I have it," he continued. '' If I guess right 
 as to the person, will you nod assent.?" and 
 encouraged by the faint smile on Laura's me- 
 lancholy countenance, he continued, gazing 
 archly on the church steeple which was just 
 then gilded by a brilliant ray of setting sun : 
 " My eyes are at this moment not far from 
 the spot where he lives. — Ah, I know I am 
 right now ; you need not even nod your head," 
 he said, on seeing the pale cheek of Laura 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 49 
 
 tinged with a blush deeper than the crimson 
 which now glowed in the evening clouds. 
 
 There was a long pause : many thoughts 
 seemed to flit over the open brow of Mr. 
 Denman ; but, to judge from the smile which 
 gradually began to play round his mouth, they 
 were anything but sad ; and yet he sighed, 
 and there was a melancholy resignation in the 
 voice which said, " Well, I hope he is worthy 
 of you ; do not look so sorrowful, dearest Miss 
 Copley : all may yet be well, — for you at least." 
 
 Laura shook her head. "Your mother's 
 anger will be perhaps hard to bear," he con- 
 tinued ; " but, after all, I think she will con- 
 sent. Yes, in time, she will consent to your 
 marriage with the Vicar of Brafield." 
 
 Laura started. " Yes," continued Mr. Den- 
 man, in almost his usual light-hearted tone, 
 '' yes, Mr. Rookmore is from this moment 
 Vicar of Brafield. The house, which has been 
 left in a deplorable state by the last incum- 
 bent, shall be thoroughly repaired, and Mr. 
 Rookmore shall step into a comfortable abode, 
 
 VOL. I. D 
 
50 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 and a clear nine hundred a year. Ah, how- 
 glad I am to see your dear face look so happy, 
 even though its sunshine is purchased by my 
 disappointment. Nay, do not say anything : 
 I will hear of no more impediments, but will 
 go and use all my influence with your mother 
 to induce her to forgive you for refusing me." 
 
 Laura's heart was too full to speak ; she 
 could only press the hand he extended to her, 
 and the next moment she saw her generous 
 friend bound across the terrace, and enter the 
 drawino'-room. What would be the result of 
 
 o 
 
 his interview ? — would her mother ever for- 
 give her, even now that Mr. Rookmore's pro- 
 spects were so much brightened? — would she 
 not be exasperated by her refusal of such a 
 match as Mr. Denman ? — would not — but it 
 is useless to relate all the hopes and fears of 
 a heart at once so enthusiastic, affectionate, 
 and sensitive as that of Laura Copley. 
 
 Her agitation was now so great that she felt 
 it was impossible to prevent its traces from 
 being visible on her countenance. She feared 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 51 
 
 lest some one should see her from the windows 
 of the house, or that some of the garden peo- 
 ple would come near the terrace. She longed 
 to shut herself up in her own room, yet dread- 
 ed lest on the way there she should meet her 
 mother or some of the servants. 
 
 With soft yet hurried steps she descended 
 the green lawn which sloped down to the river 
 side, and, crossing a narrow foot-bridge, was 
 soon under the thick shade of a beech grove 
 on the other side. In the middle of this dark 
 and venerable wood there was a ruin of the 
 old moated Castle of Baynton, w^hich had 
 stood many a siege in the wars of the Roses, 
 and was finally dismantled by its possessor Sir 
 Hugh Baynton, in the reign of Queen Eli- 
 zabeth, to build the present Hall, which stands 
 on a higher and more eligible part of the park. 
 All that had been spared of the old castle, 
 was one ivy-covered tower, and the end of a 
 building, said to have been the chapel. In 
 this, a beautiful gothic window, with its rich 
 tracery, was still entire, though the fine paint- 
 
 d2 
 
52 A GOOD MATCH, 
 
 ed glass representing saints and martyrs, and 
 emblazoned with the Baynton arms, which it 
 once contained, had been removed to adorn 
 the library of Baynton Hall. The sombre and 
 melancholy grandeur of this old place was 
 always particularly congenial to Laura's feel- 
 ings, and as her admiration of it was not 
 shared by any of the family except Mr. Bayn- 
 ton, she was sure to find quiet here ; and shade 
 too — dark verdant shade — for, owing to its low 
 position, and the height of the wide-spreading 
 trees around the ruin, it was seldom visited 
 by more than a few chequered flitting rays of 
 sunshine. Under the old Gothic window, 
 Laura would often sit for hours occupied with 
 her book or thoughts. Sometimes she would 
 mount a winding, broken staircase which con- 
 ducted to a little room near the summit of 
 the tower, and from thence, if in an adven- 
 turous mood, she would clamber up to the 
 broad battlements at the top. 
 
 This elevated spot commanded one of those 
 quiet rural views which are quite peculiar 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 53 
 
 to England. Around and beneath were the 
 thick and even summits of the beech trees. 
 This grove was bounded on two sides by 
 the broad river, which first ran through the 
 Baynton park and gardens, and then, after 
 several windings in the meadowed plain, tra- 
 versed the pretty village, and bordered its 
 venerable churchyard. Beyond, were hills, or 
 rather undulating slopes, covered with rich 
 fields, and hedge rows of majestic elms. The 
 whole landscape was now tinged with the warm 
 hues of autumn. The river was so smooth 
 that the vivid colouring of trees and flowers 
 which frinojed its banks was reflected on its 
 gently moving surface, and even the gable 
 ends and terraces of the hall on the opposite 
 height, played there in graceful lines. Such 
 a scene as this, where there is no distance, no 
 bold feature, where the highest objects in the 
 horizon are the tall trees, — the roof of an old 
 manor-house, or the grey spire of a village 
 church, has, I think, a very soothing eff*ect 
 on the mind. It seems to tranquillize the 
 
54 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 restless and ambitious dreams that trouble the 
 existence of most of us in these days of move- 
 ment. It sweetly invites us to come and be 
 contented and happy, and do good in a place 
 which abounds in everything that can refine 
 and satisfy a healthy mind, and to fix our chief 
 hopes and aims on the attainment of a still 
 more enduring bliss in the world to come. 
 Yes, I love these quiet nooks of happy Eng- 
 land, where every object in the pretty land- 
 scape seems to point, like the village spire, to 
 heaven. 
 
 Laura now leaned on the broken battlement. 
 The golden rays of the autumnal sun had de- 
 parted from the adjoining woods, but they still 
 illumined the figure of Laura ; yet she saw not 
 the glorious sunset : strange to say, her eyes 
 were fixed on the green and stagnant water of 
 the moat which lay at the depth of a hundred 
 feet beneath. Yet their expression did not 
 participate in the gloomy object on which they 
 were fixed ; now and then a smile played round 
 her lips, and dimpled her still blushing cheek. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 55 
 
 Soon her reverie was disturbed by the 
 rustling of the branches of a self-sown ash 
 tree, which grew on the wall immediately 
 behind. She started and turned round; her 
 eyes now rested on a more interesting object 
 than the green pond which had so long ri- 
 vetted their gaze, and were illumined by a 
 still more radiant expression, and yet that of 
 the two dark orbs which met her gaze, was 
 anything but cheerful. Often as Laura had 
 been in this spot before, she had never yet 
 met her lover there ; often had Henry Rook- 
 more, from the window of his own room at 
 the rectory, seen her graceful form leaning 
 over the same battlement, yet he had never 
 ventured to seek her there until now. The 
 deep settled melancholy which clouded his 
 brow, and told a tale of no ordinary grief, 
 showed that it was not from a feeling of hope, 
 or because he had anything gratifying to com- 
 municate, that he was now induced to depart 
 from the rule he had so long followed. 
 
 Laura was accustomed to see a cloud on 
 
56 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 his fine open brow, and to mark the ravages 
 of care and illness on his pale cheek ; but 
 there was usually a sublime expression, — a 
 look which seemed to show that he rejoiced 
 in being counted worthy to suffer for the Re- 
 deemer's sake, — a look which sought for happi- 
 ness in speaking words of peace and hope to 
 his fellow-creatures. This expression was now 
 gone, and the despair which sat upon his 
 features seemed to depress his whole figure, 
 and could not be dispelled, even by Laura's 
 unwonted and joyous welcome ; yet with a 
 faint smile he said, " I am glad you do not 
 reproach me for thus intruding on your so- 
 litude ; indeed, I know you would not, if you 
 knew the motive of my visit," he continued, 
 while his lips quivered with the intensity of 
 his feelings. 
 
 "What has happened?" inquired Laiira ; 
 " or, rather no, do not tell me, but let me 
 first try to dissipate your grief, by informing 
 you of what has — of what I know will give 
 you pleasure," she continued with a deep 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 57 
 
 Wush, while her eyes were concealed by their 
 long dark lashes; but, as if ashamed of her 
 embarrassment, she endeavoured to raise them 
 to his countenance, and in a few words inform 
 him of Mr. Denman'^s intention of bestowing 
 the vicarage of Brafield upon him. The ex- 
 treme agitation of her manner, and the con- 
 fusion which she strove in vain to suppress, 
 as she communicated the joyful tidings, filled 
 the young man with the most delightful hopes 
 as to her feelings towards him. He knew that 
 she was fully aware of his long and ardent 
 though undeclared attachment ; for Rookmore 
 felt his own position too strongly to venture to 
 seek for a return to that love which he was 
 wholly unable to conceal. Now^ every obstacle 
 was removed ; and as the young clergyman 
 gazed on the struggling emotion of the object 
 dearest to his heart, he could no longer restrain 
 the transports of a joy, which, from being 
 wholly unexpected, and coming at a time when 
 he thought all was lost, was more intense. His 
 heart throbbed tumultuously, and declaring 
 
 d5 
 
58 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 his long suppressed feelings with passionate 
 fervour, he gained from the agitated Laura 
 the delightful confirmation of his hopes. 
 
 " But," said he, after the first transports 
 were over ; " what is now to be done ? I have 
 just received a letter from my poor mother, 
 to say my dear father has been carried to 
 prison : he w^as unable to pay the small rent 
 of the cottage they took at " 
 
 " Oh, ho ! " interrupted a loud cheerful 
 voice, from the dark room beneath ; " so here 
 you are — I have found you at last ! Here, Mr. 
 Rookmore, give me your hand, and help me 
 to get up this horribly steep place. It is 
 very well for light creatures like you, but 
 by Jove ! I thought my fat body would have 
 stuck in the narrow stairs ; and now, after 
 having risked my life to tell you a piece of 
 good news, I dare say you will hardly thank 
 me for disturbing )'our tete-d-teie. Oh ! I am 
 quite out of breath," continued the stranger, 
 whom, I hope my readers have discovered to 
 be Mr. Denman. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 59 
 
 Rookmore was endeavouring to express his 
 gratitude for Mr. Denman's most generous 
 conduct, when the latter stopped him short 
 by exclaiming, " What was that you were 
 saying about prison and your father ? " in- 
 quired he, raising his little grey eyes to the 
 tall figure of Henry Rookmore. " Eh ! tell 
 me the truth, young man ; never fear, I Ml 
 not repeat, I swear by — beg pardon for swear- 
 ing before a clergyman ; but tell me candidly, 
 for I don't like to make people happy by 
 halves." 
 
 " It is a long story," said Mr. Rookmore, 
 in whose countenance pride and anxiety seemed 
 combating with Christian resignation. " I fear, 
 unless I could tell you all the circumstances 
 which led to this most unfortunate result, you 
 would be in some degree prejudiced against 
 my dearest father." 
 
 " Not a jot, not a jot ! it is not for one like 
 me who, God knows, does not lead the most 
 creditable of lives, to condemn others." 
 
 " But, Mr. Denman, in this case, indeed, 
 
60 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 there needs neither condemnation nor excuse; 
 if the truth were known, you would see that 
 not a shadow of blame could be attached to 
 my dear father's conduct, that — "" 
 
 " That 's enough : I am sure if he be at 
 all like his son, no one could suspect in him 
 anything that was not honourable and good. 
 Now, only just tell me the sum of money which 
 caused him to be put in prison. You know the 
 living of Brafield is worth nine hundred a 
 year, and it will be only paying a little in 
 advance." 
 
 Again the same contending emotions might 
 be seen to flit across the brow of Henry Rook- 
 more : several times he attempted to speak; 
 and Mr. Denman, wishing to relieve his em- 
 barrassment, at last inquired whether the sum 
 was more than a thousand pounds. 
 
 " A tenth part of that sum is all that my 
 poor father owes, and — ''' 
 
 " Say no more about it," exclaimed Mr. 
 Denman, feeling in the pocket of his capacious 
 waistcoat. " Here ! " he continued, with a half 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 61 
 
 timid look, as if fearful of hurting the feelings 
 of the man he wished to benefit, — '' this is, 
 in fact, yours, for a farmer has just given it 
 me out of the little money which ought pro- 
 perly to go to the vicar. Indeed, it is shame- 
 ful to think," continued he, talking in a loud 
 decided tone, in order to drown the remon- 
 strances which Rookmore endeavoured to make; 
 " it is shameful that out of five thousand a 
 year, which originally went to the church, 
 the vicar should now get only a fifth part."" 
 
 Having forcibly thrust a hundred pound 
 note into the young man's hand, and cast one 
 glance of half sorrow half joy on Laura, he 
 hurried down the winding stair. 
 
 " What a generous creature ! " exclaimed 
 Laura, while tears of gratitude and admiration 
 for the man whose peace she had so unwittingly 
 disturbed, glistened in her eye. "But how late 
 it is ! the sun has gone down, and hark ! the 
 church clock is striking seven. My mother 
 will think — oh ! I must hasten home." 
 
 Henry accompanied her as far as the little 
 
62 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 foot-bridge. The walk was not long, yet they 
 contrived to say much, to give joyful utterance 
 to many feelings which each had, till now, 
 endeavoured either to annihilate or to conceal 
 in their heart's inmost recesses. But the con- 
 versation of lovers is so uninteresting to every 
 one but themselves, that I will not relate it. 
 All seemed now smooth, every obstacle to 
 their happiness removed. Rookmore resolved 
 to start that very evening for C , to li- 
 berate his dear father from prison. This de- 
 lightful prospect, mingled with the almost cer- 
 tainty of obtaining the being he loved so 
 deeply, formed a mass of happiness that was 
 almost overpowering. " Surely this is some 
 enchanting dream," he exclaimed when they 
 reached the little bridge ; " it is too delight- 
 ful to be true. Can it last ? " added he with 
 that sort of eager fearfulness, which a person 
 who has long been inured to misfortune is sure 
 to feel, even in the midst of unexpected joy. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 63 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes ; and 
 adversity is not without comforts and hopes. We see in 
 needleworks and embroideries, it is more pleasing to have 
 a lively work upon a sad and solemn ground, than to have 
 a dark and melancholy work upon a lightsome ground : 
 judge therefore of the pleasure of the heart by the pleasure 
 of the eye. 
 
 Bacon. 
 
 Everything seemed now really prosperous. 
 Laura found her mother much disappointed, 
 it was true, but still she gave a reluctant con- 
 sent to the proposal which Mr. Denman had 
 made for Henry Rockmore. " It was all very 
 strange, very odd indeed," the old lady ex- 
 claimed, " and she thought the world was going 
 topsyturvy. That one gentleman who had 
 just offered himself and his fortune to Laura, 
 should suddenly not only rehnquish his wish, 
 
64 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 but demand her in marriage for another ! 
 Mr. Denman must be a very singular indi- 
 vidual," she continued; "and, for her part, 
 it was all so extraordinary, she scarcely knew 
 whether she was standing on her head or her 
 heels." 
 
 Helen was enchanted to hear of the removal 
 of those obstacles which she knew better than 
 any one else had long interfered with Laura's 
 secret wishes. Mr. Baynton was delighted, 
 because he was extremely fond of Henry Rook- 
 more, and had often thought of trying to get 
 him on in his profession. He probably would 
 have turned his mind to this object, and found 
 time to do so, if he had been aware that the 
 young people were attached ; for Laura was 
 a good girl, he said, and clever too, and 
 showed more taste for antiquities than even 
 his own child ; and she had, moreover, ma- 
 terially assisted him in the history he was 
 
 writing of the Roman antiquities of D shire. 
 
 " Besides," continued he, when his wife ex- 
 pressed her regret that Rookmore's fortune 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 65 
 
 would be stili very small, and that he could 
 make no settlement on his wife, — " besides, 
 recollect, my dear, Henry Rook more is de- 
 scended from one of the most ancient families 
 of Scotland, and that is the principal consi- 
 deration after all." 
 
 While Laura was occupied with these most 
 unexpected and delightful prospects for the 
 future, her lover was no less pleasingly 
 engaged. He started. that same evening by 
 the coach, which passed through the little 
 village of Baynton, and the next morning 
 
 arrived at C . I shall not describe the 
 
 meeting of the happy parents and child, or 
 try to depict the joy which the thoughts of 
 his bright anticipations awakened in their 
 hearts. I will only say that he installed 
 them in a small but comfortable abode, which 
 would be only a temporary home until the 
 vicarage at Brafield, which Mr. Denman had 
 so generously promised to build, should be 
 finished. 
 
 On the third day after the young man's 
 
66 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 departure from home, the same coach con- 
 veyed him to Baynton again. The road went 
 through Brafield village, which was situated 
 about five miles from Baynton. As he drove 
 through its quiet little street, Rookmore gazed 
 with intense interest on the beautiful old Gothic 
 church which was to be the scene of his labours, 
 and on the countenances of his future parish- 
 ioners. Ah! what blissful visions of joy flitted 
 through his active mind ! Already he saw the 
 beautiful form of Laura entering one of the 
 cottages, her sweet countenance inspiring joy 
 and peace to the aged sufferer it contained ; 
 he saw her in the pretty school-house, and 
 heard the melodious tones of her voice instruct- 
 ing the village children to sing hymns. The 
 coach had long passed the village of Brafield, 
 yet still Rookmore's thoughts were there. 
 
 " Whose fine place is that on the right ?" 
 inquired a passenger, who, fortunately for the 
 lover's reveries, had hitherto been silent. 
 
 " That is Brafield Park, and belongs to 
 Mr. Denman,'* said Rookmore, looking to- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. b< 
 
 wards the magnificent residence of his bene- 
 factor. 
 
 " I suppose the family are absent, — it seems 
 to be shut up," continued the stranger ; " for 
 my part, if I had such a beautiful place as 
 that, I am sure I should never leave it even 
 for a day.'" 
 
 Rookmore then perceived that all the win- 
 dows were closed, and his thoughts reverted 
 to the painful circumstances which he had in 
 his own overwhelming happiness almost for- 
 gotten. He called to mind that Mr. Denman 
 had been disappointed in his best affections, 
 and as he considered what a dreadful loss 
 such a creature as Laura must be to the man 
 who had entertained hopes of obtaining her, he 
 sighed, and began to fear that, in spite of 
 Mr. Denman's apparent cheerfulness, he must 
 have suffered deeply from her refusal, and now 
 perhaps he had quitted his beautiful place to 
 seek for relief in change of scene. 
 
 The house was certainly shut up, yet Rook- 
 more knew that a large shooting-party was 
 
68 A GOOD iMATCH. 
 
 expected there. The more he reflected on 
 the probable cause of Mr. Denman's absence, 
 the more deeply was he touched with com- 
 passion and sympathy for that feeling of dis- 
 appointment, which must have been powerful 
 indeed when it could induce his hospitable 
 friend to break up a party about to assemble 
 for a battue in the preserves of Brafield, an 
 event which that devoted sportsman had hitherto 
 seemed to consider the most important object 
 in life. 
 
 Mr. Denman had not left his beautiful home, 
 nor had he postponed the jovial party which 
 were to meet there. His friends arrived at Bra- 
 field the day after the scene which was described 
 in the last chapter as having taken place on 
 the old tower of Baynton Castle. They ar- 
 rived full of glee, anticipating the week of 
 sport and revelry to which they had been 
 long looking forward with delight. They 
 arrived, and found the whole neighbourhood 
 and house in consternation ! Mr. Denman, 
 the jovial and kind-hearted, was dead ! He 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 69 
 
 had not returned home the preceding evening, 
 and, after a long search, his body was found 
 in a field near the old ruin of Baynton Castle, 
 and from its appearance, he was pronounced to 
 have died from a sudden fit of apoplexy. 
 
70 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Some murmur, when their sky is clear 
 
 And wholly bright to view, 
 If one small speck of dark appear 
 
 In their great heaven of blue. 
 And some with thankful love are filled, 
 
 If but one streak of light, 
 One ray of God's good mercy gild 
 
 The darkness of their night. 
 
 In palaces are hearts that ask, 
 
 In discontent and pride, 
 Why life is such a dreary task, 
 
 And all good things denied. 
 And hearts in poorest huts admire 
 
 How love has in their aid 
 (Love th?.t not ever seems to tire) 
 
 Such rich provision made. 
 
 Trexch. 
 
 The successor to Mr, Denman's property 
 was his heir-at-law, a needy man with a large 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 71 
 
 family^ who immediately gave the living of 
 Brafield to his second son. Thus were the 
 prospects of Laura and her lover suddenly 
 obscured, and the joyful hopes they had for 
 one short day entertained, seemed now for ever 
 gone. They were both sufficiently wise to see 
 the folly of marrying upon an uncertain curacy 
 of one hundred a year ; and therefore the pru- 
 dent Mrs. Baynton had no difficulty in per- 
 suading them to give up their engagement for 
 the present. 
 
 Helen endeavoured most assiduously to con- 
 sole her dear sister under this severe and 
 unlooked-for trial. Next to her intended hus- 
 band, Laura was the person Helen loved best 
 in the world ; but as the day fixed for her 
 own marriage approached, she became so taken 
 up with various employments, and her mind 
 so intent on the great event which was to 
 decide her fate, that her words of tender com- 
 miseration became strangely mingled with those 
 things which were uppermost in her thoughts. 
 A smile was sometimes excited on the pale and 
 
12 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 now thin cheeks of Laura, when she saw Helen 
 endeavouring to look sad, and she half play- 
 fully told her to think only of her own joyful 
 prospects, and that to see her dear Helen 
 happy was the best consolation which could 
 be afforded to her depressed spirit. 
 
 Lord Nightingford sometimes called at 
 Baynton Hall ; his manner had still the same 
 appearance of indifference, though he often 
 brought magnificent presents to his future 
 bride. These same presents seemed almost to 
 indemnify the gay Helen, whose sunshiny but 
 volatile mind seized with eagerness on every- 
 thing which could afford gratification. To 
 show her newly acquired treasures to her 
 neighbours, and to hear the Miss Dulfords 
 and the Lady Molseys exclaim " How splen- 
 did ! " and wonder if they should ever be so 
 fortunate, was delightful. All these little 
 triumphs, and the excitement of preparation, 
 tended to make Helen almost forget that her 
 future husband was quite a different sort of 
 person from her former lover, and the day 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 73 
 
 fixed for her marriage arrived without having 
 experienced an}? feeling of apprehension as to 
 her future fate. 
 
 It was only when the wedding was over, 
 when, after the splendid breakfast which was 
 given at Baynton Hall, she bade adieu to her 
 old father and her dear Laura, that a sudden 
 feeling of sorrow, apprehension, and dismay, 
 seemed indeed to drown all her joy. She hung 
 on Laura's neck and shed floods of tears ; her 
 sorrow was not diminished by the sound of 
 her husband's voice, who, in a commanding 
 tone, reminded her that the carriage had long 
 been waiting. 
 
 "But when shall I ever see dear Laura 
 again ?" said Helen, with an imploring look to 
 Lord Nightingford. " Cannot she go abroad 
 with us ? " 
 
 Lord Nightingford made no reply, but, with 
 a decided air, led her towards the carriage, and 
 they drove off. The " happy couple" went to 
 spend the first week of their honeymoon at 
 a villa of Lord Nightingford's near Richmond, 
 
 VOL. I. E 
 
74 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 and then proceeded to the Continent to pass 
 the ensuing winter at Rome. 
 
 Helen had never been abroad before, and 
 she enjoyed the tour with all the ardour and 
 freshness of a lively young creature who was 
 just emancipated from the restraint of her 
 parents and teachers. Lord Nightingford was 
 kind, — that is, he allowed her to do exactly 
 as she pleased in all the minor arrangements of 
 their existence, — but there was nothing like 
 cordiality between them. 
 
 Helen was naturally very talkative, but 
 there was a something — she scarcely knew 
 what — that prevented her expressing her real 
 thoughts to Nightingford. He was in the 
 habit of smoking, and seemed rather annoyed 
 when he had to take the pipe out of his 
 mouth to answer the observations of his wife. 
 To this, as to most other of his peculiarities, 
 Helen soon got accustomed ; for she loved him, 
 and how easy it is not only to pardon the 
 errors of those we love, but, in time, to ima- 
 gine their very faults are almost perfections ! 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 75 
 
 The winter at Rome was unusually gay. 
 Helen, as the loveliest of all the English brides 
 who were there, excited universal admiration. 
 There was in her manner a winning softness 
 which blended gracefully with the sprightly 
 gaiety of her countenance. In her, might be 
 seen that look of all others the most fascinating, 
 that look, which seemed to express a determi- 
 nation not only to be happy herself, but to 
 communicate her joyous feelings to all around. 
 The only thing which interfered with the 
 intoxication of this gay and dissipated life, was 
 a fear of losing even the slender hold she still 
 had on her husband's affections. 
 
 There lived in the same hotel with the 
 Nightingfords a beautiful French lady, the 
 Countess St. Gerard, who was apparently one 
 of the warmest friends of the young English 
 bride. The character of the latter was far 
 too natural to be suspicious, and yet there was 
 something about the lovely Countess which pre- 
 vented Helen from returning with the same 
 warmth the affection which that lady professed 
 
 E 2 
 
76 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to feel. At first, Lady Nightiiigford had been 
 annoyed at experiencing this strange and unac- 
 countable coldness ; but when she saw, alas ! 
 too plainly, that her husband enjoyed the con- 
 versation of Madame St. Gerard more than that 
 of any other person, — that the French beauty 
 seemed to have the power of drawing forth 
 those smiles and witty sayings which appeared 
 to have deserted him since he became Lord 
 Nightingford, — Helen only sighed over her 
 own fate. 
 
 Now was the time when the poor young 
 "'^ '^ creature required the kind admonitions and 
 advice of some wise friend. Her first impulse 
 was to treat the Countess, whom she could not 
 avoid meeting constantly, with proud coldness. 
 Yet even the inexperienced and uncalculating 
 Helen soon saw the disadvantage of this, as 
 by separating Madame St. Gerard from her- 
 self, she only threw her more into the society 
 of her husband. 
 
 Poor Helen ! how she longed for Laura ! how 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 77 
 
 her heart yearned to communicate her doubts 
 and perplexities to that sympathising and af- 
 fectionate sister. 
 
 Helena's disposition was particularly sociable, 
 and her beautiful countenance not only showed 
 her most transient thoughts, but the longing 
 that she felt to communicate all her feelings to 
 those she loved. The person with whom she 
 was now most intimate was Lady Penville, like 
 herself, a beauty and a bride. She was English, 
 but had from childhood lived so much abroad, 
 that she had few of what are supposed to be the 
 characteristics of Englishwomen. Like Helen, 
 she was good-natured and affectionate, but de- 
 void of principle, and systematically worldly. 
 The intimacy with such a person as this was the 
 more dangerous to Helen from the naturally 
 good qualities which Lady Penville possessed, 
 and from the firm persuasion that lady had that 
 her own mode of thinking and acting was right. 
 Helen often acted imprudently from thought- 
 lessness ; but she could never reason about a 
 
78 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 folly in the clever and systematic manner that 
 Ladv Penville did. To make the most of the 
 present moment ; to enjoy at all hazards the 
 passing hours of brilliant youth ; and to sacri- 
 fice even affections which could tend to mar 
 this adored spirit of happiness, was Lady Pen- 
 ville's system. 
 
 It is, more or less, the system of most peo- 
 ple who have been educated in the wide, yet 
 selfish world of foreign travel ; without local 
 attachments, or any of those ties of country, 
 place, or family, which formerly contributed 
 to make Englishwomen domestic and well- 
 principled. Yet there is undoubtedly a great 
 charm and fascination in this sort of ever- 
 sunny character, which render the English 
 of the present day, who have lived much 
 abroad, the pleasantest and most captivating 
 people in the world. 
 
 The penetrating and experienced Lady Pen- 
 ville soon discovered Helen's jealousy of Ma- 
 dame St. Gerard; yet she allowed Helen to 
 pour forth all her fears and anxieties, and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 79 
 
 then, after appearing much surprised, she fully 
 confirmed her friend's suspicions by mention- 
 ing several of her own observations, ending all 
 by giving her some sage advice. But poor 
 Helen was both too fond of her husband, and 
 too unsophisticated in the ways of this deceitful 
 world to follow Lady Penville's counsels, and 
 the result of their long conversation only tend- 
 ed to depress Helen's spirits, and give her a 
 feeling of disgust to everything. 
 
 In the evening there was a splendid masque- 
 rade at the Colonna Palace. For invitations 
 to this fete all the English had been striving 
 and doing a thousand mean things, but only a 
 few had succeeded in obtaining the desired 
 end. Amongst these favoured few were the 
 Penvilles and Nightingfords ; and the dress 
 which Helen was to wear at the masquerade 
 had been long a subject of interesting debate 
 and employment. But after her confidential 
 conversation with Lady Penville, and the 
 strange and perplexing advice that lady had 
 so seriously given her, Helen was too much 
 
80 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 dispirited to take any interest in the fete. 
 To be gay, to amuse herself, and banish all 
 thoughts of her husband's doings, if they were 
 such as did not conduce to her own happiness, 
 was a plan totally at variance with her every 
 feeling. 
 
 Indeed the whole tenor of Lady Penville's 
 advice was at present so far from corrupting 
 Helen's mind that it tended rather to show her 
 the dangers of the dissipated life she was lead- 
 ing. In short, it caused her to reflect and 
 think of many things which in the full glee 
 of her buoyant spirits and hurried life of plea- 
 sure had never struck her before. She fjlt 
 it would be impossible for her to go to the 
 masquerade; and when Lord Nightingford, 
 who was engaged to dine out with a party 
 of young Englishmen, inquired at what hour 
 he should send the carriage for her, Helen 
 said she had a bad headach, and would 
 rather remain at home. Lord Nightingford 
 made no observation, nor did he even look 
 disappointed ; on the contrary, Helen fancied 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 81 
 
 she beheld a gratified smile on his countenance. 
 As he left the room her heart sank within her, 
 and she burst into tears. 
 
 Hours had passed, and still Helen remained 
 in the same chair, absorbed in grief, and re- 
 flecting, perhaps for the first time, on the oc- 
 currences of her short life. At this moment 
 of intense thought many things struck her as 
 mysterious and perplexing in her husband's 
 character, and she wondered at her past insen- 
 sibility and blindness to the most inexplicable 
 change in his entire disposition. He certainly 
 had never appeared to love her since he be- 
 came Lord Nightingford ; but then why, when 
 he was no longer poor, — when he could have 
 chosen among all the beauties of the day, — why 
 did he fix on her, unless he was actuated by 
 affection ? 
 
 Now that her curiosity was once fairly awak- 
 ened, the more she reflected the more ardently 
 did she long to fathom his real motives. From 
 a long and deep reverie she was at last aroused 
 by the voice of her maid Felicie. 
 
 E 5 
 
82 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Oh, miladi !" she exclaimed, " what a sad 
 pity you are no going to de fete ; and what 
 a strange ting ! the Countess is prevented too, 
 and she will no be able to wear her beautiful 
 dress, which is nearly, but not quite so hand- 
 some as yours." 
 
 " Why is she not going ? " inquired Helen 
 languidly raising her head. 
 
 " She slip down in getting out of her car- 
 riage this evening, and sprain her ankle, so 
 dat she cannot move, and is obliged to lie on 
 de sofa." 
 
 Helen mused for a few moments, and then 
 said in a timid voice, as if ashamed of the 
 words she was uttering, "Do you think you 
 could persuade Madame St. Gerard's maid to 
 allow you to borrow the — the — dress her lady 
 was to wear this evening ? I have a fancy,'' she 
 continued, afraid that Felicie would make some 
 observation or objection ; " I have a great 
 fancy to go to the masquerade in a dress 
 which would completely disguise me. It 
 would be such fun," she continued, trying to 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 83 
 
 assume her usual animated look : " I should 
 like to hear what people would say without 
 their knowing me. But then the Countess's 
 maid must promise not to inform her mistress,'' 
 she continued, looking very serious. 
 
 Felicie readily entered into the fancy of 
 her lady, and tripped off to do the best she 
 could. Helen walked slowly to the window 
 and watched the moonbeams dancing in the 
 Tiber. The most guileless and uncalculating 
 character had suddenly become artful and 
 designing. 
 
84 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Now, it is gone ! Our brief hours travel post. 
 Each with its thought or deed, its why or how; 
 But know each parting hour gives up a ghost 
 To dwell within thee. An eternal now — 
 
 What now thou doest or art about to do 
 Will help to give thee peace, or make thee rue 
 When wavering o'er the dot this hand shall tell 
 The moment that secures thee heaven or hell. 
 
 Lines composed on an old Time-piece. 
 
 In the mean time, though no positive events 
 had occurred at Baynton Hall to forward the 
 wishes of the two lovers, yet one of those 
 changes and chances was quietly in operation 
 which often interfere with our most wise re- 
 solutions, and almost imperceptibly influence 
 our fate in this world. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 85 
 
 Mr. Baynton was now a very old man, and 
 it sometimes happens that when a disposition 
 is naturally good, the errors, exaggerations, 
 or follies, which have clouded its virtuous 
 qualities during the busy years of active life, 
 vanish as it approaches the threshold of the 
 tomb, and the evening of life is brightened 
 by the full glow of those virtues which in the 
 dawn of existence gave promises of a brilliant 
 character. I say sometimes only, for, alas ! 
 it is often the case that bad qualities become 
 worse as age advances ; but so it was not with 
 Mr. Baynton. His health began to fail, but 
 so far from this making him peevish, his mind 
 became more cheerful ; and, instead of being 
 absorbed in his usual studies and antiquarian 
 pursuits, his better affections seemed awaken- 
 ed, and he enjoyed more than anything else the 
 society of Laura and that of the young curate. 
 Rookmore now passed most of his evenings 
 at the Hall, for Mr. Baynton delighted in 
 hearing him read the Scriptures ; and when 
 the old man retired to rest, he often asked 
 
86 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 his wife why the young people should not 
 marry ? 
 
 Mr. Baynton loved the young curate, and 
 he loved Laura too, better than any one in the 
 world, except his own Helen ; and he now 
 loved these even better than the very perfect 
 Roman villa he had lately discovered under 
 Lord Nightingford's dairy. He had never 
 set any value on money, nor did he himself 
 care for any of those little luxuries and com- 
 forts which most people think indispensable 
 to their existence in this artificial world. A 
 new coat or a good hat, or even a good din- 
 ner, rather bored him. He had always ea- 
 joyed wearing shabby clothes, and being his 
 own valet ; and nothing pleased his appetite 
 so much as going without regular meals, 
 and just eating a crust of bread and cheese, 
 or partaking of that which formed the 
 dinner of his labourers out of doors. It was 
 a favourite maxim of his that people might 
 live very happily on almost nothing, if they 
 chose ; and yet the old gentleman was by no 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 87 
 
 means stingy. On the contrary, he gave away 
 much in charity ; his purse was ever open to 
 almost indiscriminate appeals of distress ; he 
 spent large sums in the purchase of old books, 
 coins, and other antiquities, and was said by 
 many wise heads in the neighbourhood to have 
 lived much beyond his income. 
 
 '* What folly!" he would often exclaim, 
 " what folly it is that the young people should 
 not marry. Surely, though they have no for- 
 tune, and the curate's pay is only one hun- 
 dred a year, yet cannot they always have the 
 use of our garden and farm ? They need not 
 spend a farthing on house-keeping ; and as for 
 dress, of course Laura will continue to have 
 the same allowance she has from us now ; and 
 why you tell me, Mrs. Baynton, that I cannot 
 afford to increase it, I can't imagine." 
 
 " It is but too true, Mr. Baynton : I am 
 tired of telling you that you ought to look 
 into your affairs. How you have contrived 
 to spend so much, I cannot say ; but this 1 
 know, that it was fortunate for the remainder 
 
88 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 of your property that it was tied up at Helen's 
 marriage, or you would soon have been obliged 
 to sell this very estate." 
 
 " Sell this estate ! — sell Baynton and Warn- 
 ingham, that have been in our family, from 
 father to son, since the Conquest ! I 'd rather 
 die a thousand deaths, ay, and see my libra- 
 ry buried, and my Etruscan vases broken, 
 than consent that this estate should pass 
 from the Bayntons !" A tear glistened in the 
 old man's eye at the idea of such a contin- 
 gency, as he gazed upon the beloved portraits 
 of his numerous ancestors, which frowned or 
 smiled in stately grandeur round the old walls. 
 
 " And yet, unless you are more prudent, 
 Mr. Baynton, there 's no knowing what dis- 
 tress you may bring upon us. 'T was but the 
 other day you were taken in again by the 
 son of that good-for-nothing bailiff, who con- 
 trived to — " 
 
 " I was not taken in !" said the old gentle- 
 man impatiently, for this was his weak point ; 
 and though the confiding benevolence of his 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 89 
 
 heart would never allow him to be cured, as 
 his wife called it, of doing foolish things, yet 
 he was keenly sensitive to the imputation. He 
 had in the course of his life suffered so much, 
 not from the loss of his money, but from find- 
 ing so many base and ungrateful hearts, that 
 he could not bear to think of the subject. 
 
 " Well," he said, " but this has nothing to 
 do with Laura and Rookmore. Even supposing 
 that I cannot allow them anything more, they 
 may, as I have often proved, live perfectly well 
 with the assistance of our dairy and garden : 
 and then, they are sure to have the living of 
 Baynton : the present rector cannot live much 
 longer, and what is to prevent me from giving 
 it to Rookmore ?" 
 
 " Nothing, certainly. But just consider, 
 my dear sir, he is not older than yourself, and 
 suppose you were to die before him, and that 
 Laura were to marry Rookmore, and lived on 
 the garden and farm of this house ; who knows 
 that your successor. Lord Nightingford, would 
 be equally disposed to favour the curate .^" 
 
90 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Poll ! poll ! — what nonsense you talk ! as if 
 Helen — little Helen, who loves Laura even 
 better than I do, would not take good care of 
 her, and give Rook more the living and a 
 handsome allowance besides, too. No, no, never 
 fear : I am determined they shall marry."" 
 
 Mrs. Baynton had made every objection 
 which her prudence and sense could suggest, 
 but as she saw there was no convincing her 
 husband, she at last gave up the point, after 
 observing, in an under tone, that it was im- 
 possible to be sure of people, and who knew 
 but Lord Nightingford might give the living 
 to somebody else, and for aught she C3uld 
 tell, might sell the place, too. 
 
 Mr. Baynton, who overheard this, actually 
 stamped with rage and horror at the idea of 
 such a misfortune ; however, it made no im- 
 pression on a mind so habitually prone to judge 
 well of all mankind, and to hope for the best 
 in everything. 
 
 How often does the fate of our existence 
 depend on the almost trifling peculiarities of 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 91 
 
 those with whom we live ! Laura was what 
 might really be termed a sensible and pru- 
 dent person. Though enthusiastically aiFec- 
 tionate, she had none of that sort of thought- 
 lessness which induces many to forget the old 
 proverb of love and poverty being seldom 
 compatible; nor was she urged to the step 
 by Rookmore himself; who, though he had 
 suffered so severely by the late disappoint- 
 ment as almost to lose his health, yet was 
 too deeply sensible of the duty he owed to 
 the object of his affection, to press her to do 
 what might cause difficulties or regrets. 
 
 But where can be found two loving hearts 
 insensible to the reasoning, even though they 
 are aware of its fallacy, of a wise-looking and 
 kind old man, who endeavours to persuade them 
 there would be nothing foolish or imprudent in 
 the measure that would complete their wishes ? 
 Perhaps, although Mr. Baynton thought he 
 was confident of the affection of Helen for 
 Laura, and certain that she would provide for 
 her poor sister, yet there may have been a 
 
92 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 shadow of almost unconscious doubt in his 
 mind which made him anxious, before his death, 
 to secure to the lovers that happiness which 
 he was sure they would find in each other. 
 So at last, after many objections on the part 
 of Mrs. Baynton, and many misgivings on 
 that of Laura herself, as to the prudence of 
 the determination, a day was fixed for her 
 marriage with Rookmore. Thus in this strange 
 world are the wisest people often induced to 
 do the most foolish things. 
 
 The young people were married ; and their 
 honeymoon was spent in the peaceful rectory 
 at Baynton. For six months afterwards Mr. 
 Baynton had the pleasure of seeing them 
 the happiest of the happy, and of saying to his 
 wife every Sunday after service, " Well, you 
 may talk of Helen and her fine match, but I 
 should be glad to think she 's half as happy as 
 these two dear souls with their one hundred a 
 year." Mrs. Baynton smiled gravely, for she 
 was worldly wise. 
 
A GOOD MATCH 93 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Certainly virtue is like precious odours, most fragrant 
 where they are incensed or crused ; for prosperity doth 
 best discover vice, but adversity doth best discover virtue. 
 
 Bacon. 
 
 We left Helen just as she had resolved to 
 attend the masquerade in the dress destined 
 for Madame St. Gerard. Felicie succeeded 
 in her endeavours to procure the disguise; 
 and Helen, trembling with apprehension, and 
 half repenting of her strange resolve, entered 
 the splendid ball-room at a late hour, her 
 features completely hidden by her mask. 
 
 The first person she saw was Lord Night- 
 ingford, who seemed to have been watching 
 for her arrival. Poor Helen trembled as he 
 
94 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 approached and took her hand, but she made 
 a violent effort to overcome her embarrass- 
 ment, and determined to act the part she 
 had designed. He whispered a few words in 
 her ear, and pressed her hand as he gently 
 reproached her for being so late. He smiled 
 on her too, but it was not the same expres- 
 sion as that with which he used to smile on 
 his Helen before their marriage. She saw 
 there was more of vanity than affection in 
 that smile now ; there was more triumph than 
 love in the air with which he led her, the 
 supposed Madame St. Gerard, to the dance. 
 This conviction was gratifying, and gave her 
 some degree of confidence and hope. 
 
 '* Why did you marry that foolish wife of 
 yours .^" whispered Helen, in French, speak- 
 ing with a violent effort, while she imitated 
 the voice of Madame St. Gerard. 
 
 " Why did I marry ? — ah ! why, that is hard 
 to say. In the first place, she has a good 
 fortune, and then I rather liked her before I 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 95 
 
 got possession of my own, and was piqued at 
 her parents' rejection of my suit." 
 
 " But surely, when you got your title and 
 fortune, you might have had your choice of 
 all the beauties in London — why fix then, upon 
 that poor little girl ?" 
 
 " That is true ; but then I thought her rather 
 pretty, and imagined she would ornament my 
 house, and do the honours gracefully. She 
 has not turned out so well as I expected, 
 and her persevering affection for me begins 
 to be very tiresome. But, dear Madam, you 
 tremble — you are ill — come into the con- 
 servatory ; this room is too hot." 
 
 Helen did indeed tremble ; she had learnt 
 the worst : nothing could now make her more 
 unhappy, and the impulse of curiosity which 
 had nerved her to act a part was fled. She 
 cared little for keeping up the disguise, but 
 shrank in dismay from her husband. 
 
 " What can have happened ? I have offend- 
 ed you," said he, in a tender tone, *' dearest 
 Madame St. Gerard !"— 
 
96 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " I am not dearest Madame St. Gerard !" 
 exclaimed Helen, when they had reached the 
 conservatory, and unfastening her mask, she 
 stood before him. 
 
 I will not describe the scene which followed — 
 the anger of Lord Nightingford, or the grief 
 of poor Helen. It may be imagined that, 
 after this fatal evening. Lady Nightingford 
 did not feel very much at ease in the society 
 of her husband, and yet there was no open 
 rupture between them. Lord Nightingford 
 detested scenes, and he was also keenly alive 
 to the importance of keeping up a semblance 
 of affection towards his wife. He therefore 
 endeavoured to subdue the anger he really 
 felt at Helen's having penetrated the secret 
 of his attachment to Madame St. Gerard. 
 They now both dreaded to be tete-a-tete with 
 each other, and therefore led a life of still 
 greater gaiety than before. 
 
 Lord Nightingford was tempted to gamble, 
 and Helen, who was too virtuous to be fully 
 satisfied with the adulation she received, and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 97 
 
 whose education had not taught her to seek 
 employment for the mind, had recourse to 
 the comparatively innocent excitement of pur- 
 chasing those beautiful and expensive objects 
 which no place offers in such tempting variety 
 as Italy. 
 
 Soon afterwards, Helen received a letter 
 from Laura, which suddenly interrupted the 
 course of her dissipation, and plunged her 
 in grief. 
 
 One day Mr. Baynton did not return home 
 at his usual hour, and just as Mrs. Baynton 
 was going to send down to the rectory to 
 know if he intended to dine there, she heard 
 an unusual noise in the hall, and the butler 
 rushed in with a face of sad importance. His 
 master, his dear master, — for Mr. Baynton 
 was beloved by all his dependants, — was dan- 
 gerously ill. His insensible form had been 
 brought home by the labourers, whose ex- 
 cavations he had been, during the entire day, 
 superintending. 
 
 Laura came to weep, in silent anguish, over 
 
 VOL. I. p 
 
98 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 the inanimate features of her more than father, 
 upon whom every effort to restore conscious- 
 ness had been tried, but in vain. It was 
 long before they could clearly ascertain how 
 the event had occurred. A wound on the head 
 was the only external injury that was visible, 
 and when the trembling labourer had suffi- 
 ciently recovered to give an account of the af- 
 fair, it appeared that Mr. Baynton had caused 
 a large barrow to be excavated, and, fearful 
 lest any mischief should be done to the anti- 
 quities he expected to find, had worked in it 
 himself for several hours. The labourers had 
 repeatedly called out that there was danger lest 
 the stones should give way and fall on him ; 
 but, eager in the employment, he was deaf 
 to their caution. At last the top fell in, 
 and though the old gentleman was immedi- 
 ately rescued from his perilous situation, yet 
 the wounds he had received were so severe, 
 that consciousness never returned, and before 
 morning he was a corpse. 
 
 Laura's letter ended by saying that Mrs. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 99 
 
 Baynton intended soon to quit the hall, and 
 to reside with her old maiden sister in Staf- 
 fordshire. Laura did not dwell on her own 
 grief, or the sad loss she and her husband 
 had sustained by the death of one who had, 
 in his latter days, been more than a father 
 to them. She did not say, what was really 
 the case, that henceforth their chief means 
 of subsistence would cease; that, as Baynton 
 now belonged to Lord Nightingford, the poor 
 curate and his wife would no longer receive 
 their usual supplies from the farm and gar- 
 den. But Laura did mention that she hoped 
 Lord Nightingford would remember the old 
 servants at Baynton Hall, most of whom, in 
 the true primitive style of old English man 
 ners, had been all their lives in the service 
 of the late possessor. 
 
 Six months after the death of its old mas- 
 ter, Baynton Hall seemed already changed ; 
 and yet nothing had been touched; every 
 chair and picture was in its wonted place. 
 The same ponderous tomes still lay on the 
 
 f2 
 
100 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 library table, and were open at the very page 
 where the eyes of their old friend had last 
 rested on them. At mid-day, a gleam of sun 
 continued to shine through the upper part of 
 the beautiful painted glass window, — which I 
 mentioned as having been taken from the an- 
 cient chapel of the ruined castle, — illumining 
 the time-worn pages with the brilliant reflection 
 of the crest and arms of the family. But 
 the shutters of all the lower windows were 
 closed ; dust had begun to accumulate on the 
 furniture, and spiders were revelling amid the 
 gilt carving, and spinning their webs from 
 the high back of one embroidered chair to 
 another. 
 
 A solemn and mournful silence reigned 
 throughout the vast mansion. Not a sound 
 was heard, except the lazy purr of an old 
 cat in the kitchen, or the ticking of the great 
 clock, or, now and then, the slow shuflling 
 step, across the sandy floor, of an old wo- 
 man, the sole inhabitant of the place. And 
 this old woman, who now daily cooked her 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 101 
 
 own scanty meal, and cleaned her own room, 
 had been, six short months ago, the luxurious 
 housekeeper and important directress of the 
 large establishment. Fifty-six years had she 
 served the master of Baynton Hall, and was 
 almost as much revered by the neighbours 
 as the mistress herself; yet this old woman, 
 who might easily have found a situation in 
 some respectable family, preferred to live 
 the remainder of her days in the house she 
 loved so well, though, for looking after it, she 
 was only to receive the scanty pittance which 
 would have been paid to a stranger. 
 
 Mrs. Sunwell, unlike most housekeepers, 
 had neither made nor saved money by her 
 long service. The goodness of her heart, as 
 well as extreme veneration for the character 
 of her master, had caused her to imitate even 
 his faults. Mrs. Sunwell gave all her wages 
 to the poor, except the few pounds which 
 purchased her yearly wardrobe, consisting of 
 an every-day dress of coloured chintz, and 
 an evening and Sunday one of grey silk. 
 
102 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 with a close lace cap made after the fashion 
 of the last century. And now, in her old 
 age, she passed her solitary days, not a prey 
 to regret at having been so improvident, 
 but full of hope and resignation. Deep- 
 ly did she mourn the death of her dear 
 master, because she loved him so much, and 
 because all the place and parish and neigh- 
 bourhood would feel and suffer from his loss. 
 Of herself she never thought, nor did a single 
 murmur pass her lips at having no one to 
 assist her in keeping the house. 
 
 One only fear she had had — a deep acute 
 pang had depressed for a season her cheer:^ul 
 spirits : it was when she was ordered by Lord 
 Nightingford's steward to quit the place. But 
 it passed away when the hard proud man 
 accepted her offer of remaining to take care 
 of the hall for the ten pounds a year he 
 had offered to an old garden-woman. And 
 Mrs. Sunwell remained, and wept sorrowful 
 farewells to all the other servants who were 
 turned off; and a mournful day it was, when 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 103 
 
 the old gardener, and coachman, and all the 
 others bade their last adieu to the beloved 
 place. 
 
 But, on the first evening of their departure. 
 Mrs. Sunwell was not alone. Laura and 
 Henry, bringing with them a beautiful in- 
 fant, which now began to delight them with 
 its smiles, came to drink tea with the old 
 housekeeper. '* Oh ! " said the old lady, as 
 she poured out the tea which Laura had 
 taken care to provide, " oh ! if I could but 
 think it wasn't Miss Helen's doing, I should 
 not be so miserable : if I thought she 'd 
 come here soon and see justice done to the 
 place, and have some of the old servants 
 taken care of; for there's Mr. Parsenall the 
 butler far worse off than me, because he 's 
 so lame, 't is doubtful whether he'll get an- 
 other place. If I thought she would come 
 back, oh ! I wouldn't mind anything ! But, 
 somehow, I have my fears ; and 't was but 
 this morning I said to Betty, says I, (as she 
 was dusting the toilet in the blue bedroom 
 
104 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 for the last time, and crying so that her 
 tears fell fast on the damask cover as she 
 was wiping away the dust,) says I, ' Betty, 
 I begins to think our young lady will never 
 come and sleep in that bed again — and oh ! 
 what would her poor father have said if he 
 thought she would desert the place this way ? 
 And oh ! Miss Laura, beg pardon — Mrs. Rook- 
 more, — only think, Jonas the stable-boy de- 
 clared he heard Mr. Lucas, that steward of 
 my lord's, say, that his master talked of sell- 
 ing the place.' " 
 
 Laura started and turned pale, but not 
 wishing to increase the sufferings of the fo- 
 litary old woman, she tried to assure her 
 it was impossible. She did not say that 
 she had written several letters to Helen about 
 the old servants and received no answer ; but 
 she faintly expressed a hope, that Helen would 
 soon return. 
 
 " I hope so, I hope so," said the old woman, 
 catching at her words. " If I wasn't sure all 
 this is done without Missy's, I mean my 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 105 
 
 lady's knowledge, I shouldn't care how soon 
 these old bones was resting in the church- 
 yard. I only wish to live till I see the place 
 restored to the family honours, and every- 
 thing going on as I knew my old master 
 would have wished." 
 
 Often did Laura visit the old Hall, and al- 
 low the garrulous inmate to have the pleasure 
 of talking for hours ; for she never could per- 
 suade her to come to the parsonage : she 
 seemed to have quite a superstitious dread 
 of leaving the house without an inhabitant. 
 " Sure I 'd be giving it up to the spirits of 
 desolation at once," she would say. What was 
 the meaning of this, or whether she herself 
 understood the expression, Laura could never 
 ascertain ; but the latter had such a venera- 
 tion herself for the place, that she readily 
 entered into the old woman's feelings. 
 
 If all the servants suffered so much at the 
 loss of their kind master and the desertion of the 
 place, it may be imagined what were the feelings 
 of Laura, whose only weakness was an over- 
 
 f5 
 
106 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 weening affection to the few friends she loved, 
 and whose local attachments were wonder- 
 fully strong. Baynton Hall had been the 
 first place where the accents of kindness and 
 praise had reached her young ear. To Bayn- 
 ton she had come a poor harshly used child. 
 To Baynton Hall she had afterwards returned 
 in the vacations, and was received by her dear 
 step-father with as much affection and kindness 
 as he lavished on his own Helen. At Baynton, 
 all was smiling and sunny ; an atmosphere of 
 affection seemed to breathe round the place. 
 Every dependant about it, every garden-wo- 
 man and workman had been pursuing the same 
 occupation for years, cheered by the never- 
 failing smiles, or nods, or kind words, of 
 their master. Here, too, had their parents 
 worked before them ; and the inherited feeling 
 of attachment is strong in most of the seques- 
 tered parts of England, even to those masters 
 of the soil who are unworthy of the poor man's 
 affection. Here had Laura thought, felt, and 
 loved, and there was not a rustic seat or tree 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 107 
 
 that did not vividly recall some event of her 
 life. 
 
 To an innocent mind and loving disposition, 
 all that revives the recollection of the past is 
 pleasant. Even when the dear ones are no more 
 who caused our chief pleasure in those scenes, 
 still, if there be no remorseful feelings mingled 
 with our regret, we love the place which is 
 hallowed by the remembrance of past joy. 
 The same feeling of happiness seems still to 
 breathe there, to pervade every well-known 
 object. No wonder, then, if Laura spent many 
 of the leisure hours she could command in 
 wandering over the beloved place, thinking 
 of past times, and uttering fervent prayers 
 for her much-loved Helen. 
 
 But the poor curate's wife had not much 
 time to devote to such an indulgence, and as 
 months sped on she had still less at her dispo- 
 sal. Her mother's prophecy began to be ful- 
 filled. Already the dairy and farm and garden, 
 which poor Mr. Baynton had looked upon as 
 a never-failing source of maintenance for the 
 
108 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 young couple, was gone. The gardeners were 
 dismissed soon after his death ; the farm had 
 been let out to several tenants, and the dairy 
 was shut up, — that picturesque old dairy 
 in the tulip garden, v/hich it had been the 
 pride of several generations of Mrs. Bayn- 
 tons to ornament with costly china, and where 
 cheeses, celebrated all over the country, had 
 been made for centuries. 
 
 So the curate and his wife and child, had 
 to subsist on one hundred a-year ! They could 
 have kept no servant, but that Helenas old 
 Scotch nurse, who lived at one of the park 
 lodges, and had been allowed twenty pounds a- 
 year by her master, insisted upon serving the 
 Rookmores for nothing. She had laid by a small 
 sum, and though her allowance had ceased at 
 Mr. Bay n ton's death, the old woman declared 
 she could afford to live the remainder of her 
 days without going to service, or being a bur- 
 then to any one. 
 
 She was sorely hurt at the neglect of her 
 darling young lady, or rather at "my lord's" 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 109 
 
 unkindness, for the simple creature was posi- 
 tive that "he must ill-treat her darling child 
 Helen, and, perhaps, keep her in a prison in 
 some o' them outlandish parts, to prevent her 
 coming among us agin, the puir innocent.'' 
 
110 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 O Memory ! thou ever restless power, 
 Recalling all that 's vanish'd from our sight ; 
 Ihy pencil dipp'd now in the rainbow's light. 
 Now in the gloomy tints of midnight's hour. 
 From youth's gay garden, manhood's blighted bower, 
 Culling thy varied chaplet, dark and bright — 
 The rose, the rue, the baleful aconite, 
 Alternating the cypress and the flower ! 
 
 Casting with lightning speed thy wizard glance 
 Through the long retrospect of by-gone years. 
 Whence, at thine 'best, in dim array advance. 
 Shadows of idle hopes and idle fears : 
 Half cheerful is thy saddest countenance. 
 Thy sweetest smile, alas! is moist with tears ! 
 
 Marquess of Northampton. 
 
 The first winter after Mr. Baynton's death 
 was long and severe A gloomy cold still- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. Ill 
 
 ness, seemed to pervade the whole neighbour- 
 hood of Baynton Hall. Not only did the 
 curate and his wife feel most acutely the loss 
 of those comforts and luxuries which render 
 the burthen of grief more tolerable, but every 
 cottage, every villager, felt the chilling pri- 
 vation. The poor suffered from temporal dis- 
 tress, but chiefly did they mourn that old 
 man whose gladsome countenance was sure to 
 cheer them in any distress. He was gone for 
 ever ; and the voice which, with good-natured 
 fun and encouragement, had so often greeted 
 their ears, was silent in the grave. 
 
 At last, the melancholy winter past away; 
 the old lime trees and stately oaks began to 
 put forth their green leaves ; the cheering 
 sun beamed as brilliantly as ever on Baynton 
 Hall, and spring flowers came up among the 
 weeds in the old borders, as if in mockery 
 of the neglect with which they were treated. 
 But the grass grew luxuriantly in the broad 
 gravel walks, and weeds and nettles nearly 
 choked the sweet violets. 
 
112 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 It was then that Laura and all the people 
 who loved the old place, heard that Lady 
 Nightingford had arrived in London : and 
 from busy gay London, poor good souls ! they 
 expected her to come to see a place which she 
 knew would make her very melancholy, and 
 leave a scene of gaiety where amusements were 
 in full play, and at a moment too, when straw- 
 berries, young men, and plovers' eggs, are espe- 
 cially in requisition. Yet the people of the 
 village said that surely Lady Nightingford 
 would soon come now and restore all things ; 
 and Laura yielded to the general persuasion. 
 She indulged herself oftener than of late in 
 wandering over the place, and allowed her 
 thoughts to revert to the early and happy days 
 of childhood, and visit those spots which re- 
 called more particularly dear Helen's doings 
 and sayings of yore. 
 
 Here had the young heiress (for she always 
 knew her prospects)— here, on this old seat 
 at the end of the terrace, had she often looked 
 forward to the time when she should be grown 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 113 
 
 up and have her mother's fortune. Helen al- 
 ways thought aloud . so she said she would 
 give her darling Laura a beautiful house and 
 garden, and would paint pictures to adorn 
 the walls, and work covers for the chairs ; 
 and Laura should have a fine carriage and 
 a grand piano. Laura sighed as she remem- 
 bered all this, not because she had no house, or 
 carriage, or grand piano, but because she fear- 
 ed that Helen's once affectionate and kind heart 
 was changed. Never, indeed, had she built 
 much on the stability of feelings and affections 
 which are not guided by religion ; but still, 
 she had always trusted, that the child of hope 
 and importance to the place, the young object 
 of so many prayers and good wishes, would 
 in time be awakened to a sense of her duty. 
 To think of her changed or perverted, was 
 far worse than if she had died. 
 
 Laura had made all sorts of excuses for 
 Helen. She had called to mind the temp- 
 tations and snares which must beset her in the 
 life she led ; but it was hard to a person who 
 
114 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 had such strong local attachments as Laura, 
 to comprehend that anything could have in- 
 duced her sister to remain so long absent from 
 the place, — could have prevented her from 
 coming to visit the grave of her dear father, — 
 that family vault where her forefathers had 
 slept for centuries. Laura was certain that 
 Helen had always dearly loved her parent; 
 but how strange that, as yet, no steps had 
 been taken to place even a tablet to record 
 his name, the last of that illustrious race, and 
 the only one who had no monument to re- 
 cord his virtues or his deeds. But now she 
 fondly hoped that Helen would come, and all 
 would be well. 
 
 Encouraged by these delightful anticipa- 
 tions, Laura lingered on the old terrace one 
 fine evening until the sun had set. Rook- 
 more had been absent all day, and would 
 not return till late, as the vicar, who lived 
 at his larger parish twenty miles from Bayn- 
 ton, had sent for him. So Laura had brought 
 her beautiful child, and the little dress she 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 115 
 
 was making for its expected companion, and 
 sat on the bench at the end of the ter- 
 race, where she and Helen had conversed 
 so often. Laura thought of the conversa- 
 tion they had together the evening after 
 Helen had discovered that her future hus- 
 band. Lord Nightingford, was Edward Mel- 
 ville. Here, too, had poor Mr. Denman of- 
 fered her his hand, and here had he generous- 
 ly forgiven her refusal, and heaped benefits 
 on his rival. 
 
 How many sad events had occurred since 
 then ; and yet as Laura's spirits were more 
 raised by the hope of soon seeing Helen, she 
 felt as if that evening were but yesterday. 
 When it became too dark to work, she gazed 
 on the windows of the old mansion, and almost 
 expected to see lights brought into the rooms ; 
 but all was dark, except where the moon, 
 which now arose over the lime avenue, shone 
 upon the bright lattices of the oriel windows 
 in the south turret. 
 
 The church clock struck nine : Laura start- 
 
116 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ed up, surprised at the lateness of the hour. 
 She had a long and lonely way to walk home, 
 for the shortest path through the kitchen gar- 
 den, that path which she had so often trod 
 with those loved ones who were now dead, 
 or far away, was blocked up. She now al- 
 ways came straight through the fields, and 
 by the ruins of the old castle, a walk which, 
 even by day, was peculiarly lonely and sad. 
 
 The dark grove round the old ruin seemed 
 never visited by a human footstep. There 
 was a superstition that the place was haunt- 
 ed by the spirit of one of the Bayntons, who, 
 in the reign of Edward III, had commit- 
 ted suicide there ; and if ever an old place was 
 fit abode for a perturbed spirit, it was De 
 Baynton castle. Screech-owls and bats were 
 there in abundance, and as their melancholy 
 hooting now reached Laura''s ear, she almost 
 trembled, and instinctively pressed her little 
 child closer to her bosom — yet she was by no 
 means superstitious ; and, gathering up her 
 work, she was preparing to descend the slop- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 117 
 
 ing lawn, which led to the river and old ruins, 
 when a strange sound was heard, from beneath 
 the adjoining grove, in the direction of the old 
 dairy. 
 
 Laura listened attentively, — it was like the 
 homely noise of a hoe striking against the 
 ground ; her heart bounded almost unconsci- 
 ously with joy, for it was one of those rural 
 sounds she loved so much, and which put 
 her in mind of the summer mornings when 
 
 o 
 
 she used to hear that very sound under her 
 bedroom window in happy days of child- 
 hood. 
 
 She now looked up at that bedroom win- 
 dow : it was one of the oriel windows, the 
 highest in the south turret, and she thought 
 of the old garden-man, Daniel, who had been 
 a soldier, and lost a leg when serving with 
 Mr. Baynton's brother in the wars. He al- 
 ways weeded the pleasure-grounds ; and Laura 
 remembered how joyfully she used to throw 
 open that little casement and receive a morn- 
 ing greeting and blessing from the good man. 
 
118 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 So absorbed was she in the past, and in 
 in thinking of the sunny though time-worn 
 countenance of old Daniel, and wondering 
 what had become of him now, that she per- 
 ceived not that the sound still continued. 
 
 " It must be fancy," thought she at last, 
 when a rustling among the trees again raised 
 her attention, and made her start and look 
 round. " It must be fancy," thought Laura ; 
 " and, yet, old Mrs. Sun well, the housekeeper, 
 declares that some good spirit keeps this ter- 
 race free from weeds, that she hears after 
 night-fall the sound of a hoe and spade ; and 
 certainly the grass has not invaded this beauti- 
 ful walk," she thought, as she saw by the clear 
 moonlight the broad expanse of weedless gravel. 
 
 The sound of hoeing became more distinct, 
 and Laura, with a curiosity not quite unmin- 
 gled with superstitious feeling, approached that 
 end of the terrace whence the noise came, and 
 whicii was overshadowed by the wide spread- 
 ing branches of ancient trees. It was not 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 119 
 
 fancy ; there was certainly the shadowy out- 
 line of a figure bending towards the ground, 
 and stirring it with some garden implement. 
 The evening breeze blew fresh, and whistled 
 through the stems of the trees, and Laura's 
 baby began to cry. The figure started up 
 and turned away, but soon came back, and 
 Laura heard a well-known voice savino^, " Oh, 
 Miss Laura, is that you ? I was a-going 
 away, because I didn't want you to find me 
 here; but then I was afeared ye would be ter- 
 rified like, if ye had seen me, and think 't was 
 a ghost.'' 
 
 " What are you doing here, Daniel, at this 
 time of night ? and where have you been ? I 
 have never seen you since your dear master's 
 death." 
 
 " 'T is because I got a place wi' Farmer 
 Nolan, at Cheselton, and I had no time ; but 
 the real truth on't. Miss, is, I wouldn't trust 
 myself to see ye, for my heart is well-nigh 
 broken ; and so, says I, ' I 11 never go near 
 
120 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 any o' the family again, and I '11 never spake 
 a word about them," because the thought of 
 it all seemed to choke me. So I worked from 
 morning till night at Farmer Nolan's, and 
 would not suffer any one to ask me 'ere a 
 question about the family ; and so I thought 
 in time I 'd forget all, but it wouldn't do. 
 One Sunday I heard the bell ring more sweet- 
 ly than ever at Baynton church, all across the 
 hills, though 'tis two miles. I had never heard 
 'em so plain before, and the sound seemed to 
 draw me to that church ; so, instead o' go- 
 ing to Cheselton, I went across the meadows, 
 and tuk my old place under the big monument 
 of master's great-grandfather ; and the old tomb 
 with the fine figure in red laying on the top, 
 looked so friendly like, and the figure in white 
 opposite, of master's first wife, seemed to smile 
 upon me just as she did upon her baby, that 
 is, Miss Helen, afore she died ; and so I 
 thought all the ould hefigies, as master used 
 to call 'em, seemed fond o' me ; and when 
 service was over, I couldn't help coming up 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 121 
 
 to see the grand place where they had all 
 lived. Ah, but, Miss, when I see'd the deso- 
 lation, when I see'd Miss Helen's garden, and 
 yourn, all looking like a wilderness, I thought 
 my heart would break, and I sat down under 
 the old sun-dial yonder, and cried like a child ; 
 and while I was a crying, I 'd a old knife in 
 my pocket, and not well knowing what I was 
 about, I began weeding ; and though I soon 
 found what I was about, and I knew it was 
 the holy Sabbath, I couldn't help myself, my 
 knee seemed fastened to the ground, though 
 'twas not for prayer ; and I went on weeding 
 till the bells rung for evening service. I was 
 afeared 'twas sinful, so I got up and tried 
 to wipe the stain of the gravel (for 'twas got 
 wet wi' the long grass) from my Sunday 
 smock-frock, and went to the church again. 
 I wouldn't trust myself to come and see you, 
 though my leg seemed a-most ready to drag 
 me there ; but I determined to come now 
 and then after day's work was done, and 
 try to keep the terrace decent. And to be sure 
 
 VOL. I. G 
 
1S2 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 I have slept better at nights since, though I 
 be sometimes tedious tired.*" 
 
 " And you have walked all those two miles 
 here and back, after your day's work ? Poor 
 Daniel ! " said Laura, touched by the old 
 man's recital. 
 
 *' Oh, the two miles is nothing in these 
 long days ; but the only thing I couldn't 
 abide at first, was passing through the old 
 castle down there. O Miss, 't is a fear- 
 ful place; I have heard strange sounds, and 
 — but 't is better not to think on such things." 
 
 " Much better not, Daniel, particularly as 
 we must now pass by the place." 
 
 The old garden-man accompanied Laura 
 through the dreaded ruins. Whether it was 
 that Daniel was so busy talking and smiling 
 at Laura's beautiful baby, I know not ; but 
 certainly they heard and saw nothing more 
 strange than some bats and owls, which 
 screeched and flitted across the clear sky 
 near the old ruined tower. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 123 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 -Sure they who lead 
 
 A country life must be more pure and holy 
 Than we of the crowded city. There the heart. 
 Dwelling in profitable solitude, 
 Holds frequent commune with itself in silence ; 
 Or, which is sweeter still, may meditate 
 Amid the various melodies of nature, — 
 The murmuring sounds of insects on the wing, 
 The song of birds, the flow and fall of waters, — 
 Which calm the soul and fit it for good thoughts, 
 Better than silence. — On the works of God 
 The eye continually rests, and meets 
 No intervening obstacle to exclude 
 The observation of his bounties springing 
 From the fair earth ! Oh ! in the country. 
 We seem to stand in our Creator's presence, 
 Surrounded by the wonders he hath made 
 To charm and bless us ; while the land, sea, and sky 
 Are open all before us, and our hearts 
 Receive an elevation and a purity 
 From the deep sentiment which breathes from them ! 
 
 Harness. 
 
 When Laura reached the rectory, she found 
 Rookmore awaiting her arrival with great anx- 
 
 g2 
 
124} A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 iety. His manner was agitated ; and, for the 
 first lime since their marriage, he seemed to 
 be thinking of something that he did not wish 
 to communicate to his wife. Mrs. Newlan, 
 the old woman who had been Helen's nurse, 
 and was now the only domestic in the rectory, 
 looked full of importance too, and bustled into 
 the room unsummoned, many times after she 
 had laid the little supper on the parlour table. 
 Laura, as long as they were subject to inter- 
 ruption, did not wish to ask her husband any 
 questions, and related her strange interview 
 with old Daniel. But neither Rookmore nor 
 Mrs. Newlan seemed to attend much to what 
 she was saying. At last, the old nurse, who 
 had been always a sort of privileged person 
 in the family, exclaimed, as if unable to keep 
 silence any longer, '* Sure, Miss — Missis, you 
 take it very easy ; don't ye know that Parson 
 Layland is a-dying ?" 
 
 " Poor man V exclaimed Laura, " I am very 
 sorry. Why did not you tell me of this, 
 Henry? I thought you had been with him 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 125 
 
 all the day. Poor man, I had no idea he was 
 even ill." 
 
 " I knows why Master didn't tell you, well 
 enough, for he was angered wi' me when he 
 came home, and I heard the parson was dying, 
 because, says I — " 
 
 " Stay," exclaimed Rookmore, " do not men- 
 tion that subject again. I fervently hope and 
 pray Mr. Layland will recover." 
 
 " And sure that wo'n't prevent his recovery, 
 for Miss Laura jist — " 
 
 " I cannot bear to think of it." exclaimed 
 Rookmore impatiently. But the old nurse, 
 who was a wise and calculating person, was 
 not so easily silenced ; she stood twirling the 
 corner of her apron most resolutely behind 
 Rookmore's chair, and, looking at Laura, said, 
 " What harm could it do the poor gentleman 
 if Miss Laura was jist to write a line to Helen, 
 and to say as how the parson is ill, and of course 
 she would wish to fulfil her father's last wish, 
 and give this living to the person it was always 
 intended for ? Where could be the harm o' 
 
126 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 this ? I knows the world better nor either 
 of ye ; I know there 's Mr. Taing, my Lord's 
 curate at Royston, will be looking after the 
 living, and he no ways deserving of it ; only 
 just maybe he'll get it, for the hold he has 
 over my Lord's mind, because he was his tutor, 
 and other people, too, may be looking for it ; 
 and my Lady may not know Mr. Layland is 
 so near death, and — but don't let me be prat- 
 ing here, and wasting the time. Only jist 
 sit down, Missis, and write a word to my 
 Lady ; or if you wont, I will," continued 
 the nurse in a resolute tone when she saw 
 that Laura hesitated, and looked towards her 
 husband. 
 
 After a long consultation, and many scruples 
 on the part of Rookmore, who had never asked 
 for anything in his life, a letter was written. 
 
 They had certainly always hoped that they 
 would never be obliged to quit the old rectory, 
 where they had passed so many happy days, 
 and leave the parishioners, who were so 
 often visited by the curate and his wife, and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 127 
 
 SO well known to them, as to be loved like 
 dear relations and friends. They had never 
 indulged in a wish beyond this ; not even 
 lately, when the loss of the garden and farm 
 of Baynton Hall had reduced them to depend 
 for subsistence solely on the curacy of one 
 hundred a year. But now they reflected 
 with sorrow and dismay, that if Mr. Layland 
 should die, and that Lord Nightingford were 
 to bestow the living on some one else, the 
 future incumbent might possibly serve the 
 church himself, and reside in the rectory- 
 house and keep no curate. Their only means 
 of support would then be gone ! 
 
 It was this consideration, and the anxious 
 glances which poor Laura cast towards her 
 sleeping child — that dear child which might 
 soon have no roof over its head — which deter- 
 mined Rookmore to allow his wife to write. 
 It was a difficult letter to pen, for Laura 
 had of late seldom heard from Helen ; and 
 her sister's letters had, from the period of her 
 marriage, become gradually shorter, and less 
 
128 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 confidential. The consequence of this was a 
 restraint on both sides ; and when this is felt 
 by a person who, like Laura, is all affection, 
 yet diffident of herself, and fearful of widen- 
 ing the breach which seemed to have sprung 
 up between her and a beloved sister, it increases 
 the difficulty of asking a favour. To be obliged 
 to intrude her own cares and anxieties, when 
 she would wish to say nothing but what would 
 tend to win back the lost affection of Helen, 
 both to herself and the old place, was very 
 painful. 
 
 The important letter, for which old Mrs. 
 Newlan waited up with the greatest anxiety, 
 cost Laura many tears. At last it was finished, 
 and given to the delighted nurse, who was 
 to rise early the following morning and take 
 it to the post-office at the nearest town. 
 
 With a more cheerful countenance than 
 she had worn since her old master's death, 
 Mrs. Newlan started off with the letter. As 
 she walked along the short cut through 
 the meadows, a thousand vague hopes flitted 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 129 
 
 through her mind. She imagined that this 
 letter was longer, and evidently written more 
 from poor Laura's heart than many which she 
 had before taken to the post. This letter, over 
 which she had seen so many tears shed, might 
 not only be the means of ensuring competence 
 to the Rookmores, but it might touch the heart 
 of the heiress of Baynton, and bring her back 
 to the place again. Already the old nurse 
 felt the rosy lips of her dear foster-child press 
 her cheek ; and in the fair vision which her 
 imagination conjured up, there was a strange 
 mixture of the lovely laughing child she 
 had danced on her knee, and the beautiful 
 blushing lady who had departed as a bride 
 from her father's hall. 
 
 Of all the kindly affections which embellish 
 our nature, there are few more devotedly fer- 
 vent and unselfish, than the love of a lowly 
 nurse towards the child she has reared. She 
 contemplates its progress through life with 
 greater interest than she feels even for her 
 own offspring. Years and years may pass 
 
 g5 
 
130 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 away, and she may receive no mark of affec- 
 tion from the object of her pride and love — 
 she may be forgotten ; but the poor nurse for- 
 gives and loves on. The creature that once 
 clung with childish affection to her breast, is 
 now in a sphere far above her own ; it has no 
 further need of her care, and is, perhaps, quite 
 unconscious of her devoted and enduring love ; 
 her darling is subject to a thousand tempta- 
 tions, and is loved and admired by the great ; — 
 and how can it be expected, that, in the splen- 
 did circle where that idol moves, it can have 
 time or thought to bestow on her ? So reasons, 
 and so loves many a nurse, till old age and 
 death close her faithful and humble career. 
 
 I know this by experience; I have seen 
 several examples of it. My own nurse has 
 loved, and, thank God, still loves me, with 
 this untiring, and forgiving, and unobtrusive 
 affection. 
 
 Mrs. Newlan was not without that usual 
 quality in servants — curiosity : but if she did 
 listen at the door when Rookmore and his 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 131 
 
 wife were planning the letter, and then went 
 into the room and fumbled about near the 
 desk, to try and catch a glimpse of the writing ; 
 if she now twirled the letter round and round 
 and peeped into it, — she did all this to try 
 and discover if the expressions of affection 
 it contained were such as would touch the 
 heart of her darling Helen. With all her 
 efforts and peepings, she could but see little 
 now, for the precious document was enclosed 
 to Lord Nightingford. With many a fer- 
 vent prayer to heaven she dropped it into 
 the post-box ; and, after ascertaining from 
 the stationer's wife at the office, that it would 
 reach London the following day, the old nurse 
 returned on her way, full of hope. 
 
 Laura's hopes were not so bright. A 
 day passed, and then another, and the fourth 
 morning which might have brought an answer 
 arrived, but the penny-postman, who passed 
 through the village every day, did not turn 
 his steps towards the rectory. The nurse 
 now dreaded not only that the living would 
 
132 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 be lost, but that her darling child must be 
 ill, or surely she would have written. 
 
 The accounts of Mr. Layland's danger be- 
 came more alarming. Rook more and his wife 
 thought and reflected on every contingency ; 
 and, as time passed on, they began secretly 
 to fear ; but the more they feared, so much 
 the more did they encourage each other to 
 hope. Yet both gazed in silent grief on all 
 the beloved objects which surrounded them ; 
 and more hours of each day were now spent 
 by them in the cottages of the poor, as though 
 they half dreaded that they might soon be 
 obliged to quit their humble neighbours. 
 
 In the old rectory every chair and table 
 seemed dearer than ever in their eyes, and 
 became dearer still as days passed by, and 
 brought no answer to their letter. Many 
 were the excuses and reasons talked over 
 and suggested by the kind-hearted curate 
 and his wife for this strange delay. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. ISo 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 But here in the town, all is so artificial, 
 We see and hear of nothing but of man, 
 And his ingenious, petty, vain desires ; 
 Our very walls confine and hem us in, 
 And shut out nature, truth, religion, from us. 
 
 I know not that. Where'er we go, we bear 
 Our own temptations with us, and still think 
 To draw from our peculiar state or station 
 The excuse for yielding to them. 
 
 Harness, 
 
 Helen was not up when the post came in 
 which brought Laura's letter, but Lord Night- 
 ingford, to whom it was enclosed, was already 
 in the library. 
 
 He flung the letter from Laura, with several 
 others, on a table, among a heap of notes, 
 
134 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 cards, and printed invitations. On this table, 
 also, was a long list which Helen had made out 
 the preceding day, of the company which were 
 to be invited to a great ball, the first they had 
 yet given in London. This list interested Lord 
 Nightingford. He looked at it with compla- 
 cency, and sat down at the table to add a 
 few names at the end, and erase some others, 
 which, after due consideration, he thought 
 would not be eligible. 
 
 While he was absorbed in this important 
 occupation, Laura's letter was jostled about 
 by the corner of the large sheet of foolscap 
 
 •i 
 
 paper on which the list was written. The 
 letter got shifted and jogged from the surface 
 of one open note to another, till at last it was 
 fairly shoved under a large Dresden china ink- 
 stand ; where, after an occasional touch from 
 the same foolscap enemy at one end, it reposed 
 in calm tranquillity. 
 
 Helen came down soon afterwards, and was 
 pleased to see Lord Nightingford sitting at 
 her table, but was not quite so gratified to 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 135 
 
 find, on looking over the list, that he had 
 drawn his pen through the names of some of 
 their Naples friends. 
 
 " Surely," exclaimed she, " the Gubbings's 
 are very nice people, and Julia was so kind 
 to me when I was ill at Naples. She is the 
 most delightful friend I have, and reminds 
 me sometimes of dear Laura." 
 
 " She may be a very charming person, I 
 have no doubt," said Lord Nightingford ; " but 
 she will be of no use at our ball. Suppose 
 their names should get among the list in the 
 Morning Post ? Gubbings, Mrs. and Miss, 
 and Hopkins, too, — I cannot endure the idea 
 of it ; besides, they know nobody." 
 
 " But poor Julia will be so hurt. What ex- 
 cuse can I give for leaving them out ? I shall 
 never venture to see her again." 
 
 " So much the better ; I have long wished 
 to cut those people : they are in one's way 
 in London. You have yet — we have both — 
 our acquaintances still to make in the English 
 world ; a proper position in society is to be 
 
HSG A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 attained. And you know it is impossible to 
 be too particular in the choice of our associ- 
 ates,"" continued Lord Nightingford with a 
 very wise and conscientious look, as he left 
 the room. 
 
 Helen sighed as she sat down to write on 
 the printed invitations the names of many 
 people which sounded very aristocratic, but 
 whom she was well aware did not care for 
 her. In this mechanical occupation she had 
 leisure to reflect a little on the melancholy 
 heartlessness of fashionable life ; but it was 
 soon time to drive out, and then so many 
 exciting, though unimportant events, occur- 
 red, that she did not feel long depressed. 
 
 The writing table was not again visited by 
 Helen that morning. On the following day she 
 answered many notes at it, but did not discover 
 the letter on which depended the future fate 
 of those she loved better than any one in the 
 whole world except her husband. She dipped 
 her pen again and again into the beautiful 
 flowery inkstand, and while conning over an 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 137 
 
 expression in a common-place note of condo- 
 lence or congratulation, her eyes rested on 
 the little Chinese grinning figure, holding a 
 gaudy umbrella in a fanciful attitude over the 
 inkstand. Helen hastened to seal her notes, 
 and leave the heartless and tiresome occupa- 
 tions of the writing-table, still unconscious 
 that the expressions of the truest love and 
 kindly feelings, — that a letter bedewed with 
 tears of affection and sorrow, was so near, con- 
 cealed by that inkstand with the capering 
 laughing figure ! 
 
 The next morning the housemaid's atten- 
 tion was attracted by the extreme disorder of 
 the writing table ; and being in a tidy humour, 
 she conned over many of the notes with true 
 housemaid's curiosity. But she soon threw 
 them down with a yawn, and half muttered 
 a regret that " my lady had never anything 
 like so many nice secrets as other ladies had 
 where she lived before." 
 
 Betty peeped into some letters in the blot- 
 ting book with little better success. It was 
 
138 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 all so proper and monotonous that she began 
 to think she did not see enough of the world 
 in this place, where there was no scandal, 
 nothing mysterious to amuse her, and show 
 what high life was. With a discontented 
 jerk, Betty arranged the heaps of papers, and 
 dusted the china inkstand. As she settled it 
 more in the middle of the table, a letter, 
 poor Laura's anxious tearful letter, came in 
 sight. 
 
 " Well, there must be something in this, 
 any how," thought Betty, as she twirled it 
 round and round, and peeped into it, while 
 her scandal-loving mind began to try and di- 
 vine who the writer might be. "A lover to 
 be sure, or my lady wouldn't have hid it there 
 out of my lord's sight. I '11 lay any wager 
 it 's from Lord May field. ' Dearest Helen,' I 
 see, and 'regret — that our love'— that nasty 
 flap hides it ;" then trying another side she 
 read, '' ' I long to find that you are not really 
 changed, that you love — "* another abominable 
 turn. Well, at any rate I have discovered 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 139 
 
 something. I am sure it's from Lord Mayfield, 
 and if I donH— " 
 
 The entrance of Lord Nightingford put an 
 end to Betty's soliloquy. She threw down the 
 letter, and began to dust and clean with great 
 energy, till a reproof from her master for not 
 having done the room sooner, caused her to 
 hurry away : but she flounced out of the 
 library with more than usual importance ; she 
 could now give herself airs, and behave as she 
 liked, for she indulged in the gratifying feeling 
 that the honour of "my lady" was in her keep- 
 ing. Betty listened at the door, and looked 
 through the key-hole to see whether Lord 
 Nightingford would discover the important 
 sealed letter ; but he only put down a few 
 more names on the list of invitations, and 
 then left the room. 
 
 Helen came in soon afterwards, and ap- 
 proaching the table, the first object which 
 met her eye was the well-known writing of 
 Laura. She tore open the seal, and as she 
 glanced over the first page, a gleam of such 
 
140 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 real joy as had not cheered her for many 
 a day, caused her almost to jump with delight. 
 It was written with the warmth and affection 
 of former years, and carried Helen's mind back 
 to the happy times when there never was a 
 shadow of restraint between them. But when 
 Helen had finished its contents, and looked at 
 the date, an expression of fear and anxiety 
 clouded her brow. She hastily rang the bell ; 
 but, too impatient to wait till it was answer- 
 ed, ran down to Lord Nightingford's sitting 
 room. 
 
 He was not there ; he had just gone out. 
 Helen was in dismay. Five days had passed 
 since Laura's letter was written. The rector 
 might now be dead, and she dreaded to think 
 what might have happened : for Lord Night- 
 ingford never consulted her, never even men- 
 tioned anything relating to his or to her pro- 
 perty. He would be out the whole day, as he 
 never returned home till dressing time, and He- 
 len passed the weary hours in a state of the 
 greatest anxiety. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 141 
 
 Laura was in her thoughts the whole time. 
 Her conscience had long secretly reproached 
 her for writing so seldom ; she had often felt 
 how remiss she had been, both to Laura and 
 to all the old people at Baynton. Many 
 vague thoughts and intentions had, at dif- 
 ferent times, crossed her mind about en- 
 deavouring to do something for them ; but, 
 as usual with those whose desires are chief- 
 ly set upon the honours and vanities of 
 this world, the calls of early affection were 
 postponed or forgotten. All the painful 
 compunctions she now felt, made Helen 
 still more anxious to secure the living to 
 Rookmore. 
 
 Some visiters called in the course of the 
 day, and poor Helen was so distraite and 
 agitated, that she gave wrong answers to most 
 of the observations that were made, and said 
 many foolish things. Even during a drive 
 she took with the sprightly Lady Penville, 
 and a walk in Kensington Gardens, where 
 Lord Mayfield joined them, and was more 
 
142 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 amusing than ever, her thoughts were solely 
 occupied by the dear and only real friend 
 she possessed. A vague presentiment of ill 
 depressed her spirits. Perhaps, judging from 
 past forgetful ness, she felt a sort of dread 
 that it would be in some manner her fault 
 if misfortune should now happen to Laura. 
 Who has not felt this vague fear and dis- 
 trust of themselves, and not trembled when 
 they suddenly find that something impor- 
 tant depends upon their own exertions or 
 influence ? 
 
 The Nightingfords were engaged to dine 
 out, and the first moment Helen could 
 see her husband that day, was when they 
 both entered the carriage which was to take 
 them to the Duke of Brandon's dinner party. 
 And often this was the only moment when 
 they met alone ! 
 
 The instant the carriage door was shut, 
 Helen, with a hurried yet trembling voice 
 began, " Dear Edward, I have a favour to 
 ask." 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 143 
 
 " Well, what is it r" said Lord Nightingford. 
 '' I suppose you are in debt again, or you 
 want to buy that old china table of Marie 
 Antoinette's." 
 
 " No, indeed, I want nothing for myself, 
 it is for dear Laura : the Rector of Baynton 
 is dying/' 
 
 '' Yes, yes, I know that ; I heard of his 
 illness in a letter I got yesterday from Mr. 
 Taing. But I can do nothing about appointing 
 a successor, as I am in treaty with Mr. Brew- 
 ing for the sale of Baynton Hall. I have 
 thought it expedient to 
 
 " Oh ! Edward, what do you mean ? surely 
 you cannot be serious! — Sell the place! sell 
 Baynton 1 '* and poor Helen burst into tears. 
 
 " Lady Nightingford," said the earl, with 
 grave solemnity, '* you forget yourself;" and 
 pulling the check-string, he called to the 
 coachman to drive home again. 
 
 *' No, no," exclaimed Helen, hastily drying 
 her eyes. " I will not be foolish, — I will go 
 to the dinner party," she continued, as she 
 
146 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to a very select ball at L house, and there to 
 
 be introduced to more exclusives. So this was 
 an important day, and it was the consideration 
 of all that hung upon it which caused Helen 
 to dry her tears so quickly, and promise Lord 
 Nightingford that she would not be foolish. 
 For this object, and that she might not appear 
 to disadvantage in the eyes of her new ac- 
 quaintances, Helen tried hard to forget those 
 dreadful words spoken by her husband : but 
 it would not do — all that evening, the words 
 " sell Baynton Hall" sounded like a knell in 
 her ears. In despair, she endeavoured to laugh 
 and talk more gaily than ever, and try to drown 
 those frightful tones. She thought of such a 
 misfortune was the more dreadful, because she 
 did not feel entirely guiltless of rendering the 
 sale of the property necessary. She still loved 
 her husband too, notwithstanding all his indif- 
 ference, sufficiently to try to make excuses for 
 him, and take the principal share of the blame 
 upon herself. 
 
 " Is Edward — is Lord Nightingford gone ? " 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 147 
 
 inquired Helen, towards the end of the even- 
 ing, of her partner. Lord Mayfield, after their 
 waltz was over. 
 
 " I think not," said he; *' but why are you 
 so anxious about him ? he is never angry when 
 you remain late." 
 
 " Oh ! no; but — but I wanted to see him ; 
 I have something very particular to say, and — 
 and we so seldom meet," continued Helen, with 
 a sigh. 
 
 " You are sad this evening. Lady Night- 
 ingford; I see that you are unhappy, even 
 through the forced spirits you assume ; I know 
 you too well to be deceived," said he, in a 
 tone of deep anxiety. " I wish I could dis- 
 cover what has annoyed you ; I would give 
 the world to remove the cloud from that 
 brow." 
 
 " You are always so kind ; but — but indeed 
 it is nothing," said Helen, trying to laugh, 
 while a tear started to her eye. They walked 
 towards the refreshment room, and soon Lord 
 Mayfield drew from Helen an account of her 
 
 h2 
 
146 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to a very select ball at L house, and there to 
 
 be introduced to more exclusives. So this was 
 an important day, and it was the consideration 
 of all that hung upon it which caused Helen 
 to dry her tears so quickly, and promise Lord 
 Nightingford that she would not be foolish. 
 For this object, and that she might not appear 
 to disadvantage in the eyes of her new ac- 
 quaintances, Helen tried hard to forget those 
 dreadful words spoken by her husband : but 
 it would not do — all that evening, the words 
 " sell Baynton Hall" sounded like a knell in 
 her ears. In despair, she endeavoured to laugh 
 and talk more gaily than ever, and try to drown 
 those frightful tones. She thought of such a 
 misfortune was the more dreadful, because she 
 did not feel entirely guiltless of rendering the 
 sale of the property necessary. She still loved 
 her husband too, notwithstanding all his indif- 
 ference, sufficiently to try to make excuses for 
 him, and take the principal share of the blame 
 upon herself. 
 
 " Is Edward — is Lord Nightingford gone ? " 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 147 
 
 inquired Helen, towards the end of the even- 
 ing, of her partner, Lord Mayfield, after their 
 waltz was over. 
 
 " I think not," said he; " but why are you 
 so anxious about him ? he is never angry when 
 you remain late." 
 
 " Oh ! no; but — but I wanted to see him ; 
 I have something very particular to say, and — 
 and we so seldom meet," continued Helen, with 
 a sigh. 
 
 " You are sad this evening, Lady Night- 
 ingford ; I see that you are unhappy, even 
 through the forced spirits you assume ; I know 
 you too well to be deceived," said he, in a 
 tone of deep anxiety. " I wish I could dis- 
 cover what has annoyed you ; I would give 
 the world to remove the cloud from that 
 brow." 
 
 " You are always so kind ; but — but indeed 
 it is nothing," said Helen, trying to laugh, 
 while a tear started to her eye. They walked 
 towards the refreshment room, and soon Lord 
 Mayfield drew from Helen an account of her 
 
 h2 
 
148 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 anxiety about the friend of her youth, and her 
 fears lest Baynton Hall, the dear home of her 
 childhood, should be sold. 
 
 He listened to her with so much interest, 
 that Helen continued to expatiate on the cha- 
 racter of Laura, and in so doing, she enjoyed 
 a pleasure to which she had long been a 
 stranger — the delight of reading in the coun- 
 tenance of another the interest she felt for 
 so dear a friend. Lord Nightingford never 
 had patience to listen when she talked of 
 Laura and her perfections, and of the hap- 
 py days Helen had spent with her at Bayn- 
 ton Hall. 
 
 Lord Mayfield was a deep reader of human 
 nature, and had long been much interested by 
 the young creature who, amid many tempt- 
 ations, and exposed to the society and example 
 of worthless and unprincipled friends, seemed 
 to preserve a devoted affection for her hus- 
 band. He had first become acquainted with 
 Helen soon after her marriage, when he was 
 passing the winter at Rome, in bad health 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 149 
 
 and low spirits. He had gone abroad dis- 
 appointed and almost heart-broken, not as 
 is so often the case, to fly from a faithless 
 fair one, but to mourn the death of his be- 
 trothed bride. The beautiful girl to whom 
 he had been long attached, died only a few 
 days before that which was fixed for their 
 wedding. At Rome he did not go into so- 
 ciety, but he had formerly been a schoolfel- 
 low of Lord Nightingford's, and he met him 
 one day at Tivoli with Helen, and their ac- 
 quaintance was renewed. 
 
 A slight resemblance between the young 
 English bride, and Lord Mayfield's lost love, 
 first attracted his attention, and seemed to 
 have the effect of rousing him from the de- 
 spair into which he had been plunged. He 
 did not, however, go into the gay world of 
 Rome, and seldom met Helen except in the 
 picture galleries, or when she visited some of 
 the interesting remains of antiquity in the 
 neighbourhood 
 
 Helen saw that he was unhappy; and this. 
 
150 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 and his having been a schoolfellow of her hus- 
 band's, induced her to try to amuse him. He 
 was a man of great taste and discernment, and 
 he at once saw that Helen's powers of mind 
 had not been fully developed — that she was 
 born for something better than the gay frivo- 
 lous life she led, and that her good feelings 
 were in imminent danger of being extinguish- 
 ed. He saw, too, with regret, the change 
 which some ten years had operated for the 
 worse in the character of Lord Nightingford, 
 and he trembled for the fate of both. 
 
 Since that winter at Rome, he had not met 
 the Nightingfords until lately. He found 
 Helen more beautiful, indeed, but less attract- 
 ive in his eyes, than when he first became 
 acquainted with her ; for she was more de- 
 voted to the world and the pursuit of fashion : 
 but now, when she confided to him her 
 anxieties about Laura, and described in un- 
 usually enthusiastic language the perfections 
 of that beautiful character — when she timidly 
 hinted at her own failings, and reproached 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 151 
 
 herself for having, perhaps, rendered the sale 
 of Baynton necessary — he regarded her with 
 more interest than ever. 
 
 He advised her to use her utmost influence 
 with Lord Nightingford, to prevent the sale of 
 Baynton ; for he saw that she was still deep- 
 ly attached to the home of her youth ; and 
 he was anxious that this slender link, which 
 seemed to connect her with the better feelings 
 and hopes of her childhood, should not be 
 severed. 
 
 Helen returned home that evening, with a 
 firm determination to rise early and see Lord 
 Nightingford, before he went out the next 
 morning, and conjure him to save the old place. 
 It was not much after ten o'clock the next 
 day, when Helen hurried down to Lord Night- 
 ingford's sitting-room. This was full two hours 
 before the time she generally left her room, 
 yet he was already out. He had gone to see 
 some horses, the valet believed ; but he would 
 be sure to be at home in the course of the 
 morning. 
 
152 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Helen's heart sank ; for she feared that the 
 only moment she should be able to speak to 
 her husband, would be when they went out 
 to dinner again. She would have to pass 
 another long day of anxiety, and another 
 evening of stifled sorrow and suppressed 
 feeling. 
 
 The post came in ; Helen heard the knock, 
 and flew down to look at the directions of the 
 letters ; but there was none in Laura's hand- 
 writing. " Thank God ! " thought she, " the 
 rector cannot yet be dead, or she would have 
 written again." 
 
 Helen ordered the carriage at a late hour 
 for her drive that day, in hopes that Lord 
 Nio-htinoford would return home before five 
 o'clock : but he did not ; he went into the 
 city on business, and had ordered the groom 
 who attended him at the sale of horses in the 
 morning, to have his own in waiting at the 
 club in the afternoon. 
 
 The anxious Helen discovered this. It 
 would then, be impossible to see him all 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 153 
 
 day ; so she made some visits, and got over 
 the long wearisome hours as well as she could. 
 
 Lord Nightingford greeted her that even- 
 ing as he stepped into the carriage (where 
 she had been waiting for some minutes), with 
 less coldness than usual. He kissed her fair 
 brow, and asked if she enjoyed the ball last 
 night. Helen was so touched at this un- 
 wonted proof of interest, that she dreaded 
 more than ever to annoy him, by alluding 
 to the subject about which she was so anxi- 
 ous ; and yet the moments were precious, 
 for they had only a short way to drive. 
 
 " Dear Edward," she began, " I hope you 
 will not be angry ; but I do so wish you 
 would promise that living — " 
 
 " Lady Nightingford," said he, with a grave 
 and chilling look, " I told you yesterday 
 that—" 
 
 " Oh ! but you did not — you could not mean 
 tliat there was a chance of being really obliged 
 to sell dear, dear Baynton." 
 
 "Indeed I did ; and I have been confirmed 
 
 H 5 
 
154 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 in this opinion by my solicitor to-day. I have 
 already too many places for my fortune. It is 
 impossible to live in the style I wish, and to 
 keep up all these country residences." 
 
 " But surely, — is there no other, is there 
 none but poor dear Baynton that could be 
 sold ? " 
 
 " None, " said Lord Nightingford as he 
 gravely adjusted his stock, and then carefully 
 buttoned his glove. " None. You know mine 
 are all entailed ; and the property you inhe- 
 rited from your mother is tied up. There is 
 nothing disposable except Baynton," conti- 
 nued Lord Nightingford in a decided tone, 
 as he let down the window of the magnifi- 
 cent carriage in which they sat. 
 
 Oh, with what difficulty did Helen restrain 
 her tears, and how agonizing were the regrets 
 she experienced at this sad intelligence ! The 
 memory of all the sunny years she had passed 
 at Baynton, crowded vividly to her mind ; and 
 by contrasting painfully with her present un- 
 satisfactory life, seemed to crush every hope. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 155 
 
 She made several attempts during the short 
 remainder of the drive to combat her hus- 
 band's determination ; but all she could extort 
 from him was a promise, that if the rector 
 should die before the place was sold. Rook- 
 more should be his successor. 
 
 That night, at a crowded assembly, Helen 
 again met Lord Mayfield, and again confided 
 her sorrows to his sympathising ear. Sorrows, 
 indeed, they were; for the more she reflected 
 the dearer did the recollection of the old Hail 
 appear. She now wondered at her own in- 
 sensibility at not having gone immediately 
 to Baynton, to dear Laura, on her return, 
 and firmly did she resolve to go and take 
 a last look of the place she was so fondly 
 attached to. 
 
 But it is not easy for a wife who is habitually 
 influenced by even the caprices of a husband, 
 and who is also of a jealous disposition, to do 
 as she intends. Now it so happened that Lord 
 Nightingford was resolved that his wife should 
 
156 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 not visit Baynton Hall : he knew that if Helen 
 went there, she would take all sorts of foolish 
 fancies in her head, and want some of the old 
 furniture, and perhaps fill their house in Lon- 
 don, or at Royston Park, with old lumbering 
 pictures, and wish to provide for all the tire- 
 some superannuated pegple he had already been 
 tormented about. 
 
 Indeed Helen was so entangled with the en- 
 gagements and pursuits of fashion, that, not- 
 withstanding her bitter sorrow on first hear- 
 ing that Baynton was to be sold, it would 
 have been very difficult to find a vacant week 
 for the intended visit. Besides, Lord Night- 
 ingford, who, perhaps, may have felt some 
 slight compunction at parting with the place, 
 treated her with more kindness than usual, and 
 entered most warmly into all the little details 
 of her intended ball, which, indeed, really in- 
 terested him. 
 
 The ball was splendid indeed. Helen had 
 the happiness of receiving the Duchess of 
 Brandon's congratulations on having given the 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 157 
 
 most successful one of the whole season. Her 
 husband smiled on her approvingly. 
 
 On the following morning was signed the 
 deed of surrender of Baynton Hall, &c. to 
 Timothy Brewing, Esq. 
 
 Laura received at last a very kind letter 
 from Helen. It was written with all the af- 
 fection of former years, and expressed in most 
 touching language her grief at the sad pro- 
 spect of losing the dear home of her youth, 
 and at the impossibility of promising the liv- 
 ing to Rookmore unless the present incumbent 
 should die before the sale took place. Yet 
 she did not throw the blame of all these mis- 
 fortunes on Lord Nightingford : on the con- 
 trary, she tried to excuse him by stating that 
 he had succeeded to a property much encum- 
 bered by debts. She said that she hoped soon 
 to run down to take a last look at the place, 
 and see her darling Laura ; but in the mean 
 time, if Rookmore and her dear sister would 
 come to town, she and Lord Nightingford 
 .would be enchanted to see them. 
 
158 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 This was the first positive confirmation 
 Laura had received of the sad rumours which 
 were afloat about the sale of Baynton. She 
 read the letter several times before she could 
 believe that it was real, — that the fatal lines 
 were really penned by Helen, the dear affec- 
 tionate Helen, the happy heiress, the actual 
 possessor of that loved and venerated place. 
 Could she calmly write those words which 
 Laura had heard pronounced only by the 
 envious and unkind, and which all the affec- 
 tionate old people about the place had indig- 
 nantly and vehemently contradicted ? 
 
 Oh, how painful it is to discover that the 
 disparagements pronounced by the unfeeling 
 on a being we dearly love, are just ! For the 
 first time in her life, Laura looked with dis- 
 pleasure on Helen's writing. *' Oh, how could 
 she have penned these words, ' sell Baynton 
 Hall !' with any degree of composure ? '* 
 
 " The old housekeeper, poor Mrs. Sunwell, 
 what would she do ?" was Laura's anxious 
 thought, after the first bitter pangs of grief 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 159 
 
 had in some degree subsided. She was un- 
 willing to tell her the sad truth, and yet she 
 wished to prepare the poor woman's mind for 
 that last and worst blow. 
 
 Several times during the ensuing fortnight 
 did the Rookmores spend their evenings with 
 Mrs. Sunwell in the housekeeper's room at 
 Baynton, and poor Laura listened with pa- 
 tience to the old lady's reasonings. " That for 
 her part she wouldn't believe a word about 
 it ; they never could be going to sell the 
 old place ; the very dust of their forefathers 
 would rise up in judgment against them, and 
 their disturbed spirits would haunt them, if 
 they only thought of such a thing. My lady, 
 she was sure, would soon be here now, and 
 set all to rights." Thus did the poor, solitary, 
 affectionate creature reason and talk, and Laura 
 had not the courage to undeceive her ! 
 
160 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 O ye ! who talk of death, and mourn for death, 
 Why do you raise a phantom of your weakness, 
 And then shriek loud to see what ye have made ? 
 There is no death, to those who know of life — 
 No time, to those who see eternity. 
 
 MiLNES. 
 
 How many a bitter word 't "would hush ? 
 
 How many a pang ^t would save ? 
 If life more precious held those ties 
 
 Which sanctify the grave. 
 
 L. E. L. 
 
 Three months after the period described 
 in the last chapter, on a fine day towards 
 the end of September, Laura stood with her 
 husband in the deep recess of the fine painted- 
 glass window of the library at Baynton. 
 
 The lofty rooms were no longer silent and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 161 
 
 deserted; but old Mr. Baynton's huge folios, 
 which had so long lain untouched on the table, 
 were gone ! the rays of the mid-day sun would 
 never again illumine their dark pages as of 
 yore, with the brilliant reflection of the crest 
 and arms of his family — these tomes were 
 closed, and consigned like himself, to a neglect- 
 ed resting-place ; yet the gaudy sunbeam still 
 gleamed through the room, and shone upon 
 a vast concourse of people who hurried to and 
 fro; but its brightness was dimmed by the 
 dust, which, as if in revenge of its long neg- 
 lect, clouded the atmosphere, and moved with 
 a melancholy undulating motion through the 
 spacious room. 
 
 This was the second day of an auction at 
 Baynton Hall. And here Laura saw many 
 well-known faces, many forms which had glid- 
 ed mirthfully through these very rooms, at the 
 frequent balls and festivities given by the late 
 hospitable owner. She had never met them 
 since those happy days, and now she turned 
 away with a sigh, and a feeling almost of 
 
162 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 anger ; for she saw that they gazed on all the 
 articles of furniture, all these objects so dear, 
 so venerated, with a cold, indifferent, and yet 
 calculating, eye. The ample folds of a red 
 damask curtain concealed Laura, and Rook- 
 more was so little known out of the village 
 that no one observed him. 
 
 " I fear that we have not done wisely in 
 coming here," said the young man as he looked 
 on the pale and agitated countenance of his 
 wife. " I will go and see if the picture you 
 wish to have will soon be put up for sale ; if 
 not, we had better return home.'' 
 
 Laura felt she had not indeed done wisely 
 in coming; but she clung with such a yearning 
 fondness to the old place, that she longed to see 
 the last of all the dear objects it contained, and 
 to know who — what sort of persons — would 
 have the happiness to possess them. " Surely 
 Helen did not intend to part with all her 
 things," thought she. " Her mother's picture, 
 and that work-table, embroidered by those 
 beautiful hands, with the history of Mordecai 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 163 
 
 and Esther, which Helen used to admire and 
 love so much ! and her father's splendid col- 
 lection of medals and Etruscan vases." 
 
 No. Helen did not really intend it; but 
 how often we do what we never intended, and 
 leave undone that which we most wish to do, 
 because our hearts are overcharged with the 
 immediate pleasures or pursuits in which we 
 happen to be engaged, and the seeds of early 
 affections and good feelings are choked by the 
 cares or joys of the present moment ! 
 
 Helen had indeed, at times, many vague 
 thoughts about endeavouring to have some 
 of the old things at Bay n ton purchased and 
 sent to Laura ; but she had spent so much 
 in various ways, and then it made her husband 
 so cross to be asked' for monev. She knew, 
 too, that he was distressed, and thus the time 
 passed away, and Helen never reflected that 
 one of the balls, of which she now gave 
 many, cost more than would have bought all 
 the furniture and pictures at Baynton Hall. 
 Nor did she even remember that one of these 
 
164 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 same balls which seemed so necessary to her 
 existence, cost more than the amount of the 
 poor curate''s income for four years ; nor did 
 she recollect that he was about to lose even 
 that. In short, Helen, in despair, tried to 
 forget all about Baynton Hall. 
 
 Rookmore had fully entered into all his 
 wife's feehngs on this melancholy occasion, and 
 with a sensitive consideration of her attach- 
 ment to the interesting objects at the Hall, 
 he had silently, and with much difficulty, 
 scraped together twenty pounds, that he might 
 have the delight of purchasing for her some 
 favourite picture, or piece of furniture, as a 
 memorial of the old place. 
 
 There was a small portrait of Mr. Baynton, 
 with Helen in his arms when a child ; and 
 after anxious consideration the delighted and 
 surprised Laura fixed on this. She had al- 
 ways loved it, and the likenesses of both were 
 good. Mr. Baynton had altered but little in 
 appearance after it was painted ; and Helen, 
 when last she saw her on her marriage day. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 165 
 
 was like it still — so innocent, so childlike was 
 her sunny countenance. It was put up to 
 auction. Alas ! the twenty pounds were not 
 sufficient ; that sum was soon out-bid. Rook- 
 more glanced eagerly towards Laura to inquire 
 if he should bid again, but she shook her head, 
 for she knew it would be wrong to spend 
 more. She tried to smile, though her lips 
 quivered with suppressed feeling, in order 
 that her kind husbard might not be dis- 
 tressed at her disappointment. 
 
 After a few more biddings, the beloved 
 picture was knocked down for thirty pounds, 
 to a hard-featured, fat-headed draper, from 
 
 D , who cared nothing for old Mr. Bayn- 
 
 ton, but thought the picture would look very 
 respectable in the country villa he was just 
 fitting up. 
 
 Laura had not much time to grieve over 
 her disappointment, as she was soon called 
 to witness a scene of more real suffering. Old 
 Daniel, the one legged garden-man, who had 
 been found by Laura weeding the terrace by 
 
166 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 moonlight, came hobbling along in his tattered 
 garments amid the crowd of well-dressed pur- 
 chasers, in search of Mrs. Rookmore, to inform 
 her that the old housekeeper, poor Mrs. Sun- 
 well, was dying. She had been dangerously 
 ill since the place was actually sold, and was 
 unable to be removed ; so Mr. Brewing's 
 bailiff had grumblingly allowed her to remain 
 in the south attic. 
 
 To this lonely chamber of suffering did 
 Laura and her husband now repair. The 
 weU-known staircase and passages through 
 which they passed, looked desolate indeed, for 
 the furniture had been all moved away. The 
 ancient and quaintly carved chests, in which 
 Helen and Laura, when children, had often 
 laughingly concealed themselves, were gone ! 
 so were the large China vases which had 
 adorned the staircase. The places where the 
 Indian cabinets, on the wide landing-places, 
 had stood, were still indicated by the more 
 vivid colour of the green paper on the wall. 
 Laura's too acute memory did not require 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 167 
 
 these sad marks to recall all the dear ob- 
 jects to her mind ; but she hurried on and 
 did not allow herself to think of them. 
 
 Softly, with a trembling hand, did Laura 
 open the door of poor Mrs. Sun well's attic. 
 The bed on which she lay, and a single chair, 
 were all the furniture left there. 
 
 '^ Thank ye,'' gasped the dying woman, 
 '* thank ye, my dearest Miss — God bless your 
 darling face, for coming up to see a poor ne- 
 glected old woman ! Thank God ! " she conti- 
 nued, after a pause, to take breath, " Thank 
 God, I shall be gone — in his mercy he will 
 take me before — before — Oh! what, — what is 
 that noise ? Is not master's coffin nailed down 
 yet?" 
 
 Laura shuddered, for she saw the poor 
 woman mistook the noise of the auctioneer's 
 hammer, for the last sad sounds in the chamber 
 of death ; and indeed, amid the deserted place, 
 it re-echoed with a funereal tone. 
 
 *' Oh, that I should have lived to see him a 
 corpse !" she continued. " But surely he is laid 
 
168 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 in his cold grave long ago. What sound is 
 that again ? — I heard it. — Ah yes ! it is the 
 funeral knell of all the Bayntons. The whole 
 family is gone — gone for ever, and — well, 
 thank God, I am going too," continued the 
 old woman, in a more peaceful tone, and closed 
 her eyes, and laid her head on one side as 
 if she were going softly to sleep. But soon 
 she breathed with difficulty, and, starting 
 up again, exclaimed, '' Is Miss Helen come 
 yet ? tell me the moment she comes. — Oh ! 
 I remember now, they say she will never — 
 never come here again — never — well, may 
 God — I 'm going — may God forgive — and 
 bless her ! " 
 
 The old woman had clasped her thin hands 
 while she uttered this prayer: it was her 
 last. Those hands were now fixed in the 
 rigidity of death — those lips, whose last breath 
 had invoked a blessing on the being who had 
 injured her most, still retained the smile of 
 heavenly charity which had prompted that 
 simple prayer. The old housekeeper looked 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 169 
 
 in death as she had always done in life, happy 
 and peaceful. Her kind and cheerful nature 
 triumphed even over misfortune : when she 
 could live no longer in joy, her cheerful 
 spirit departed to the God from whence it 
 came, and no vexations, not even the object of 
 her warm affection, the unthinking Helen, 
 had power to torment her more. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
no A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A pen — to register ; a key — 
 
 That winds through secret wards; 
 Are well assigned to memory 
 
 By allegoric bards. 
 
 As aptly also might be given 
 
 A pencil to her hand ; 
 That, softening objects, sometimes even 
 
 Outstrips the heart's demand; 
 
 That smoothes foregone distress, the lines 
 
 Of lingering care subdues, 
 Long vanished happiness refines, 
 
 And clothes in brighter hues ; 
 
 Yet, like a tool of fancy, works 
 
 Those spectres to dilate 
 That startle conscience as she lurks 
 
 Within her lonely seat. 
 
 Oh ! that our lives, which flee so fast, 
 
 In purity were such. 
 That not an image of the past 
 
 Should fear that pencil's touch ! 
 
 Wordsworth. 
 
 How strange and inscrutable are the ways 
 of Providence ! A few weeks after Baynton 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 171 
 
 was sold, Mr. Layland, the rector of Baynton, 
 died, and Mr. John Brewing, brother to the 
 present proprietor of the Baynton estates, step- 
 ped into the living. Though a rich man, he 
 did not intend to keep a curate. The long- 
 dreaded event had then actually arrived, and, 
 in a short time, the Rookmores would be 
 obliged to quit their beloved home. If any- 
 thing could compensate Rookmore for the 
 loss of his all, it would have been the tes- 
 timony of sincere affection he received from 
 the poor. Never was pastor so beloved or 
 regretted by his parishioners. He had been 
 there twelve years. Every one said it was a 
 hard case that he should be turned adrift on 
 the wide world, and a shame that the late 
 Mr. Baynton's daughter-in-law should be left 
 so totally unprovided for, and such an exem- 
 plary young clergyman allowed to starve. 
 Even Baynton, they declared, was too small a 
 field for such an excellent clergyman ; and that, 
 if Lord Nightingford chose to sell the liv- 
 
 i2 
 
172 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ing, which belonged to the family, he should, 
 at all events, have given Rookmore another. 
 
 This was the universal opinion, not only 
 of the poor, but of the rich. Not that the 
 latter cared much about the loss of so good 
 a clergyman, or that they were particularly 
 fond of Laura, but because every one likes to 
 censure his neighbours ; and the rich were 
 jealous as well as the poor, only in a different 
 way, that Lady Nightingford, the little Helen 
 Baynton they all remembered when a child, 
 had become a lady of high fashion in London. 
 They found fault with her, and gravely con- 
 demned the hardness of her heart, saying, 
 again and again, " How utterly spoilt she 
 must be!" because it gave them no trouble 
 to do so, and because we all like to discover 
 faults in those friends or acquaintances who 
 have been more successful in the world than 
 ourselves. 
 
 But no one tried to assist the poor clergy- 
 man, and very few exercised that most dif- 
 ficult of Christian virtues, charity ; — charity, 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 173 
 
 I raean, of thought and speech towards the 
 erring and apparently guilty cause of the 
 Rookmores' loss. Few took warning by this 
 lesson, and looked within their own hearts, 
 to see if the seeds of vanity and thoughtless- 
 ness, and a too great carefulness for the plea- 
 sures of this world, which had caused Helen 
 to forget the friends of her youth, did not 
 lurk there. Nor did they ask themselves 
 whether they had never been guilty of an 
 offence of the same kind ; whether they had 
 always employed their talents, their time, and 
 influence, in the way most pleasing to God. 
 Still less did they place themselves in the 
 situation of Lord Nightingford and Helen, 
 and consider whether they might not have 
 done the same in their circumstances. This 
 last perhaps they could not imagine possible, 
 for it is very hard to understand all the 
 temptations of a kind of life that we have 
 not ourselves experienced. The line between 
 good and bad is less distinctly marked than 
 most of us suppose ; and if we could read the 
 
174 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 secret thoughts of the greatest sinners, we 
 should be surprised to find in how many 
 points, they are better than ourselves. 
 
 Yet those who were the actual sufferers, 
 the poor exiled Rookmores, exercised that 
 spirit of true charity, which their rich neigh- 
 bours, who lost nothing by the event, forgot, 
 and never did their voices, or even thoughts, 
 mingle with the murmurs of those around, 
 against the Nightingfords. 
 
 The last prayer which was offered up by 
 the poor curate and his wife in the house 
 which had so long been their happy home, 
 was a petition for Helen. Both felt that in 
 this hour of trial, they themselves had been 
 graciously supported by that Almighty whom 
 they served, and though both were utterly 
 ignorant of the temptations and pleasures 
 which might beset Helen's path, and pervert 
 her mind, yet they felt that she must be 
 sadly in want of divine grace. In the midst 
 of all their outward distress, they were happy. 
 They well knew this peace, this firm and calm 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 175 
 
 reliance on the protection of God, could only 
 come from their heavenly Father ; and more 
 than ever did they feel that those who have 
 not an habitual reliance on him must be mi- 
 serable. 
 
 This last apparently irretrievable misfortune, 
 brought far less sorrow than the young pair 
 had anticipated, and thus they had receiv- 
 ed a practical lesson of the all-sufficiency 
 of his love to console them. They looked 
 back to moments of prosperity, and remem- 
 bered that they had then been less sensible 
 of the presence, the joyful presence of God, 
 than now ; and by this, they instinctively learn- 
 ed to suspect the real wants and consequent 
 misery of those prosperous ones who had in- 
 flicted so much ill on the poor parishioners. 
 Therefore, it was chiefly for Helen that Laura 
 grieved. Unceasingly did she pray that her 
 heart might be awakened to a sense of her 
 errors, and that she might be spared the 
 bitter pangs of feeling that dire remorse which 
 comes too late. 
 
176 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Again she wrote to Helen and described 
 in vivid colours the distress of the old ser- 
 vants, reminding her that the old nurse who 
 loved her so warmly, would now have no home. 
 Of herself she said nothing, nor did she even 
 mention that she was sitting for the last time 
 at the old oak writing-desk, in the wainscot- 
 ted parlour, — that parlour which for twelve 
 years had been the scene of her dear husband's 
 beautiful thoughts, and her own happiness, — 
 that on the morrow she knew not even what 
 roof would shelter herself and the objects of 
 her love. 
 
 It was November : a cold drizzling rain beat 
 against the casement, and melancholy and 
 cheerless was the first sound that met their 
 awakening ears on that last morning. Before 
 daylight they were up, for there were many 
 little things still to arrange. Mr. Brewing had 
 bought their piano ; the small, but pretty and 
 sweet-toned instrument which Mr. Baynton had 
 given them on their wedding-day. Laura and 
 her husband were passionately fond of music : 
 
A GOOD MATCEJ. 177 
 
 they had both beautiful voices, and many a 
 happy evening had been spent in singing 
 together to the accompaniment of that dear 
 piano. 
 
 It was some consolation to poor Laura, that, 
 as their means would no longer permit her to 
 retain it, the cherished instrument should re- 
 main at the rectory : she had loved it so well, 
 — it had, been the melodious depository of so 
 many joyful and sad feelings, — that it would 
 have grieved her to see it removed from its 
 accustomed place, and sent far away to a 
 strange abode. 
 
 Mrs. Newlan declared she would not leave 
 them. The good woman would, however, not 
 burthen their slender purse, but said that she 
 had one hundred pounds, which was sure to 
 last her life, and which she always meant to 
 leave to Laura's child. On this she would 
 now support herself while living with them. 
 
 In the afternoon of that dark day the Rook- 
 mores and the old nurse quitted the rectory. 
 They walked through the drizzling rain to a 
 
 i5 
 
178 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 small cottage at the farther end of the village, 
 where they had taken lodgings for a short time. 
 
 When Rookmore had installed Laura in 
 this humble dwelling, he walked over to see 
 a friend at Cheselton, who was looking out 
 for a new curacy for him. This was the only 
 chance they had, and anxiously did Laura 
 await her husband's return. A curacy had 
 been heard of in the large city of D . 
 
 Laura had never lived in a town, and she 
 shrank from the idea of leaving the beautiful 
 country, the peaceful woods and valleys : a 
 town, too, was associated in her mind with 
 the idea of sin, of temptation, and sorrow. It 
 was in towns Helen had always lived since 
 she married, and Laura, in the simplicity of 
 her heart, prayed that Rookmore and herself 
 might not be led by this change of place into 
 the forgetfulness of their duties to their God, 
 and kindness to their neighbours. 
 
 Rookmore was successful in his negotiation 
 for the curacy ; but the salary was only to 
 be seventy pounds a-year, which was thirty 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 179 
 
 pounds less than the wages paid by the new 
 incumbent to his butler. However, Rook- 
 more had too much real Christian cheerfulness 
 to repine at the smallness of the emolument. 
 He was thankful to get anything, and with one 
 of his most sunny smiles — a smile of cheer- 
 fulness, which, like a ray of heavenly light, 
 brought peace to her heart, he informed Laura 
 of his success. 
 
 It was a great relief to his wife that they 
 were now certain of something ; so she tried 
 to hope the best of their town life ; and the 
 two outcasts from their happy home passed a 
 cheerful and pleasant evening in their present 
 humble abode. 
 
 The house to which they had removed was 
 quite a cottage, and the night intensely cold. 
 The old bare boards of the little room in 
 which they were to sleep, did not join, and 
 they could see into the room beneath, through 
 the chinks. But old Mrs. Newlan, ever at- 
 tentive to their wants, and grateful at being 
 allowed to remain with them, had contrived, 
 
180 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to make up on two chairs, a nice little warm 
 bed for the child, who slept as peacefully as in 
 its own cot at the rectory. Mrs. Newlan smiled 
 more cheeringly than ever as she kissed it that 
 night, and then prepared to assist Laura to 
 undress. 
 
 The old nurse had that good taste which 
 springs from deep feeling, and seldom belongs 
 to servants in these attachless days ; and this 
 it was that caused her to try and make the best 
 of everything. There were no window-cur- 
 tains, but she had contrived to pin up an old 
 petticoat of her own across the little ill-closed 
 casement, and having made them as comfort- 
 able as she could, she wished her dear mistress 
 a good night, and retired to share a still more 
 miserable room than Laura's, with the poor 
 woman of the cottage. 
 
 " How thankful I ought to be," thought 
 Laura, " for such an attached friend ! it is pro- 
 bably the lot of few to receive such a heart- 
 felt ' Good night !' such a fervent ' God bless 
 you !** as beamed in that old woman's counte- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 181 
 
 nance. She is happier now than ever, because 
 all the kindness of her nature can be deve- 
 loped ; she knows how useful she is to those 
 she loves, and this makes her joyful in the 
 midst of misfortune." And after a long and 
 blissful prayer, Laura retired to rest, this 
 first evening of her exile from her beloved 
 home. 
 
 It was about the same hour that Helen, 
 now in Paris, was stepping into her carriage 
 to go to a great ball at the Austrian embassy. 
 The Nightingfords had run over to Paris while 
 some alterations were in progress, at Lord 
 Nightingford's seat in shire. 
 
 And Helen left Encrland without seeing 
 Laura, for she dreaded to see her now. 
 
 " How wretchedly cold it is !" said the shiv- 
 ering beauty as she took off her cloak in the 
 hall at the Austrian palace. 
 
 " Yes, it is a great penance to go out such a 
 night as this," said Lord Nightingford with 
 an ill-humoured shiver. " Come, make haste ! 
 you keep me so long standing in the cold, while 
 
18^ A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 you are pulling off those confounded slippers. 
 Come, there 's the Duchess de Longueville 
 standing near the door, and this is just the 
 moment to be introduced to her : she has such 
 a delightful house." 
 
 Helen hastened to get off the rebellious 
 slippers by the assistance of Lord May field, — 
 the most admired English beauty of the season 
 entered the brilliant room, — the buzz of admi- 
 ration reached her ears. Was she so happy 
 as Laura in her little cottage ? 
 
 That mania for fashion, which, if once in- 
 dulged in, becomes, particularly in English 
 people, such a fearful passion, had made the 
 Nightingfords as anxious to belong to the 
 most leading set in Paris, as they had been 
 in Italy and London. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 183 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 To seek the haunts of poverty and pain. 
 
 Teach want to thrive, and grief to smile again ; 
 
 To guide young footsteps to the right, and win 
 
 The old in error from the ways of sin ; 
 
 To ease the burthens of the human race, 
 
 Mend every heart, and gladden every face ; 
 
 She lived and breath'd — not from the world estranged. 
 
 But moved amongst it, guileless and unchanged ; 
 
 Still loved to view the picture's brighter side, 
 
 The first to cherish and the last to chide. 
 
 Gally Knight, 
 
 In a few days the Rookmores removed to 
 
 the town of D . It was a chilly frosty day 
 
 in November ; the high road to D passed 
 
 through Baynton Park,, and in some places 
 commanded a fine though distant view of the 
 ancient Hall. The sun shone brightly, and 
 illumined the old place with a cheerful ray ; 
 
184 A GOOD MATCH, 
 
 but marks of alteration were already visible, 
 and a scaffolding was placed against the south 
 turret which contained the room Laura had 
 formerly occupied. Mr. Brewing had no ve- 
 neration for antiquity, and it was said he 
 intended to modernise the mansion. 
 
 On looking for the last time on the old 
 place, its well known terraces and sloping 
 gardens, Laura was spared the most painful 
 of all those regrets which are experienced 
 when bidding adieu to the home of our youth 
 — the conviction that we have not valued the 
 blessings and affection which have surrounded 
 us under the paternal roof. No painful re- 
 membrance of slighted kindness or neglected 
 advice was recalled in Laura's mind by those 
 beloved objects ; no unkind words nor peevish 
 ill temper towards the dear ones who were 
 gone, rose up, as is too often the case, like 
 ghosts, to scare away and embitter the thoughts 
 of past joys, and to render the parting from 
 a former home more painful still. 
 
 Oh, what a blessing is a well-regulated and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 185 
 
 feligious mind ! How often have I felt, when 
 gazing on the old familiar objects endeared 
 by the memory of those I loved best,— how 
 often have I felt that some kind word from 
 their beloved lips, has come with fearful dis- 
 tinctness to reproach me for either disregarding 
 it, or for not having at the time been fully 
 aware of the inestimable value of being so loved ! 
 I know that my feelings are morbidly sensitive 
 on this point, and that I suffer the regrets of 
 not having made the most of my former hap- 
 piness to haunt me like spectres; yet though 
 I do it to an almost sinful degree, and by thus 
 poisoning other and present joys, sow over 
 again the seeds for future repining, yet I 
 would address a word of warning to others, to 
 beware — to try and remember, that the remorse 
 excited by knowing that we have not enjoyed 
 the past, is worse than the simple, though 
 poignant sorrow, of thinking on departed joys 
 when they are gone for ever. Unless mingled 
 with this remorse, I do not agree with Dante, 
 that there is '' Nessun maggior dolore che 
 
186 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 di ricordarsi del tempo felice nella miseria." 
 I think that the remembrance of real pure joy 
 is always pleasant, even if those are dead who 
 were the sources of it. 
 
 To return to Laura. The lodging which 
 best suited the poor curate's slender purse was 
 in a narrow street near the church he was to 
 serve. The two rooms they hired were low 
 and ill-furnished, but this evil was slight in 
 comparison with the gloomy prospect from 
 them. The window of the little bedroom 
 looked out on the broken but plastered wall 
 of the next house, which was only distant at 
 arm's length. The view from the sitting-room 
 was a little back court, where a few clothes were 
 drying, where there was a pump, and some 
 buckets lying about. In this dark lodging 
 Rookmore was soon obliged to leave his wife 
 alone, to go and visit his father, who was 
 again ill and in distress. 
 
 But how totally independent of place are 
 those sunny dispositions and calm hearts, which 
 daily implore and receive from Heaven " that 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 187 
 
 peace which passeth all understanding." Even 
 in her husband's absence the daily bread of 
 cheerfulness failed not : their hearts were too 
 closely united in constant prayer to God ever 
 to feel separated. When Laura knelt at her 
 lowly bed-side, she felt a delightful conviction 
 that her Henry's thoughts were then also with 
 that God whom both loved better far than 
 they did each other. These two beings had at- 
 tained that most rare of all mortal perfections, 
 — their hearts were firmly set on things above. 
 To arrive at this, they had passed through 
 many a sore ordeal. Adversity had, from the 
 childhood of both, lent its harsh but healing 
 hand to subdue whatever of evil might lurk 
 in their hearts ; and, what is more wonderful, 
 they had passed through prosperity unhurt ; 
 yes, prosperity, though their lot may not seem 
 to deserve the name. Yet what is more pro- 
 sperous than the union of those who seem form- 
 ed for each other ? and what danger is greater 
 than that two hearts should become so en- 
 twined as to forget all besides ? how many 
 
188 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 persons there are who have passed safely 
 through every other trial without forgetting 
 their Maker, and yet sin at last by making 
 the being that possesses their best affections, 
 the " God of their idolatry." 
 
 There was nothing selfish, nothing gloomy 
 in Laura's devotion ; her prayers were of that 
 truly perfect nature which could bear to be 
 interrupted. She enjoyed, above all things, 
 to read the Scriptures, but it was without the 
 slightest feeling of ill-humour that, when 
 called by old Mrs. Newlan, she rose up from 
 the real enjoyment of communion with her 
 heavenly Father, to answer some homely 
 question, or attend to the common-place con- 
 cerns of the little household. 
 
 During Rookmore's absence, Laura endea- 
 voured to render the appearance of the rooms 
 less dull. Not a ray of sunshine ever found 
 its way there ; but Laura had so much in her 
 heart, and such an anxious wish to make all 
 those she. loved happy, that she soon made 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 189 
 
 the little rooms look more cheerful. She found 
 some half dead geraniums down in the little 
 yard, which she brought up and put in her 
 window, and they soon revived under her ten- 
 der care. Then she decorated the bare patch- 
 ed walls with some of her own drawings ; 
 several landscapes and views taken in the 
 neighbourhood of Baynton Hall, and the like- 
 nesses of some of her friends and favourite 
 parishioners, made the little room look quite 
 cheerful. 
 
 They had brought some books from the 
 rectory, but there was no book-stand or any 
 place to put them on. This want was soon 
 supplied by Laura's ingenuity : she found 
 an old broken chest, which the woman to 
 whom the house belonged, was going to break 
 up for fire-wood ; this she bought for sixpence, 
 and, by the help of old Mrs. Newlan, whose 
 husband had been a carpenter, with a few 
 nails, and a little paint, Laura made quite a 
 pretty book-stand. 
 
190 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 All those additions_, with many more little 
 trifling alterations which her good taste dic- 
 tated, but which cost nothing, so changed 
 the appearance of her apartment, that when 
 Rookmore returned he could scarcely believe 
 it was the same. 
 
 Laura had not much genius, but she had 
 a great willingness to be happy, and sufficient 
 energy and determination to do what could 
 most conduce to the pleasure both of others 
 and herself. This is often a very good sub- 
 stitute for genius, and makes people do more, 
 and succeed better, than those who have 
 much natural talent. Laura was resolved to 
 do something to increase their small income, 
 and, after deliberation, she decided upon 
 taking likenesses. 
 
 In the happy days at Baynton Hall, she had 
 painted a miniature of Helen, which old Mr. 
 Baynton and many people declared was an 
 excellent likeness ; but, since her marriage, 
 Laura had very little leisure, and she had 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 191 
 
 scarcely even taken up a brush ; she had not, 
 indeed, more time now, far otherwise; but 
 feeling the dire necessity of aiding in the sup- 
 port of her family, she was determined, as far 
 as her health would permit, to exert herself. 
 
 Helen's portrait she had given to Lord 
 Nightingford, and, except a few sketches and 
 interiors of cottages, she had nothing to show. 
 She therefore began by taking likenesses of 
 her husband and child. Rookmore's appear- 
 ance was well known, for his preaching was 
 so much admired, that the church he served 
 
 had become the most popular in D . 
 
 Though sadly out of practice, she seemed 
 inspired by affection and the beauty of her 
 models, and produced a most pleasing picture. 
 Rookmore said it was impossible that very 
 handsome face could have any resemblance 
 to his, but he thought the likeness of his beau- 
 tiful child excellent ; so Laura took it with a 
 beating heart to the bookseller's and told her 
 tale. 
 
192 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Mr. Dobbs, the bookseller and stationer, was 
 a benevolent man, and seemed greatly inter- 
 ested by the anxiety of Mrs. Rookmore to gain 
 something for her family. 
 
 " A lady !" he exclaimed, " a real lady, 
 sister-in-law to a countess, and a clergyman's 
 wife !" and she had hardly taken her depar- 
 ture before the honest man gave due notice 
 to almost every customer that entered his shop, 
 and placed Laura's miniature in the very best 
 light. He pointed out too, simple man ! all 
 those parts which he considered to have most 
 merit. " Was ever anything like the finish 
 of the child's shoes ? it is as if they had 
 just come out of the shoemaker's hands, so 
 fresh, just blacked too ; and the Rev. Mr. 
 Rookmore's waistcoat — 't is all touched to the 
 life." 
 
 Laura had certainly been fortunate in meet- 
 ing with a show-man who entered so warmly 
 into her wishes ; but here her good fortune 
 seemed to end. For a long time all the efforts 
 of Mr. Dobbs to find any employment for her 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 193 
 
 were unavailing. Every one said, indeed, it 
 was a beautiful picture, but they didn't happen 
 to want any likeness taken. 
 
 One day Mrs. Gifford, the rich widow of 
 an India merchant, came into the shop, and 
 Mr. Dobbs anxiously showed the miniature even 
 before he gave her the writing-paper she wish- 
 ed to purchase. Mrs. GiiFord pushed it an- 
 grily away, and without looking at it, said, 
 " She had no taste for such trash." 
 
 "But really," exclaimed poor Mr. Dobbs, 
 " it would be doing a great charity," and he 
 gave the history of Laura's distress, and her 
 whole pedigree and parentage, while Mrs. Gif- 
 ford looked at the writing-paper. 
 
 She did not appear to hear a word he said, 
 and Mr. Dobbs saw there was nothing to hope 
 from this cold-hearted lady, who was the richest 
 person in the place. At last, however, the 
 bookseller was successful with an attorney, who 
 was delighted with the portrait of Laura's 
 child. He said it was very Hke his own, who 
 must be exactly that age, and determined at 
 
 VOL. 1. K 
 
194 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 once to have just such a portrait taken of it. 
 He half wished to sit himself also, that the 
 child might be drawn exactly in the same 
 attitude. But he was decidedly an ugly man, 
 and his vanity did not extend to anything 
 belonging to him, but his little boy. It was 
 an only child, and as he and his wife were 
 old people, he was wonderfully proud of the 
 boy ; both parents thought him the most per- 
 fect of human beings. 
 
 Now it so happens that parents' eyes are 
 not often quite correct in their estimation of 
 the beauty of their offspring, and this was 
 peculiarly the case with Mr. and Mrs. Snod- 
 grass. 
 
 The youthful heir to an industrious and 
 skilful attorney, the important being who was 
 all in all to his doting parents, was by no 
 means favoured by nature. The child was 
 plain ; he squinted, his coarse bushy hair was 
 red ; the shape of his head would have dis- 
 mayed a phrenologist, so small were his good 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 195 
 
 organs in comparison to the animal propen- 
 sities, which were fearfully developed. 
 
 When Laura first saw the child, she stood 
 aghast, for the bookseller had repeated to her 
 Mr. Snodgrass's observation, that his child 
 greatly resembled the portrait of her own. 
 Yet did the kind-hearted Laura not allow her- 
 self to despise Mr. Snodgrass for his blind- 
 ness ; it only made her examine her own feel- 
 ing to discover whether the like blindness on 
 her part induced her to consider her own little 
 Helen a beauty. 
 
 She commenced the work of taking Master 
 Sondgrass's likeness with a determination to 
 make the best of a bad face, and not hurt 
 the father's feelings by making the defects of 
 his child too apparent ; but this was no easy 
 task, for as yet Laura had painted nothing 
 but beauty, and she sighed over the unsightly 
 outline truth obliged her to make. 
 
 " Now mind," said the delighted mother, 
 " to take him when he smiles ; he looks so 
 
 K 2 
 
196 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 much prettier. Here, Johnny, look up at the 
 lady." 
 
 " No, I wo'n't," said the sulky boy, laying 
 his chin most resolutely on the edge of his 
 red cloth frock. 
 
 " Do, dearee, and you shall have a new cart 
 and horse. Look up, and here is a plum for 
 you ;" Johnny extended his hand, but kept his 
 head down : " No, you shan't have it unless 
 you look up." 
 
 Here Johnny began to roar, and Mrs. Snod- 
 grass went to call her husband to try and 
 pacify him. The old gentleman came from 
 the grave employments of the counting-house, 
 to this still more important scene, and held 
 his rebellious offspring upon his knee, while 
 he coaxed and petted him into an improved 
 temper. But Johnny, who had sense enough 
 to see they wanted him to do something which 
 he was determined not to do, still persisted 
 in his objection to look at Laura. She sug- 
 gested that it might be better to paint him 
 with his eyes down, thinking, too, this would 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 197 
 
 be a fortunate way of avoiding the unlucky 
 squint. 
 
 "What, leave out the eyes !" exclaimed the 
 mother in dismay; "surely you wouldn't think 
 of such a thing ! So beautifully blue, too, as 
 they are — like heaven's own colour, as the 
 poet says,"" drawled out Mrs. Snodgrass, with a 
 sentimental look. " Come, Johnny, now do be 
 a good boy, — now smile and laugh, as you did 
 yesterday, when you run the pin through the 
 cockchafer. Here, Molly," continued the fat 
 lady waddling to the door, and calling at the 
 top of her voice, " Molly, try and find a cock- 
 chafer for him :" adding in a lower key, " 't is 
 a cruel thing to be sure, but I 'd do anything 
 to get him to smile ; his dear rosy lips look 
 so pretty then." 
 
 Laura doubted whether the rosy lips, which 
 were rather purple and thin, and extended 
 nearly from ear to ear, could ever look pretty. 
 But she did not even smile, for she fully en- 
 tered into the feelings of that affection which 
 can convert deformities into beauty, and pro- 
 
198 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ceeded to prepare her colours, while she tried in 
 every imaginable manner to look on Johnny'*s 
 features with a favourable eye. 
 
 " Will this do, Ma'am ? I can't find a cock- 
 chafer, nowhere," said a red -faced good-hu- 
 moured looking maid, who now entered holding 
 a poor little struggling frog in her hand. 
 
 " Nasty creature," exclaimed Johnny, but 
 his face brightened : " put it on the ground, 
 Molly, and 1 11 tread on it,'' he continued 
 with a grin. 
 
 "Ah, now — now, Mrs. Rookmore, look at 
 him, — see how pretty his teeth shine, and how 
 his rosy cheeks are dimpled !" 
 
 But poor Laura was so utterly disgusted 
 with the sight, and horrified at the savage 
 exultation on the boy's countenance, that her 
 brush fell out of her hand. Her looks were 
 rivetted by the poor suffering frog, whose death- 
 struggles Johnny was prolonging; she shut her 
 eyes with horror, and she could not avoid ex- 
 claiming, with perhaps more indignation than 
 became a poor portrait- painter, against such 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 199 
 
 cruelty, and then, with a gentle tone, in which 
 firmness and humility were blended, cautioned 
 the parents in kind, yet eloquent language, 
 against the danger of encouraging the cruel 
 propensities of their child. 
 
 Mrs. Snodgrass was offended, and the at- 
 torney amazed at Laura's audacity? but his 
 better judgment could not help being con- 
 vinced of the truth of her argument. Johnny 
 began to cry again, for he felt somehow that 
 the strange lady did not regard him with the 
 same fawning look of admiration he was accus- 
 tomed to witness on the countenances of other 
 visiters ; so the indignant mother caught him 
 up in her arms, and carried him out of the 
 room amid a volley of kisses. 
 
 But Mr. Snodgrass had set his heart upon a 
 pretty picture of his son and heir, and a pretty 
 picture he was resolved to have ; so he per- 
 suaded poor Laura to come again on the fol- 
 lowing day at a later hour, when Master Snod- 
 grass would have dined, and perhaps be in a 
 better humour ; " or, suppose," continued the 
 
200 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 anxious father with a brightening look, '' sup- 
 pose you were to take him while he is eating it. 
 He *d be sure to sit still, at all events ; for he 
 has such a fine appetite, and does so enjoy his 
 meals." 
 
 Laura, who was of course willing to make 
 every attempt, both on her own account and his, 
 to please the affectionate father, agreed to re- 
 turn the following day at one o'clock. 
 
 " Thank you, Mrs. Rookmore ; remember 
 not later than one, and I will contrive to be 
 there, too, and have the lower shutters closed, 
 as you wished to-day, and the table ready for 
 you in the dining parlour.'' 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 201 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Nor hers alone the virtues that require 
 
 Some stroke of fate to rouse their latent fire ; 
 
 Great for an hour, heroic for a scene. 
 
 Inert through all the common life between ; 
 
 But such as each diuraal task perform, 
 
 Pleased in the calm, unshaken by the storm : 
 
 In her had nature bounteously combined 
 
 The tenderest bosom with the strongest mind, 
 
 Sense that seemed instinct, so direct it caught 
 
 The just conclusion, oft refused to thought; 
 
 Simplicity of heart, that never knew 
 
 What meant the baubles which the world pursue. 
 
 All these, by not a taint of self alloyed. 
 
 All these were hers — for others all employed. 
 
 Gally Knight. 
 
 RooKMORE was surprised to see his wife return 
 so soon from her first sitting ; and Laura, who 
 knew that it had cost him many pangs before 
 he gave his consent to her plan of taking like- 
 
202 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 nesses, told him that the child was in a bad 
 humour, and perhaps ill, but did not relate 
 the whole unpleasant scene, for she knew it 
 would make him unhappy. 
 
 As Laura had risen very early that morning 
 and finished all the requisite work for the day, 
 she employed the time which would have been 
 devoted to the young Snodgrass, in making a 
 sketch from her window. She began to paint 
 that same little yard, which, from being the 
 only prospect commanded from this window, 
 was so calculated to depress poor Laura's spi^ 
 rits on her first arrival at D . 
 
 She had since been very happy in the room, 
 which looked on nothing but that yard. The 
 sun seldom shone there, but she had looked 
 on it when on her return from the abodes of 
 misery and suffering — from many interesting 
 visits to desponding sinners, whose repenting 
 hearts Laura had been the means of recon- 
 ciling to their God. She felt that she had 
 been of some use. Yes, she was conscious of 
 being far more useful in this large, dark, noisy 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 203 
 
 town, than even in her own dear village of 
 Baynton ; for there were many, many more, 
 who had never thought of the word of God, — 
 who had never been kindly visited by those 
 of a higher rank in life than themselves. So 
 the little yard over which she had mused in 
 the twilight hours of evening, or talked with 
 her dear husband, had become interesting in 
 her sight. She remembered, too, having seen 
 a picture by Ostade, in a house near Baynton, 
 which represented a place not very unlike that 
 yard, and an old woman who sometimes stood 
 near the pump washing vegetables, was very 
 like a figure in Ostade's picture ; so Laura 
 thought that if she could succeed in making 
 a good picture of it, the kind bookseller might 
 be able to sell it. 
 
 At this very moment the old woman hap- 
 pened to be in a picturesque attitude. She 
 was sitting on an inverted tub, washing carrots 
 and turnips in the stone trough under the 
 pump ; a dish of herrings lay near, with some 
 brown pans, and other kitchen utensils ; the 
 
204^ A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 dark stone wall behind formed a good back- 
 ground, and the old pump and the stone un- 
 derneath were stained here and there with 
 bright patches of green. 
 
 Laura took advantage of this favourable mo- 
 ment to begin her sketch. She enjoyed her 
 task, and smiled to think that a place which 
 has once appeared so wretched, might make an 
 interesting picture. Rookmore sat near, read- 
 ing aloud to her some religious poetry of his 
 own composition, and occasionally casting an 
 admiring and delighted glance towards he^ 
 sketch. They were very happy, the poor 
 husband and wife, though the days were ra- 
 pidly shortening into long cold winter even- 
 ings, and fuel was very dear. The first quar- 
 ter's salary, too, twenty pounds, would not be 
 due till after Christmas, and this was all they 
 had to discharge the debts of their housekeep- 
 ing and lodging ; and in January Laura would 
 have another baby to provide for. 
 
 " I think you certainly might make some- 
 thing if you were to publish those lines," said 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 205 
 
 Laura, after a due consideration whether it 
 might not be partiality which made her think 
 them so very beautiful. Rookmore had such 
 a low opinion of his own powers that he laugh- 
 ed at the idea ; but Laura resolved that his 
 poem should accompany her picture to Mr. 
 Dobbs the bookseller ; and in the delight of 
 the present moment, and sanguine hopes that 
 God would bless their little efforts with suc- 
 cess, Laura forgot the difficult and arduous 
 task she was to undertake at one o'clock on 
 the morrow. And a difficult one it proved, 
 indeed, to make anything at all satisfactory of 
 an object which might have served as a model 
 for a glutton. 
 
 The parlour was duly prepared ; the little 
 high-chair placed opposite the young gentle- 
 man's plate, in a good light, and Master John- 
 ny's appetite in excellent order. He knew, 
 too, that some mighty event hung upon his 
 dinner, and that he was to have a particularly 
 good one, and a pigeon-pie ; so he had already 
 begun to cry for it. But the dinner was not 
 
206 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to be brought in till Laura's colours were 
 all mixed, and she was quite ready to take 
 the first favourable look, Johnny was then 
 seated on his chair of state, and with his 
 eyes fixed on the door, and his mouth ready 
 open, awaited the arrival of Molly and the 
 tray. 
 
 '' How sweet he looks !" exclaimed Mrs. 
 Snodgrass. '* Oh, if he would but turn his 
 eyes to Mrs. Rookmore." 
 
 " Suppose," said the imaginative father, "we 
 were to hold a plate of pigeon-pie over Mrs. 
 Rookmore's head, just to give her a sight of 
 his full face." 
 
 Johnny gave a rebellious grunt. 
 
 " Don't torment him, dear Mr. S.; you know 
 it makes him ill." 
 
 *' No, I wo'n't ; only just let me try it for a 
 moment. Here, Molly, give me the dish." 
 
 Johnny's eyes followed in dismay, and di- 
 rected a vacant stare towards the pie which 
 Mr. Snodgrass held over Laura's head. 
 
 " There now, how eager the little angel 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 207 
 
 looks ! Now, Mrs. Rookmore will be able to 
 remember that look, my dear Mr. S. ; so do 
 give him his dinner now, poor child !" 
 
 Laura thought there would be no danger 
 that she should forget that look, and she sigh- 
 ed to think how disappointed both parents 
 must inevitably be, to see even the most favour- 
 able representation of their son upon her ivory. 
 
 " It is very difficult to paint children," she 
 said, while looking at the voracious boy, who 
 continued with wonderful energy to stuff his 
 cheeks quite full : " she almost despaired of 
 making a likeness of Master Snodgrass." 
 
 " Oh ! do try," exclaimed both parents ; " I 
 am sure we shall be pleased ; only do it as 
 well as you did your own child, and I am 
 sure Mr. S. and I will be quite satisfied." 
 
 Laura suggested " that was such a different 
 thing, as she was so well acquainted with her 
 child's features, that it made no difference 
 whether it sat still or not/' 
 
 " But you professed to take likenesses," said 
 Mr. Snodgrass with some sharpness. This 
 
208 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 was true, and Laura felt she was bound to 
 make the attempt ; so she exerted her patience 
 and ingenuity to the utmost, and by looking 
 as little as possible at the ungainly child, and 
 endeavouring to embody what she saw was 
 the fond parents' notion of him, the picture 
 was at last finished. 
 
 "I can't say it's like him," said the dis- 
 appointed father. 
 
 " It does n't half do him justice," said the 
 mother. 
 
 However, as Laura had put some very pret- 
 ty flowers in his lap, had been most successful 
 in her imitation of his best frock and pink 
 ribbons, and adorned the back-ground with 
 much good taste, the parents tried to be satis- 
 fied. Mr. Snodgrass pulled out the guinea, 
 which was the sum stipulated, and so ended 
 Laura's first attempt at portrait painting. 
 
 And here it appeared that her effbrts were 
 doomed to terminate, for Mr. Dobbs could 
 not persuade any one else to employ her ; 
 he was delighted, however, with her painting 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 209 
 
 of the yard, and most sanguine in his hope of 
 soon finding a purchaser. 
 
 Such things, however, are not easily to be 
 found when most wanted, and many said " it 
 was a gloomy picture ;" others that '* it was 
 a nasty common subject." The rich Mrs. Gif- 
 ford again visited the shop, and Mr. Dobbs, 
 with a timid and despairing look, showed her 
 the picture when she had finished her pur- 
 chases. 
 
 " Oh, by that lady, is it, you told me a 
 long story about before ? I remember ; well, 
 what does she want for it ?" said Mrs. Gifford, 
 looking with a cold ill-humoured expression 
 on the painting. " One guinea ! that 's a great 
 deal too much ! however, I '11 buy it. She 
 takes likenesses, does she ? Do you think she 
 could copy a minature ?" 
 
 The delighted Mr. Dobbs said he was cer- 
 tain Mrs. Rookmore would do it to her satis- 
 faction. 
 
 " Well, send her to me to-morrow," said 
 the lady. 
 
210 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 The instant his shop was closed for the 
 evening, Mr. Dobbs hastened to carry the 
 guinea and the good news to poor Laura. It 
 was a cold evening, and yet there was no fire 
 in the dismal grate ; and the solitary tallow 
 candle which burnt on the little table at which 
 Laura and her husband were sitting, just 
 showed the patchy walls and scanty furni- 
 ture of the room. But that melancholy light, 
 which flared to and fro from the cold breeze 
 that penetrated through the chinks of the 
 unclosable doors and windows, shone on two 
 countenances of such transcendent cheerful- 
 ness — expressive of peace and faith in a 
 degree rarely to be met with in this agitated 
 world. 
 
 Laura's slender fingers were busily employed 
 in making a little dress for her future child, 
 and Rookmore was reading aloud when Mrs. 
 Newlan came to announce Mr. Dobbs. 
 
 " Dear me, to be sure if the fire isn't gone 
 out !" exclaimed the nurse with a shrug of apo- 
 logy to Mr. Dobbs. Laura smiled, for she 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 211 
 
 knew the old woman was aware there had been 
 none in the grate all day. " Shall I light it 
 again, ma'am ?" 
 
 " Yes, if Mr. Dobbs feels the room cold," 
 said Laura. 
 
 Mr. Dobbs protested he did not, with a look 
 of kind commiseration around the room, which 
 showed that he understood the whole state of 
 the case. He immediately said, " I have bet- 
 ter news for you, ma*am. Here is the price 
 of your beautiful picture, and Mrs. GifFord, 
 the rich widow, bought it ; and you will please 
 to go to her house to-morrow morning at 
 twelve, to copy a miniature." 
 
 Rookmore and his wife expressed their warm 
 thanks for Mr. Dobbs's kindness ; while Mrs. 
 Newlan, who had held the door in her 
 hand, uttered an exclamation of delight, and 
 left the room, muttering, " Well, they shall 
 have a fire to-morrow, at any rate. Poor 
 souls ' to think of their sitting in the cold 
 this perishing weather, and that, too, without 
 tasting meat for a whole week and more." 
 
212 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Mr. Dobbs then proceeded to describe to 
 Laura what sort of person Mrs. GifFord was, 
 and hoped she would humour the old lady's 
 peculiarities. Laura was therefore prepared 
 to find Mrs. Gifford an eccentric person, and 
 with some fear and misgivings she entered that 
 lady's drawing-room the next day. 
 
 " So you are in distress, are you — and a 
 lady ? ''' exclaimed the rich widow in a sharp 
 quick tone, while she eyed Laura from head 
 to foot. " Your own extravagance, I suppose ; 
 people canH expect to spend their money and 
 have it too.*' 
 
 Laura proceeded meekly to explain that she 
 had not been extravagant. 
 
 " Oh, a love match then, I suppose ; ran 
 away and offended your father and mother. 
 Well, they were very right not to assist you after- 
 wards. But your face does not look in distress ; 
 on the contrary, I have seldom seen any one 
 whose happy expression I envy so much ; but 
 I canH waste any more time. Miss Scraggs !" 
 screamed the lady at the top of her voice, 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 213 
 
 " Miss Scraggs, why I told you to be within 
 hearing." 
 
 " Here I am," exclaimed a thin pale lady 
 emerging from an inner room. 
 
 " But why didn't you come the first time 
 I called ? you know it makes my throat sore 
 to scream for you." 
 
 " I answered directly, but you did not hear 
 me. 
 
 " Well, well, that 's enough ; your voice is 
 so shrill, it goes through my head." 
 
 Miss Scraggs compressed her pale thin lips 
 together, and was silent. 
 
 " Where is that picture of my poor dear 
 husband ?" sighed Mrs. GifFord. 
 
 " Do you mean the oil painting ?" 
 
 " No, no ; how stupid you are ! how could 
 I want the oil painting to be copied ? the 
 miniature, I mean ; get me the miniature." 
 
 Miss Scraggs walked to the further end of 
 the room, and went down on her knees before 
 a chifFonnier, where, after fumbling for a few- 
 minutes, she said it was locked. 
 
2H A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Locked, is it ? well, and what have you 
 done with the key ? you are always losing 
 everything." 
 
 Miss Scraggs suggested that she never had 
 the key, and supposed it was on Mrs. GifFord's 
 bunch. 
 
 " On my bunch, hey ? how do you know 
 that ? been prying over my things, and into 
 my papers, I suppose, — can't allow of such 
 things : one of my agreements with you, was, 
 you were to have no curiosity. Don't speak 
 now ; I won''t be contradicted. Take away 
 that bird, it drives me mad." 
 
 Miss Scraggs took up a large cage contain- 
 ing a parrot, which began to scream louder 
 on being moved. 
 
 " Dear me, how awkwardly you carry it ! 
 don't make it scream so, I say." 
 
 The door was closed on the obnoxious bird, 
 and the room restored to silence, Laura look- 
 ed at the splendid furniture, and observed the 
 comfort and elegance of everything in the 
 apartment. She sighed to think that all these 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 215 
 
 luxuries, and the means of making others hap- 
 py, brought no contentment to the irritable 
 widow. Mrs. Gifford's countenance was the 
 very picture of discontent. 
 
 " Well, now where is the miniature ? you 
 are wasting all this lady's time," said Mrs. 
 Gifford fumbling for a bunch of keys in her 
 reticule ; " here, take this, and open the place, 
 and don't knock anything down.'* 
 
 Miss Scraggs opened the chifFonnier very gen- 
 tly, yet so full was it stuffed, that many things 
 came tumbling out when the door was opened. 
 
 " There, I knew that would happen," ex- 
 claimed Mrs. Gifford, who well might expect 
 to hear the crash, being conscious that she had 
 filled the place so full herself, that many things 
 must fall out when the door was opened. She 
 was, however, so accustomed to throw the 
 blame of every misfortune on the luckless 
 companion who was paid for bearing with 
 her ill-humour, that she continued, " You are 
 so dreadfully awkward, and make such a noise 
 too. I suppose all the things are injured. Here 
 
216 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 bring me the miniature, Miss Scraggs," said 
 Mrs. Gifford with extreme anger, perceiving 
 that the glass had been broken in the fall. 
 
 " Now Mrs. What 's- your- name, do you 
 think you can copy this miniature exactly ? 
 Mind, you must make it resemble my poor 
 husband quite as much as this ; and remem- 
 ber it is a thing I am fonder of than any 
 living being, and if any misfortune should hap- 
 pen to it, I should never forgive you : here, will 
 you promise that nothing shall happen to it ?" 
 
 Laura said she hoped nothing would occur 
 to endanger its safety. 
 
 "You hope!" exclaimed the impatient wi- 
 dow ; " what, does not it depend upon your- 
 self?" 
 
 Laura again promised to take all the care 
 of it she possibly could, but observed that it 
 was impossible she could quite ensure its safe- 
 ty ; her house might take fire, — or some acci- 
 dent might happen to herself. 
 
 " That *s true. Go away, Miss Scraggs, 
 into the other room ; I want to talk to this 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 217 
 
 young woman, and don't listen to me now ; 
 I hate eavesdroppers." 
 
 Mrs. Gifford waited till the door was closed 
 on her poor companion, and then said to Laura 
 in a softer tone, " I like your looks ; I like 
 your honesty. I think you would be kind to 
 me, and enter into my feelings. I once had 
 a dear husband who loved me, and — and per- 
 haps I was not worthy of him. I did not 
 value the happiness I enjoyed. He was taken 
 from me, and now I am left alone, quite alone. 
 No one in the whole world cares for me,"" con- 
 tinued the old lady in a sorrowful tone, while 
 a tear dimmed her dark flashing eyes, and the 
 irritability of her former manner was for the 
 moment subdued. She added then in a more 
 cheerful voice, " I should like to have you for 
 my companion. Now, if you can come and 
 live with me, I will send away that horrid 
 Miss Scraggs this very day, — tiresome, cring- 
 ing creature ! " 
 
 Laura explained that it would be utterly 
 impossible. 
 
 VOL. I. L 
 
218 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Utterly impossible !" exclaimed the widow, 
 while all her irritability returned, " utterly 
 impossible ! why I never was refused before. 
 Do you know, Mrs. Rookery, or whatever 
 name it is, that I have a hundred and fifty 
 thousand pounds at my own disposal, and 
 that all my relations have offended me ? and 
 that it is more than probable I shall leave it 
 to whoever is most useful to me, and makes 
 me pass my old age in comfort, — do you know 
 this, I say ? and do you know that for this 
 reason, I have hitherto met with nothing but 
 cringing, and fawning, and deceit. Now, Mrs. 
 Rooksdale, consider, and answer me." 
 
 Again Laura with gentle firmness explained 
 that she could not possibly leave her husband 
 and child. 
 
 " You wo^n't, you mean, for I know you 
 could if you liked. You wo'n^t. Well, go away 
 then directly ; go out of my sight! — it tantalizes 
 me to see that sunshiny face, and to know that 
 I can't have it to cheer me." 
 
 Laura smiled at the strange old woman's 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 219 
 
 words, and departed, with a fervent prayer 
 that God would give her the only peace and 
 contentment she seemed to need ; for Laura 
 was not one of those good people who, though 
 they visit the poor, and minister to their spi- 
 ritual infirmities, and excuse their failings, 
 think it right to neglect the rich, and not assist 
 them when any opportunity offered, with ad- 
 vice, or warning, or prayer. 
 
 Laura had not stipulated for any sum for 
 copying the minature, and therefore Mr. 
 Dobbs, when he heard of what had passed, 
 was most sanguine in his hopes that Mrs. 
 GiflPord would pay handsomely for it if she 
 were pleased. The good-natured man called 
 on Laura several cold evenings, to see how it 
 was getting on. But Laura proceeded slowly ; 
 she was not well, and the short December days 
 were very dark in that little back room; yet 
 she tried hard to finish it before her confine- 
 ment. 
 
 The weather was unusually cold. The poor 
 people of the parish suffered severely, and 
 
 ^ 
 
220 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 as Rookmore and his wife could not relieve 
 their temporal wants, they both felt the more 
 anxious to administer all the comfort they 
 could to their minds ; so they spent much of 
 their time in their cottages. 
 
 " It gladdens my heart to see you,"' was 
 often repeated by these poor people ; " and 
 sure the sight of ye is like a summer's sun.** 
 Laura felt it therefore pleasant, as well as right, 
 to go as frequently as she could to visit the 
 distressed. 
 
 In returning home with Rookmore, one dim 
 twilight evening, full of these pleasant thoughts, 
 Laura slipped on the frozen pavement, and 
 her head came in contact with an iron railing. 
 She was so stunned by the blow, that her 
 husband was obliged to carry her home, and 
 send at once for a physician. The wound was 
 not severe, but Mrs. Newlan's first dread was, 
 that the shock she had received would bring on 
 a premature confinement. 
 
 Dr. Grant soon arrived, and was conduct- 
 ed by the terrified nurse and anxious hus- 
 
A GOOD xMATCH. 221 
 
 band to Laura's bed-side; and there they 
 stood and watched with intense interest the 
 doctor's countenance, as he felt the pulse of 
 his patient. Poor Laura scarcely breathed. 
 Dr. Grant looked very grave, and shook 
 his head. " Mrs. Rookmore is in great 
 danger," said he, at length, in a suppressed 
 voice. 
 
 Now was the time of real trial for the poor 
 curate; and oh, how completely as nothings 
 did all his former grievances appear ! how 
 utterly dark and gloomy was everything now ! 
 and the future 
 
 Rookmore stood at the little window of the 
 sitting-room, and gazed on the view — on that 
 little dull yard, so hallowed by Laura's beauty- 
 finding thoughts. That his beloved wife should 
 die, that he would be left alone in the world 
 was all his agonised feelings could comprehend. 
 In vain did he try to recall those sources of 
 consolation which he had so powerfully and 
 effectually inculcated upon others, and which 
 had hitherto been the rule and guide of his 
 
222 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 own thoughts. Laura, his adored Laura ! the 
 companion of all his joys and sorrows — whose 
 active self-denying mind was always ready 
 to do, or to devise something to raise his 
 drooping spirits — so gentle — so uncomplaining 
 and tender — the sunbeam of his existence; — 
 and — must he lose her ? 
 
 Thus the poor clergyman's faith was tempo- 
 rarily obscured ; in the first bitterness of this 
 sudden and overwhelming sorrow, he could 
 see no ray of hope or comfort. 
 
 " They must not make that noise down 
 stairs," whispered Mrs. Newlan in his ear. 
 " Do, sir, go and persuade them to stop that 
 distracting sound ; Dr. Grant says that in the 
 state she's in, the smallest disturbance might 
 be her death." 
 
 Rookmore flew down to try and procure 
 quiet ; but the rent was due, and the landlady 
 an unfeeling woman, who considered her lodgers 
 as troublesome people. 
 
 When Rookmore came, and earnestly im- 
 plored her to stop the violent noise she 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 223 
 
 was making, she observed, with sneering inso- 
 lence, " They had only taken the upper rooms, 
 and therefore she must be at liberty to do what 
 she chose in the others. If the lady was so 
 mighty delicate, he had better pay what he 
 owed, and take her somewhere else, where he 
 would find people to put up with her airs ;" 
 and the hard-hearted wretch redoubled her 
 deafening noise, muttering something about 
 " beggars being so particular, and that it was 
 little matter to the world, forsooth, whether 
 some people died or not." 
 
 Rookmore was stung to the quick by her 
 savage taunts, and, in the intenseness of his 
 agony about the poor dying Laura, his meek 
 spirit was roused. For an instant he forgot 
 his long-practised forbearance, the patient en- 
 durance of years, and gave vent to a burst of 
 indignation against the cruel conduct of the 
 insolent landlady. 
 
 " Pretty language, indeed, for a clergyman !" 
 exclaimed the woman, '' and very different 
 from what I heard your own self say in the 
 
224} A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 pulpit. What was that about turning the 
 other cheek to be smote, and forbearing one 
 another, eh? — where 's all the fine talk and 
 preaching now ? 
 
 Rookmore groaned, and felt utterly humi- 
 liated. "Oh God, forgive me!'' he inwardly 
 exclaimed, and tears soon relieved his misery 
 and softened a heart from which the excess 
 of woe had wrung those bitter expressions, 
 and made him forget himself for a moment. 
 
 " Thy will be done ! " were the words which 
 hovered on his lips, as he approached the 
 bedside of Laura, and he felt that God had 
 given him strength to look, if such should 
 be the Almighty's pleasure, even upon her 
 corpse. 
 
 Just then, the noise below suddenly ceased, 
 for Mr. Dobbs bad entered the house, and over- 
 heard the conversation of Rookmore and the 
 landlady. His manner of silencing the sound 
 was effectual, for he held up a bright sovereign 
 to the fat hostess, with an expressive gesture 
 which she did not fail to comprehend. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 225 
 
 A night of miserable anxiety was passed 
 by the anxious husband. At length the cold 
 morning dawned. The sickly hue of the wan- 
 ing night-lamp, mingling with the grey twi- 
 light, illumined the pale countenance of Laura. 
 The young man started, for by that dull leaden 
 light she looked already dead. Softly he ap- 
 proached, and knelt by the bed-side, and 
 anxiously did he watch to discover whether 
 her bosom still heaved. Thank God, she was 
 alive ! Hours of wretched suspense rolled on, 
 and towards evening poor Laura gave birth 
 to an infant which the doctor pronounced 
 likely" to live, though the exhausted mother 
 seemed fast approaching the borders of the 
 grave. 
 
 L O 
 
226 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Oh, we are querulous creatures ! Little less 
 Than all thmgs can suffice to make us happy : 
 And little more than nothing is enough 
 To make us wretched. 
 
 Coleridge. 
 
 The Nightingfords were detained in Paris 
 longer than they intended, by illness. Helen 
 caught a bad cold in returning from some 
 splendid ball, which brought on a fever, and 
 Lord Nightingford underwent the misery of 
 a first fit of the gout. Both had therefore 
 much time for reflection, shut up in their 
 apartments in the Rue Rivoli. 
 
 But it is not always that a first illness or 
 a first sorrow awakens the conscience or softens 
 the heart. Helen, indeed, thought much of 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 221 
 
 Laura, and wrote to her oftener from her 
 sick bed than she had done when in the en- 
 joyment of health. But the asperities of Lord 
 Nightingford's temper seemed only aggravated 
 by his sufferings. Helen was the first to re- 
 cover from her indisposition ; and as soon as 
 she found her presence was of no use in sooth- 
 ing her husband, and that he treated her with 
 more harshness than usual, she plunged again 
 into the gaieties and dissipations of Paris. 
 
 How often it happens that what we begin 
 to do as a means, becomes in time the end. 
 It was to please her husband that Helen first 
 took so much interest in the pursuit of fashion, 
 but it became at last a habit so interwoven 
 with her being, that she could contemplate 
 no happiness out of the vortex of that ex- 
 clusive society to gain an entrance into which 
 had cost her so much trouble and annoyance. 
 Besides, Lord Mayfield was at Paris, and there 
 was no one so agreeable or who entered so fully 
 into all her thoughts and feelings. 
 
 The Easter recess was over when they reach- 
 
228 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ed London. One of the Almack''s patronesses 
 had lately resigned, and all the world was 
 conjecturing who was to be the fortunate suc- 
 cessor. Helen was more beautiful, more popu- 
 lar than ever, and many surmised that she 
 would be the new patroness. 
 
 These whispers reached the ears of the 
 Nightingfords ; they both thought it unlikely 
 that Helen should be chosen, but the very 
 improbability of the event increased their anx- 
 iety that it should happen. 
 
 This remote chance served to redouble He- 
 len's endeavours to conciliate the good-will 
 of her exclusive friends. She commenced a 
 series of splendid parties ; and the often-talked- 
 
 of visit to Royston Park in D shire, and 
 
 Laura, was again forgotten 
 
 It was about this time that the poor curate 
 and his wife were in the utmost distress. 
 
 Laura had recovered, but her convalesence 
 was tedious. She was in want of many com- 
 forts, often, indeed, of the necessaries of life; 
 and, added to her privations, and her weak 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 229 
 
 state, she made the vexatious and harassing 
 discovery, that, during her danger, the little 
 Helen had defaced the precious miniature in- 
 trusted to her by Mrs. GifFord. Rookmore 
 went to break the tidings of the sad accident 
 to the old lady, and was explaining the cause, 
 when her fury became so ungovernable that 
 she drove him with insults from her presence. 
 
 Since then, Rookmore, whose anxiety of mind 
 had been too much for his strength, had also 
 been ill for some weeks, and therefore obliged 
 to pay a clergyman to serve his church. This, 
 with the doctor's long bills, and other misfor- 
 tunes, had reduced them to the greatest dis- 
 tress. Even Mrs. Newlan's hundred pounds, 
 the hard-earned savings of her whole life, were 
 spent. A long rent was now due for their 
 uncomfortable lodgings, and Rookmore was 
 utterly at a loss how to extricate himself from 
 these embarrassments. He was threatened with 
 imprisonment. 
 
 After much reflection, and many painful 
 struggles, Laura with great reluctance thought 
 
230 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 it better to apply to Helen. A letter, which 
 cost more tears than the one she had so anxi- 
 ously penned to ask for the living, was written. 
 It was, like the former, put in the post by the 
 faithful and desponding Mrs Newlan ; perhaps 
 to meet with a similar fate. 
 
 Taught by bitter experience, neither poor 
 Laura nor even the once sanguine old nurse 
 ventured this time to expect a letter by return 
 of post ; nor did they during the seven long 
 days of a whole week allow themselves to feel 
 disappointed. 
 
 At the end of ten days Laura wrote again ; 
 for the hard-hearted landlady threatened to 
 put her dear husband in prison immediately, 
 if her rent was not paid. No answer arrived. 
 Helen had often expressed a wish to see her ; 
 therefore, though she was still very weak, 
 Laura resolved to go to London and implore 
 her sister in person to have pity on their 
 distress. 
 
 It was a dull foggy evening towards the 
 end of July, when Laura reached the metro- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 231 
 
 polls. She had brought nothing but a small 
 parcel ; so she walked from the coach-office to 
 Park-lane, and with a trembling hand knocked 
 at the door of Lord Nightingford's house. 
 
 Her timid double knock was answered by 
 a crowd of powdered footmen, who were much 
 disappointed at seeing only a dusty and way- 
 worn " female." Laura was nearly exhausted 
 by her fatiguing journey, and inquired in a 
 faint tone if Lady Nightingford was at home. 
 
 " Lady Nightingford is not yet returned 
 from Northamptonshire, but is expected, per- 
 haps, to-night. Lord Nightingford is not at 
 home, but will probably return soon, as he 
 is going to dine out." 
 
 It was with some difficulty that Laura made 
 the servants believe she was a relation of their 
 mistress, and that she obtained entrance into 
 the house, and even then she was obliged to 
 wait in the hall till Lord Nightingford re- 
 turned. 
 
 Two weary hours did she remain. At last, 
 a knock was heard ; the servants bustled up 
 
232 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to the door, and Lord Nightingford appeared. 
 The expression of his haughty countenance 
 was by no means improved since Laura had 
 seen him. He stared at her with proud 
 hauteur, but on hearing the name he became 
 coldly civil, and begged she would walk up 
 stairs, as he had no doubt Lady Nightingford 
 would be very happy to see her when she re- 
 turned. He then ordered dinner for her, 
 and that a room should be prepared for her 
 reception. 
 
 During that long solitary evening, Laura 
 wandered over the splendid rooms. She was 
 fatigued with the journey, and bewildered ; 
 yet everything was so magnificent and new 
 to her eyes, that she continued to remain up 
 to a late hour admiring all she saw. 
 
 On a beautiful pietra-dura table she dis- 
 covered her own two letters lying unopened. 
 They had then never reached Helen, and 
 Laura wept half with joy to find that she 
 had not been wilfully neglected, and half from 
 sorrow to think she must embitter their first 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 233 
 
 meeting after such a long absence by a recital 
 of her distress, — that she must appear as a 
 beggar before her dear Helen. 
 
 But it was never the habit with Laura to 
 give way to depression of spirits ; so she tried 
 to be amused by all the new and beautiful 
 objects that surrounded her. Laura had seen 
 but little of the productions of art, except 
 those at Baynton, and the few places in the 
 neighbourhood she had visited ; and every- 
 thing here was so different, it looked like fairy 
 land. 
 
 When the butler discovered that Laura was 
 related to his mistress, and that, as she had 
 declared, the strange "female" was ray lady's 
 half sister, he became most obsequiously civil. 
 He caused two out of the splendid suite of 
 apartments to be lighted up. And Laura saw 
 by this rich luxurious light, a light invented 
 by the best artists of the day for showing 
 pictures to the greatest advantage, some splen- 
 did chef (Txavres and statues of the old 
 masters. 
 
234 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Lord Nightingford's house was justly cele- 
 brated for containing the most beautiful things 
 in all London. Helen was much given to 
 spend money on such objects, and her taste for 
 splendour and beauty had been rather encou- 
 raged than otherwise by her husband. It 
 was not then wonderful that a young person 
 naturally fond of show, and whose taste had 
 been fostered by the society of the virtuosi 
 in Italy, and elsewhere, should have pursued 
 this taste till it became a passion. 
 
 Laura had, perhaps, more than Helen, a feel- 
 ing for the beautiful ; but, as she had never 
 seen many works of art, her taste had princi- 
 pally been fed by the beauties of nature i 
 these, too, she had seen only on a very small 
 and narrow scale. 
 
 When, therefore, the poor curate's wife 
 looked on one of Claude's most glowing pic- 
 tures, illumined with a light equal to that 
 of day, by lamps constructed for the purpose, 
 she stood entranced ; and, it was only after a 
 long rapturous gaze, that she was induced to 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 235 
 
 remove her eyes from this gorgeous sunset, 
 by catching a glimpse of one of Salvator 
 Rosa's most vivid banditti scenes, which hung 
 near, and her eye and imagination revelled in 
 those dark rocky dells, those splendid delinea- 
 tions of scenery entirely new, till she looked 
 round the room to see if it were not a dream. 
 Again she gazed on the picture, with almost 
 a shudder at the fierce bandit's figure stand- 
 ing near a rushing torrent. 
 
 She turned to the next, which was one of 
 Raphael's Holy Families, the gem of Lord 
 Nightingford's collection. Laura looked on the 
 calm heavenly countenance of the holy mother, 
 and the sublime beauty of the child, till tears 
 of soft tenderness and pleasure rolled down 
 her cheeks. 
 
 Oh, what a glorious model would Laura's 
 own countenance have furnished for the pencil 
 of that immortal genius whose work she ad- 
 mired so intensely ! What a lovely mingling 
 of feelings, of thoughts, and beautiful ima- 
 ginings, past and present, were there, in vivid 
 
2S6 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 life, — a countenance which told a whole his- 
 tory of touching and sublime thoughts. 
 
 Laura was beautiful ; but, it was not so 
 much the beauty of feature, as of countenance ; 
 her face was an ever true, and ever sunny 
 picture of the mind within ; each successive 
 trial, each event and sorrow, which had hap- 
 pened to her, seemed to have left traces of 
 the Christian's triumph on her brow. There 
 was charity to all mankind, devotion, pure and 
 angelic love, and a cheerful patient endurance 
 of ill, which was always catching at every ray 
 of happiness, and anxious to impart it to 
 others. 
 
 All this was expressed in Laura's intelligent 
 face, but not in those exaggerated lineaments 
 which may be seen on the countenances that 
 live in the sunshine of the world's admiration, 
 and unconsciously make the most of their good 
 feelings to enhance the power of their beauty. 
 
 A keen and deep judge of human nature 
 would, on gazing in Laura's lovely face, have 
 pronounced at once, that those features were 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 237 
 
 unaccustomed to be looked on, save by her 
 own immediate and small circle of friends; 
 for, if I may so say, her every expression was 
 perfectly natural, and perfectly unconscious of 
 its own transcendant charm. 
 
 And thus did Laura gaze from one beau- 
 tiful object to another; forgetting alike her 
 own fatigue and the passing hours. The 
 statues, above all, a beautiful antique Venus, 
 which was considered by connoisseurs nearly 
 equal to the Medician, first startled, and half 
 shocked, but soon rivetted her utmost admir- 
 ation. 
 
 But when the first surprise and delight 
 caused by all these beautiful objects had sub- 
 sided, Laura's mind began insensibly to take 
 a sadder and more meditative turn. She 
 thought, fair and excellent as they all were, 
 how little these things were calculated to con- 
 fer solid happiness or peace of mind, upon 
 their possessor. Her dear sister, it was true, 
 had made what the world calls "a good match;" 
 but and here Laura sighed, for her mind 
 
288 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 misgave her, and she could not help concluding 
 that Helen, despite the splendour with which 
 she was surrounded, was not happy. The pic- 
 ture of her own homely abode, such a contrast 
 to the mansion within whose princely walls she 
 now found herself, rose before her ; and, oh ! 
 with what a bounding thrill of delight she fer- 
 vently thanked God for the lot he had appoint- 
 ed her ! Laura thought of her beloved Henry, 
 — his watchful, tender, and never-failing affec- 
 tion, that seemed to redouble as declining cir- 
 cumstances exposed her to fresh privations, — 
 liis sunny temper, that no reverses could ruffle, 
 though he felt them so keenly for her sake, — 
 his unshaken trust in his heavenly Father, — 
 his beautiful piety, and the thousand endear- 
 ing qualities, that shone out like precious me- 
 tal refined and purified by the furnace of afflic- 
 tion. 
 
 Laura thought of all these, of the delight 
 with which she looked forward to the return 
 of her dear husband at evening to his happy 
 little home, often indeed with flushed cheek 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 239 
 
 and languid eye, but full of peace and serenity, 
 with a cheerful heart and conscience at ease, 
 after the labours of a well-spent day. How 
 delightedly she watched his playful and boyish 
 glee as he gambolled about the room with his 
 lovely child, which laughed and shrieked with 
 ecstasy, as the fond father shared in its infant 
 sports, and covered with caresses the little crea- 
 ture so dear to his heart. And then, when the 
 fairy Helen was asleep in her little cot, and 
 Laura seated at her work enjoying the evening 
 tete-a-tete with her husband, how often would 
 the needle pause in its swift career, while the 
 fond wife gazed with admiring love on the coun- 
 tenance to her the brightest and most beau- 
 tiful in the world, — while Henry poured into 
 her interested and sympathising ear the narra- 
 tive of the day, — the broken hearts that he 
 had endeavoured to bind up, — the faith he had 
 met with under the cottage roof or in the hum- 
 ble garret, — the ignorance and hardness of 
 heart which had excited his pity, the amend- 
 ed feelings which had rewarded his exertions, 
 
S40 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 — his hopes and fears and anxieties in fulfil- 
 ling his sacred charge ! As he spoke, how 
 would his features brighten with holy love 
 and intense interest for the temporal and 
 spiritual welfare of those over whom he was 
 the appointed watchman ! for Henry's coun- 
 tenance was one of singular beauty and in- 
 terest : there was a saddened gravity in the 
 whole expression, and in the large thought- 
 ful eyes, as though the solemn responsibili- 
 ties of his sacred profession were never wholl}^ 
 absent from his mind ; and this was mingled 
 with a seraphic sweetness, and an almost child- 
 like simplicity and gladness of expression when 
 he smiled. 
 
 Laura's meditations were interrupted, or 
 rather prolonged, by the striking of the pen- 
 dule on the chimney-piece. It was the hour 
 of evening prayers at her own far dis- 
 tant home, when the faithful old nurse, after 
 placing the large Bible, and arranging the 
 chairs, ushered in the few who attended from 
 the lodging-house with as much importance 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 241 
 
 as if they had been a train of powdered at- 
 tendants, and seemed, as she placed herself at 
 their head, to forget that she was the only 
 servant of the family, and that the youthful 
 master, upon whom she was looking with such 
 veneration, was one w^ho possessed none of 
 that which is the pride and boast of this 
 world. But the young clergyman, and many 
 of those who listened so anxiously to the words 
 that fell from his lips, had wealth the proud 
 worldling knew not of — even the true riches 
 that no reverse of fortune could remove — 
 treasures that " neither moth nor rust could 
 corrupt, — an inheritance undefiled, and that 
 fadeth not away." 
 
 Tears came into Laura's eyes at the thought 
 of how her dear Henry was at that moment 
 engaged in the midst of the little group; and 
 yet, as she knelt down to mingle her suppli- 
 cations with theirs, she felt less lonely than 
 she had done since she had quitted her hus- 
 band. The feeling on her mind was soothingly 
 present, that though — 
 
 VOL. I. M 
 
^42 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 they part 
 
 On their divided ways with cheerful heart, 
 
 Knowing that in all places they will call 
 
 On the same God and Father over all, 
 
 They part not wholly ; since they meet whose prayer 
 
 Meets at the throne of grace. 
 
 As Laura rose from her knees, the gorgeous 
 paintings and splendid furniture of the apart- 
 ment again burst on her eyes, which had been 
 shaded for the last few minutes from their 
 glittering glare. " Alas !" thought she, " what 
 an infinity of good might be done by all 
 this wasted wealth ! The price of even oiie 
 of those magnificent mirrors, would restore 
 comfort and prosperity to many a wretched 
 family, and bring back the smile of health and 
 happiness to many a wasted cheek worn with 
 want and pining misery !" 
 
 Thus thought poor Laura, forgetting for a 
 moment in her unselfish benevolent commise- 
 ration for the sufferings of others, that her own 
 were just then scarcely less deserving of sym- 
 pathy and relief. But so it was ever with her 
 and her husband : they were so occupied with 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 243 
 
 the wants of others, that it made them less 
 alive tc their own privations. If ever they 
 wished for wealth, it was only for the sake 
 of the benefits it would enable them to confer 
 upon their fellow-creatures. For themselves, 
 content, 
 
 Dwelling beneath one roof, to have one hope, 
 One purpose for their lives, one aim, one scope — 
 To labour upward on the path to heaven. 
 
 On the morrow, when, by the pale light of 
 a dull cloudy day, Laura looked again on all 
 the wonders of Lord Nightingford's palace-like 
 mansion, she sighed to think there was not in 
 the whole house a single memorial of Baynton 
 Hall. On the contrary, every object here was 
 wholly unlike that dear place. 
 
 In coming from abroad replete with a taste 
 for everything Grecian, Helen had caused all 
 the furniture to be made in that style, instead of 
 in the fashion of Louis XIV., which was then 
 so much the rage in England. Lord Nighting- 
 ford, who had much less real taste than his wife, 
 was at first rather displeased at her departure 
 
 m2 
 
^44 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 from his idol fashion ; but when he saw her 
 choice was so highly commended, and heard 
 every one say, " Oh, how delightfully original 
 your house is ; what a relief not to see those 
 eternal old carved chairs and looking-glasses," 
 he was gratified, and henceforth allowed her 
 to arrange everything of that kind according 
 to her own fancy. But all this was so much 
 the more unlike Baynton Hall, which was full 
 of real old carving, and whose walls were de- 
 corated very much in the manner that every 
 one was now trying to imitate. 
 
 Persons who, like Laura, are all heart, to 
 whom affection and love are the main-springs 
 of action and thought, however great their 
 admiration of the beautiful may be, derive 
 more pleasure from the sight of objects en- 
 deared by early and tender recollections, than 
 from a view of the most splendid works of art, 
 or even scenes of nature. 
 
 Helen had also a warm heart ; and if her 
 loving qualities had been kindly fostered, she 
 would have lived nearly as much in her affec- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 2\5 
 
 tions as Laura. But how diiFerent had been 
 their lot ! Helen was under awe of the world, 
 and of a worldly calculating husband, and she 
 had not sufficient innate firmness of character 
 to prevent her becoming the slave of circum- 
 stances. Few people have ; most of us are 
 victims of circumstance. Helen also loved 
 old Baynton Hall and the things it contained ; 
 but instead of having surrounded herself with 
 objects which recalled tender early recollec- 
 tions, she had the more positive gratification 
 of knowing that her house was considered the 
 most perfect in London. 
 
 Lord Nightingford, who appeared at break- 
 fast the next morning, was frigidly civil, and 
 asked Laura if she would like to drive 
 out in the carriage ; it would be ready for her 
 at any hour she chose to order it. He said 
 Helen would probably be at home that day, 
 as they expected a larga dinner-party, and 
 
 there was to be a great ball at D house 
 
 in the evening. She had been absent much 
 longer than she intended ; but, " I suppose 
 
246 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 she has been well amused at the Duchess of 
 Brandon's," he added with an air of great in- 
 difference as he left the room. 
 
 Laura's heart sank when she heard of the 
 dinner-party, and she began to tremble lest 
 the gay and admired Helen would scarcely 
 have a moment to attend to her old friend, 
 and listen to the sad recital of her distresses. 
 Laura had that sort of tact which often stands 
 in lieu of knowledge of the world, and en- 
 ables a person who has never been placed in 
 similar circumstances, to enter into the feelings 
 of others. 
 
 Though Helen's continued neglect of herself, 
 and of the old people at Baynton, excited Lau- 
 ra's wonder and grief, still she endeavoured to 
 find excuses for her ; and with a calm reliance 
 on God's mercy, looked confidently forward to 
 the time when her dear friend's heart would 
 be touched, and those feelings which in child- 
 hood promised much good, would be developed. 
 Thus strong in that faith, she waited, full of 
 prayer, the Almighty's good time ; and now 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 247 
 
 it was more for Helen than herself she re- 
 gretted to hear of these engagements. She 
 imagined the contending feelings Helen would 
 experience. Still, in spite of every appear- 
 ance to the contrary, in spite of all Helenas 
 forgetfulness and indifference to her wants, 
 Laura felt confident of her affection : she 
 could judge better of the force of her temp- 
 tations to extravagance now that she saw 
 the magic fairy-land in which she lived, the 
 splendour of the establishment, and the costly 
 magnificence of everything ; she began for the 
 first time to fear that Helen would really be 
 unable to assist her. 
 
 While occupied with these thoughts, Laura''s 
 eyes rested on a magnificent pietra-dura cabi- 
 net, whose beautiful shelves were filled with 
 intaglios, vases, and precious stones; and she 
 could not help thinking that the value of one 
 of those precious stones would rescue her poor 
 husband from the prison which awaited him, 
 and restore her children and Helen's poor 
 old faithful nurse to health and comfort. But 
 
248 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 her thoughts did not long dwell on this. 
 " Poor Helen I it will cost her a pang to refuse 
 me," was her next reflection, and Laura half 
 regretted having come. 
 
 The day seemed long and tedious : Laura 
 tried, indeed, to be amused and interested with 
 all the beautiful objects she saw ; and, as was 
 her wont, to find food for good and pleasant 
 thoughts, and improvement, in every circum- 
 stance that occurred. Yet she was unusually 
 restless, and longed that her interview with 
 Helen were over. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 249 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 If thou are beautiful, and youth 
 
 And thought endue thee with all truth — 
 
 Be strong ; — be worthy of the grace 
 
 Of God, and fill thy destined place : 
 
 A soul, by force of sorrows high, 
 
 Uplifted to the purest sky 
 
 Of undisturbed humanity ! 
 
 Wordsworth. 
 
 Laura was right in lier anticipation of 
 Helen's feelings ; for, though she had dreaded 
 an interview, and from that dread was even 
 
 glad to postpone her visit to D shire, still 
 
 she was deeply affected, and much pleased, to 
 see the friend and sister of her youth. 
 
 Yet Helen was much influenced by the pre- 
 sent moment, and when she saw that Laura 
 was not angry with her, when, in spite of all 
 
 m5 
 
250 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 that had happened, she read in those dear 
 eyes the same expression of love which had 
 cheered the happy years of their youth, Helen 
 was overpowered with delight. Long did she 
 cling round Laura's neck, and sob and laugh 
 with both sorrow and joy, declaring that she 
 would not go down to dinner, but enjoy her 
 darling Laura''s society all the evening. 
 
 "But how altered you are, dearest," said 
 she at last, holding Laura at a little distance 
 and looking with anxious scrutiny into her 
 countenance. 
 
 Laura thought the same of Helen. The 
 three years which had elapsed since they had 
 met had, though from very different causes, 
 altered much the countenances of both. Helen's 
 lovely face no longer gleamed with that happy 
 sunny look of childhood which on her mar- 
 riage-day she still wore ; yet she was now 
 more transcendently beautiful : Laura con- 
 fessed it, though she admired not so much 
 the splendid beauty before her as her own 
 dear childish Helen. There was, too, beneath 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 251 
 
 the animated and buoyant air of worldly joy 
 a little under-expression of care, a look that 
 showed that the still small voice of conscience 
 within was not satisfied with all that outward 
 joy. This slight and almost imperceptible 
 look did not escape the penetrating and anxi- 
 ous gaze of Laura. 
 
 Tlieir interview was disturbed by Lord 
 Nightingford, who came to remind Helen that 
 unless she went to dress she would not be 
 ready to receive the company for dinner. 
 Helen started as if out of a dream, for her 
 heart and memory had gone back so vividly 
 to past times, that she had almost forgotten 
 the present life, that life of fashion and gaiety 
 in which the dear companion of her youth 
 formed no part. 
 
 " I cannot come down to dine with those 
 people," she was about to say ; but, as she 
 caught a glimpse of her husband's counte- 
 nance, the words died on her lips. 
 
 "Yes,"" said Laura, "you had better go dress; 
 we shall meet attain to-morrow morninor." 
 
252 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Oh, but you must come down to dinner !" 
 exclaimed Helen. 
 
 Laura smiled, and called Lady Nighting- 
 ford's attention to her miserable and almost 
 ragged attire. 
 
 '' Oh, you can wear some of my things ; 
 you must — you must see Lord Mayfield, for 
 he knows you already ; I have talked of you 
 often to him." 
 
 But Laura firmly refused to appear ; yet 
 she accompanied Helen to her dressing-room, 
 and they passed a pleasant half-hour together ; 
 for Laura abandoned herself to the delight of 
 gazing on her beloved friend, and would not 
 disturb the joy of either in this happy meet- 
 ing by detailing her own sorrows. 
 
 Helen went to the ball that night, but did 
 not remain late : she was down the next morn- 
 ing three hours earlier than usual ; and then 
 she heard from Laura the tale of woe, Helen 
 i;huddered, and looked on all the proofs of her 
 own expensive habits with wonder and dismay. 
 
 *' Oh, what can I do ? How guilty, how 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 253 
 
 thoughtless I have been ! Edward is out 
 of all patience with my extravagance, and 
 lately I have scarcely been able to reconcile 
 him to my making the slightest purchase. 
 One hundred pounds, you say, would save 
 you from distress ; oh, if I had but resisted 
 buying that foolish onyx vase, the other 
 day ! But I will take courage: I will go 
 this instant and implore Edward; or I will 
 sell some of my jewels," and without waiting 
 to hear what Laura endeavoured to say, she 
 rushed down stairs. 
 
 Before Helen returned Lord May field was 
 announced. Laura was sitting in the deep 
 recess of a window, and though she saw him 
 enter the room he did not perceive her. This 
 then was the person whom Helen had men- 
 tioned as being acquainted with herself, and 
 Layra looked on him with pleasure, as a proof 
 that her dta** friend had sometimes thought 
 and talked of her. 
 
 There was that on his open and handsome 
 countenance which pleased her much. There 
 
254 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 was a look of melancholy, too, and as he slowly 
 walked towards Helen'^s writing-table, an ex- 
 pression of deep interest crossed his brow. 
 He took up a volume of poems, and after per- 
 using it attentively for a few moments, she 
 observed him take out his pencil and mark a 
 passage. 
 
 Helen soon returned with an agitated and 
 sorrowful countenance. 
 
 " I called early," said Lord Mayfield, " in 
 hopes of finding you at home, and that I 
 might be introduced to your dear friend." 
 
 " I am so glad," said Helen, trying to as- 
 sume a gay look. '' But what has become of 
 Laura ? I left her here, and I was in hopes 
 of finding you already excellent friends. Oh, 
 there she is ! how came you to hide yourself 
 in that corner?" 
 
 Laura excused herself, and coming forward, 
 joined in the conversation. At first she felt 
 some little embarrassment from knowing that 
 Helen had spoken kindly of her, and she 
 feared Lord Mayfield would be disappointed. 
 
 isSSSL 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 255 
 
 But this feeling soon vanished ; for there was 
 something in his look and manner which show- 
 ed a spirit kindred to her own. Still Helen 
 was absent and sad, and at last, with an ill- 
 disguised anxiety and abruptness, begged Laura 
 to go up stairs and fetch her shawl. 
 
 Helen's character was still so natural, and 
 so unused to disguise, that it was plain to 
 both Lord Mayfield and Laura that she wish- 
 ed the latter to be absent. So Laura, wonder- 
 ing what could be the reason, went up stairs 
 and did not return. 
 
 At last Helen came to her room with a face 
 l)eaming with delight. " Here it is !" she ex- 
 claimed, running up and throwing her arms 
 round Laura's neck. " Here are two hundred 
 pounds ; so now, poor dear Rookmore will be 
 saved !" 
 
 Laura was astonished. " Then, has Lord 
 Nightingford really consented ? and was he not 
 much shocked at my presumption in applying 
 to you ?" 
 
 " Oh, no," said Helen with a blush. 
 
^56 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " How kind ! I will go and thank him, 
 I will." 
 
 *' Oh, no, do not I beseech you !'" exclaimed 
 Helen, grasping her hand, and detaining her 
 with nervous energy. 
 
 *' He is gone out, too," she continued, with 
 more composure, as she heard the sound of 
 horses in the street, and running to the win- 
 dow, saw Lord Nio^h tin oxford riding awav. 
 
 " Then you must express to him all I would 
 say ; for I will not lose a minute now," said 
 Laura, as she perceived Lord Nightingford 
 turn the corner of a street : " I will return at 
 once to my poor dear husband and my darling 
 children. Oh, thank God, they will now be 
 saved !" and the fond wife and mother burst 
 into tears of joy. 
 
 " But will you not remain with me ? can- 
 not you send it to them ?" said Helen, with an 
 agitated hesitating manner. 
 
 " Oh no, dearest Helen ; much as I enjoy 
 the delight of being with you, I could not 
 forego the rapture of telling my dear Henry 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 25 
 
 that he is safe; and my children — remember 
 they are starving. God bless you, then, dear- 
 est, and your husband, who has proved himself 
 kinder than I so uncharitably imagined him 
 to be." 
 
 " Well, if you are quite determined to go, 
 I will order the carriage, and take you to 
 the coach-office." 
 
 " Oh no, I can walk," said Laura ; " and I 
 shall just be in time, for they told me that the 
 
 D coach goes at two o'clock, and it wants 
 
 only ten minutes," she continued, as she looked 
 at the beautiful clock on the chimney-piece; 
 and after one long fervent embrace, one earnest 
 prayer that God would bless her dear sister, 
 Laura hurried away. 
 
 Laura's long journey was cheered by the re- 
 flection of Helen's kindness and undiminished 
 affection. As she thought, too, of Lord Night- 
 ingford's ready acquiescence with her request 
 about the money, she indulged in many hopes 
 that her dear sister's marriage had proved more 
 happy than she imagined. These fond hopes, 
 
258 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 added to the delightful prospect of relief to her 
 dear husband and children, made Laura so 
 happy, that, as she approached near the town 
 
 of D , she almost trembled at the excess 
 
 of her joy. 
 
 " If no evil should have happened in my 
 absence, — if I should find them all well, now 
 that I know that my dear Helen's heart is 
 unchanged, — oh how blissful will be my 
 lot ! '' 
 
 A thousand times she pictured to herself 
 Rookmore's joy at seeing her, at knowing his 
 urgent debts would be paid, and that he would 
 be spared the disgraceful humiliation of going 
 to prison. She felt the warm kisses of the 
 dear children, and saw the exulting expression 
 of delight on old Mrs. Newlan's countenance ; 
 — that poor nurse, who had always hoped, 
 always trusted, and always prayed so ardently 
 that her darling Helen might not be spoilt by 
 the world. How delighted she would be, to 
 find that her wishes had been realised ! In 
 short, there was no end to Laura''s joyful an- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 259 
 
 ticipations ; yet it was with a beating heart 
 and trembling steps, that she descended from 
 the coach, and walked towards the narrow 
 street which contained the dear objects of her 
 love. Gradually she became pale with ap- 
 prehension, and her heart sank within her, 
 for she was sorely disappointed that neither 
 Rookmore nor Mrs. Newlan had come to the 
 coach-office to meet her. 
 
 " Some one must be ill," thought Laura, 
 and oh ! how rapidly does an ardent imagina- 
 tion, and affectionate heart, conjure up harrow- 
 ing pictures of misfortune, of sickness, and 
 even death, when one slender clue is given ! 
 how distinctly is every fearful image seen ! 
 how plainly are sounds of woe heard, and what 
 years of suffering do we endure in a single 
 minute ! 
 
 But Laura's imagination, though vivid, was 
 under a more habitual and truly religious 
 control than is attained by most minds of 
 her power and extension. As soon as her 
 reason was aware of the unreal nature of the 
 
260 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 harrowing and depressing pictures imagina- 
 tion was so busily painting, they were forcibly 
 dismissed. 
 
 With a fervent prayer that all might be 
 well, and a spirit strengthened and fitted by 
 Divine assistance, to endure all things, and 
 calmly say, " Thy will be done,"" Laura 
 mounted the narrow staircase. 
 
 It was in such a frame of mind that Rook- 
 more had not long before sought her room 
 when he believed her to be dying. God had 
 heard his prayers, and the earnest aspirations 
 of the gentle being whose life had been spared 
 were now also granted. 
 
 She found, indeed, her husband, exhausted 
 and suffering much from mental anxiety and 
 want of nourishment ; the children were fear- 
 fully thin and would scarcely smile at her 
 caresses ; Mrs. Newlan was, with an effort 
 of despair, trying to warm them by folding 
 the little creatures to her bosom, and she 
 seemed to have so completely lost all hope, 
 that not even a ray of joy crossed her for- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. g61 
 
 merly sunny countenance when Laura entered 
 the room. 
 
 " It 's a' most too late," she murmured ; " we 
 are all near starved to death, and have n't 
 seen a fire these two days." 
 
 Laura burst into tears of mingled joy and 
 sorrow, — joy to know that all the loved ones 
 were still there, and sorrow to see what a fear- 
 ful change those four days of suffering and sus- 
 pense had wrought on all their beloved coun- 
 tenances. She could not speak, but held up 
 the two hundred pound notes, and threw her- 
 self into her husband's arms. The old nurse 
 started up, and, disengaging herself from the 
 children, took the notes and darted out of the 
 room. 
 
 Laura had scarcely related to Rookmore the 
 occurrence of her journey, when Mrs. Newlan 
 returned. Her face was full of smiles, and 
 her hands were full of dishes and plates, and 
 she muttered as she placed them on the little 
 table before Rookmore and his wife, — 
 
 " I knew itj — I was certain Miss wouldn't 
 
262 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 refuse it ; I was sure 'twas only my lord's fault. 
 Now don't eat too fast, Miss Helen. Here, 
 Betty, light both fires this minute," continued 
 the old woman, with a proud and exulting 
 toss of her head, " I knew it would be so," 
 she added, as she gently fed the baby with 
 some nice hot broth ; and the happy nurse 
 suddenly forgot all her past troubles, all her 
 utter despondency. 
 
 Joy and hope were sufficient for this affec- 
 tionate creature. Prosperity made her again 
 mindful of her position. Though she, too, 
 had touched nothing that day, she stood, with 
 her wonted respect, behind Rookmore, while 
 the family partook of their repast, and would 
 not listen to Laura's entreaties that she would 
 come and share in it, till they had finished. 
 
 "It was so lucky," said the now again 
 garrulous old woman, " they were just a-going 
 to their dinner down stairs, and when I showed 
 them the notes, they gave it up to me at once. 
 We might all have been starved and dead ten 
 times over, before they would have given us 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 a mouthful without the money ; to think how 
 I begged and prayed for a few potatoes, yes- 
 terday. Well, every one must have their turn, 
 and perhaps, some day, that cruel cringing 
 beggarly" 
 
 " Hush," said Rookmore, " do not, in this 
 hour of joy, harbour one ill-natured thought. 
 May God forgive our poor hostess ! " 
 
 " Poor ! she 's not poor ; but I know what 
 you mean, sir ; yes, I know now, and may God 
 forgive me for having so often called her 
 ugly names," continued the nurse, whose tem- 
 per had been softened and corrected by ad- 
 versity. " Oh, how thankful I ought to be 
 to serve such a good master ! And now, mis- 
 tress, you must tell me all about my darling 
 lady ; how is she looking ? " 
 
 " I will indeed tell you what will gladden 
 your heart ; but come, sit down and eat some- 
 thing, while I relate all that happened." 
 
^64 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Grand Dieu ! ce qui nous 6loigne de vous est cela 
 meme qui devrait nous rappeler a vous. Plus la prosp^- 
 rite multiplie nos plaisirs, plus elle nous en detrompe ; et 
 les grands sont moins excusable et plus malheureux de ne 
 pas s'attacher a vous, O mon Dieu ! parce qu'ils sentent 
 mieux et plus souvent le vide de tout ce qui n'est pas vous. 
 
 Toute leur vie (celle des grands) n'est qu'une precaution 
 p^nible contre I'ennui ; et toute leur vie n'est qu'un en- 
 nui penible elle-meme. lis I'avancent meme en se ha- 
 tant de multiplier les plaisirs : tout est deja use pour eux 
 a I'entree meme de la vie ; et leurs premieres annees 
 ^prouvent deja les degouts et I'insipidite que la lassitude 
 et le long usage de tout, semble attacher a la viellesse. 
 
 Massillon. 
 
 Soon after Laura's return from London, she 
 was gratified to perceive a delightful change 
 in the countenances of those she loved — to see 
 the rosy hue of health revisiting the cheeks 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 265 
 
 of her children. One morning, when busy with 
 her now cheerful occupations, a carriage drove 
 up to the door of their little lodging. 
 
 " 'T is. I 'm sure, a real carriage," exclaimed 
 Mrs. Newlan. " 1 11 run down and see who 
 it can be ; oh, if darling Helen, if my lady was 
 to come ! " 
 
 But Laura did not indulge a hope that 
 the carriage- wheels, which caused such an un- 
 wonted sound in the little unfrequented street, 
 had anything to do with Helen. Her dear 
 sister had not mentioned a word about coming 
 
 into D shire ; and though much re-assured 
 
 as to the state of Helen's feelings, she saw full 
 well that her manner of life in London had too 
 many attractions to allow of its being quitted 
 in the middle of the gay season. 
 
 " It 's nobody at all !" exclaimed Mrs. New- 
 lan, returning in haste ; " but it 's Mrs. Gif- 
 ford's own carriage : she has sent to take you 
 to her. She came back last night from Chel- 
 tenham, very ill, and wants to see you directly. 
 Her own maid is come in it to beg you will 
 
 VOL. I. N 
 
266 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 go at once, for her lady is in such a taking 
 that it will cost her her life if you don't make 
 haste."" 
 
 Laura instantly put on her bonnet, and won- 
 dering what could be Mrs. Gilford's motive 
 in sending for her in this sudden manner, 
 hastened down to the carriage. The maid 
 thanked her for coming so quickly, and step- 
 ped in after her. 
 
 " Missis will be very much obliged to you 
 indeed. She was afraid, after what had passed 
 with Mr. Rookmore that time when she heard 
 the miniature was bi'oke, that you would not 
 have come. I 'm very glad you have, for I am 
 in hopes yo\i will do my poor missis good." 
 " Is she then really ill?" inquired Laura. 
 " She is ill — but it seems more upon her 
 mind. Oh, if my poor missis had any thing to 
 care for, — if she could but love any thing, — 
 I do think she would be happy and well. I 
 have always said so lately, now that she seems 
 more softened like — " 
 
 " Have you lived long with Mrs. GifFord .?" 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 267 
 
 inquired Laura, who was pleased to hear the 
 tone of affection in which the maid spoke of 
 her mistress. 
 
 " No — yes — that is, it 's now seventeen years 
 since I first come into missis's family ; but she 
 treated me so, that I could not stay long 
 with her, nobody could ; but I think she al- 
 ways liked me a little, and I could venture 
 more with her than any other of the servants, 
 and many 's the time in the Indees, that — 
 but what was I saying ? oh, yes, I didn't live 
 there long at first, but I came back again, 
 for missis offered me double wages, and pro- 
 mised never to scold me. However, I couldn't 
 stay more than six months the second time, 
 because — but no matter ; she 's ill now, and I 
 don't like to talk of her faults. This is the 
 eighth time I have been in her service, and I 
 hope never to leave her no more," said the 
 maid as they drove up to Mrs. Gifford's splen- 
 did house. 
 
 The knocker was tied up, but the door was 
 soon opened, with more clamour than suited 
 
 n2 
 
268 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 a sick person's ears. The maid reprimanded 
 the porter for making so much noise, and 
 motioned to a footman not to slam the baize- 
 door so violently. The two men servants 
 smiled and exchanged looks, and Laura over- 
 heard the fat porter say, " Ah, 1 suppose Mrs. 
 Hannah expects to get a large legacy ; for, as 
 for caring v^hether that crabbed old witch lives 
 or dies, I well knows that is impossible. She 
 won't leave me anything, so I won't be keep- 
 ing my tongue tied up, or creep about the 
 house like a mouse."" 
 
 Laura looked round to see whether Hannah 
 had overheard these remarks, and by the co- 
 lour which mounted to her cheeks judged that 
 she had. The poor maid was about to speak ; 
 but checking herself, and motioning Laura to 
 follow her quickly, she led the way to Mrs. 
 Oifford's room. 
 
 The old lady was in bed, and she looked 
 much thinner and iller than when Laura saw 
 her before; but her countenance brightened 
 when she saw the curate's wife. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 269 
 
 " Come here — come close to me — come and 
 let me see that beautiful face ! Open the shut- 
 ter, Hannah, quite, — let me see her plain ; it 
 will do me more good than all Dr. Grant's 
 medicine. There, then, now I feel better ; 
 but you have been ill, too, poor Mrs. Rook- 
 more ! you look much paler. I believe it is 
 my fault, too," she continued, after a short 
 pause for breath. " I dismissed your husband 
 in anger, and never paid him for the picture 
 you began, and though I knew you were in 
 distress I did not leave anything for you when 
 I went away. I was even glad to punish you, 
 and I wondered whether that sunny face would 
 ever look miserable ; oh, I have at times a 
 savage cruel pleasure in thinking that others 
 are as unhappy as myself." 
 
 "Oh, no, not often," said Hannah, interpos- 
 ing ; *' remember when you sent me at Chel- 
 tenham to give blankets and clothes to that 
 poor family, and how pleased you were to hear 
 they were happy." 
 
 " Hold your tongue ; God know it*s seldom 
 
^70 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 anything can make me feel happy. Go away 
 now, Hannah, and leave me alone with Mrs. 
 Rookery." 
 
 " Now, my dear lady, come and tell me 
 whether you have forgiven me for treating 
 your husband so rudely ; but I need not ask 
 you," she continued, with a smile; "I see 
 by your face that you were never even angry 
 with me. Ah, I fear your goodness is too 
 much in the extreme ; the excess of it drives 
 me to despair, and makes me feel I could 
 never never improve. The distance between 
 me and everything that's lovely, everything 
 that's pure or innocent is so immense." 
 
 " Perhaps not," said Laura, whose anxiety 
 to relieve distressed minds had given her a 
 quick insight into character, which mere specu- 
 lators on human nature seldom attain. '' Per- 
 haps you are not so bad as you imagine ; and 
 even if your sins and errors were ever so 
 great, is there not pardon, is there not hope, 
 — a blessed hope that our Redeemer**s merits 
 will cover them all." 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 271 
 
 " Yes, there may be forgiveness," said Mrs. 
 GifFord ; " but bow dreadful to go on sinning 
 from day to day, to feel corrupt, and guilty, 
 and miserable, and unable to amend ! Oh, if 
 you felt this, it would be impossible to hope, 
 — you could not." 
 
 "But surely you have not always experi- 
 enced this — you have sometimes done the will 
 of God ; and even now you desire and would 
 be glad to do it. Your mind has become 
 gloomy from loneliness ; you have felt that 
 you are of no use to any one. You have 
 found, too, the insufficiency of riches for your 
 own happiness, and this has made you forget 
 how many glad hearts a small portion of those 
 riches would make. You have forgotten that 
 to receive the thanks and blessings of a grate- 
 ful heart is one of the greatest pleasures 
 this world can afford. You have forgotten 
 that it is permitted to all to do good ; that 
 we are all allowed to do something to the 
 glory of God ; and though no deeds, no efforts 
 can atone for the innate corruptions of our 
 
272 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 nature, yet we are permitted and even com- 
 manded to show our faith by our works, and 
 consequently works of charity and love should 
 be the most joyful employments of life. 
 Our minds are active; and, if we condemn 
 them to a monotonous rest, they become mise- 
 rable. We are evidently put here to exert all 
 the powers which the Creator has given us for 
 the good of others, and " thus to make melody 
 in our hearts to God." We know that his 
 blessed Son has died to redeem us; but if 
 we are satisfied to dwell solely on this idea, 
 and do nothing to testify our love and gra- 
 titude, can we hope for salvation ?"" 
 
 Laura continued long to speak on these 
 important subjects, for she saw that Mrs. 
 GifFord listened with intense interest ; she saw 
 that she had touched the right chord ; that 
 the poor lady had thought much on religion, 
 and had endeavoured to feel rightly on the 
 subject. She judged from her restless intel- 
 lectual eye and irritable manner that Mrs. 
 GifFord's powers had suffered from want of 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 273 
 
 due employment, — had been depressed and 
 thrown back upon themselves from having 
 found no proper sphere of action. Laura's 
 tact and penetration had induced her, there- 
 fore, to try a different mode of consolation 
 from that which she would employ to the 
 dying sinner. She saw, notwithstanding Mrs. 
 Gifford's sunken cheek, and withered frame, 
 that there was yet much power remaining ; 
 she might still live and act to the glory of 
 God and the comfort of her own soul ; and 
 therefore Laura did not confine herself to 
 preach that sole reliance on the goodness and 
 forgiveness of God, which she would have 
 done had she seen that life was really closing, 
 that the poor sinner would never more have 
 an opportunity of doing aught for the Re- 
 deemer's glory. 
 
 '* Oh, that I had met with you before !" 
 exclaimed Mrs. GifTord ; "oh, that you had 
 assisted me to do some good ! and now I fear 
 it is too late. You almost make me wish to 
 live, even to suffer a little longer, that I may 
 
 N 5 
 
^74 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 try and discharge part of the immense debt 
 I owe, and make some hearts rejoice. Oh, 
 how could I be so foolish, so stupidly engross- 
 ed with my own efforts to be happy to obtain 
 some sort of ease ! Ah, it is all too late, — 
 I am lost ! " 
 
 " Do not say this. God's will be done ! if 
 he should see fit to take you at once, he will 
 kindly receive you as you are, for you see the 
 error of your way, and fully intend, if life 
 should be spared, to amend. You can do no 
 more than pray earnestly to submit to his 
 will, be it to live or to die, and feel sure that 
 it will be best as he disposes it. Perhaps he 
 designs to spare you from further contests, 
 and further wrestling with a spirit which wars 
 against the good intentions of your better 
 judgment; those contests must be painful, for 
 you have perhaps a life of indulgence and 
 long established habits to overcome/' 
 
 " What a strange wonderful creature you 
 are ! Just now you not only reconciled me to 
 life but made me wish to live, and now you 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 275 
 
 induce me to look on death almost as gain, 
 on both or either without dismay. But it 
 will not last — this delightful feeling of peace- 
 ful resignation ; when I no longer see your an- 
 gelic face I shall return to my own horrible 
 repinings, complaints, and despair. Oh, do 
 not leave me ! pray do not desert the poor 
 spirit you have raised, — do not forsake the 
 broken heart you have tried to heal ! " 
 
 " It is not I ; I have done nothing," said 
 Laura, taking up a Bible which lay upon the 
 table. " I have only mentioned some of the 
 endless sources of consolation this book con- 
 tains. You will here find everything you 
 want, if you will but read it with an humble 
 spirit, determined to learn, and not see it with 
 the eyes of your own prejudices or wayward 
 spirit."" 
 
 " Ah but I do, and I fear shall continue to 
 do so. I can seldom read the Bible at all : 
 the words do not impress me ; their cold black 
 and white characters fail to touch my heart ; 
 even at times I loathe the sight of that book, 
 
^.O A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 f r I :. y .: so manj people deriTe 
 
 adoQ from it when I caumot. I eTen 
 
 :o hear Miss Scraggs quote it. I cannot 
 
 b: bcTS too, ...li I f-fLL-^m go to church. 
 
 T : " -e you anj hopes for me r ** 
 
 . ^ ." Ssdd Laura in a sidenm tone, 
 ** I.: L ^ '-e.5 Tour heart : you beard 
 
 roe 13 ff Scripture with pleasure ; 
 
 V .. J - : . r ,:frly at the sacred promises. 
 I .. 7 that thej spoke peace to your soul. 
 
 God wiU not desert the good work he has 
 begun in joa ; be wiD never nerer forsake you."" 
 
 <* Ob, what an angd jou are ! I cannot help 
 belieTing you, and placing as mocfa &itb io 
 your words as if you were an orade. But I 
 fear it is only because I admire — even lore 
 your dear beautiful face ! K any one dse said 
 the same thii^s, I should hate them." 
 
 Lanm smiled, ** How diflei ent you are,** 
 cxmtinoed the old lady, ** from all thcise people 
 they call serious. Now I am sure that you 
 langb and sin^ and r^ciice^ and dont look with 
 contempt on what are called worldly people.* 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 277 
 
 " I fear we are all worldly," said Laura, 
 "it is hard to judge who are most so: we 
 all love something better than God. If the 
 gaieties of this world, or its follies, are not 
 our idols, yet we all have a father, or a hus- 
 band, or a child, which is our world, a being 
 which chains us to this life, and whom we love 
 better than our Redeemer. Oh, it is hard to 
 condemn any one as worldly, when we are all, 
 all of us so more or less."*"* 
 
 " Yes, and I the most worldly of all," said 
 Mrs. Gilford; '"'and yet I love nothing, not 
 a living soul ; nor can I enjoy any kind of 
 existence : and as for a life of gaiety, that 
 I have long despised, and hated those who 
 lead it. Miss Simmons, at Cheltenham, tried 
 to make me believe I must therefore be in 
 a very religious frame of mind," continued the 
 old lady, with a contemptuous smile ; " but 
 at all events, I have sense enough left to see 
 the whole guilt and horror of my own heart. 
 Do not say that any one can err from love. 
 Oh ! it is love I want ! my heart is cold as 
 
278 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 a stone to all, — to my fellow-mortals, to their 
 distress, and to my God. Oh ! if you were 
 not here this thought would drive me mad ! 
 If I did not feel that your lovely face had 
 softened it a little, I should be utterly wretch- 
 ed. Yet what victims we are of chance! If 
 you had not come, I might have died in the 
 black coldness of my heart." 
 
 " Oh ! do not talk of chance. No ; God 
 would have found some other means. I am 
 only an humble instrument in his hands, and 
 when I am not here you will be able to listen 
 kindly to that good Hannah, and she will 
 read the Bible to you." 
 
 "I cannot — no, I have tried that. No, you 
 must not desert me — promise you will not." 
 
 Laura promised to come often, and that 
 her husband would do so likewise. And so 
 they did ; and they had the delight of seeing 
 poor Mrs. GifFord gradually improve. 
 
 But there was much to contend against : 
 there was the long deep-rooted habits of 
 years ; besides a whole life of indulgence. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 279 
 
 there was the pride of superior intellect, 
 which cannot bear to bow down to mysteries, 
 to believe that which it cannot comprehend ; 
 for Mrs. Gifford's mind was of no common 
 power : she had read and thought much ; 
 at times, from excess of perplexing specula- 
 tions, she had become almost an atheist. 
 
 Added to all this, she had experienced so 
 much cringing servility from the relations of 
 her husband : some of them had contrived 
 so artfully to gain her confidence, with a view 
 to inherit her property, that she could scarce- 
 ly believe any one acted from disinterested 
 motives. Her suspicious temper sometimes 
 even broke out with the Rookmores, and 
 their patient forbearance was put to a sore 
 test. Had they been only kind-hearted, and 
 not under the habitual influence of Christi- 
 anity, they would have left Mrs. GifFord; but 
 they endured her suspicions, and the taunts 
 of her servants, and went steadily forward 
 in their endeavours to be of use. The old 
 lady's health became better, and she was able 
 
280 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to accompany Laura to the abodes of those 
 distressed poor whose condition her wealth 
 had improved. Under the guidance of the 
 curate and his wife, she at last learnt the 
 true use and enjoyment of riches, and in 
 time she became thankful that God had given 
 her the means of making so many people 
 joyful. She had been so often imposed on 
 before by worthless impostors, that her heart 
 had grown callous, and she forgot there was 
 any real distress in the world. 
 
 Still, these were only passing moments of 
 pleasure ; for it is hard in old age to re- 
 move the settled discontent of years, to soften 
 entirely the bitterness of pride, the hardness 
 of selfishness. It is difficult to kindle the 
 spark of human kindness, and revive the 
 spirit of charity, in a heart which has long 
 ceased to love any creature or thing but 
 herself. 
 
 Thus Mrs. GifFord continued occasionally 
 to experience many hours and days of wretch- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 281 
 
 ed despondency, when all around looked black, 
 and her own heart felt dark and miserable. 
 
 There are few hearts naturally cold even 
 in this evil world, but there are many which 
 have ceased to feel. There are many people 
 who love nothing but themselves ; but even 
 these suffer from the dull void which indif- 
 ference must cause within. This yearning for 
 love, which is often felt by those who are 
 apparently most successful in their worldly 
 or ambitious career, shows that the divine 
 spark of kindly affection, which gives evi- 
 dence that we are all the children of God, 
 is not yet entirely extinguished. 
 
 Mrs. GifFord's disposition was soured not 
 by adversity ; but rather by an excess of 
 prosperity. She was the sole heiress and in- 
 dulged child of a wealthy banker. The great- 
 est misfortune of her youth had been to offend 
 her father, by what he called an imprudent 
 and foolish marriage. Instead of accepting 
 the offers of anv of those numerous titled 
 
282 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 admirers who usually sue for the hand of 
 a rich heiress, she fell in love with a poor 
 clerk in the banking-house. Her parents of 
 course objected ; but the spoilt girl was accus- 
 tomed to follow her own will, and eloped 
 with her lover. 
 
 The banker was exasperated at her con- 
 duct, and declared she should never inherit 
 a farthing of his wealth. So the young people 
 resolved to seek their fortune in India. 
 
 Unlike most penniless men who marry heir- 
 esses, the young clerk's love did not cease when 
 he found that his wife would have no for- 
 tune. Mr. Gifford adored her, and felt that 
 he could never be sufficiently grateful to his 
 bride for having given up her splendid home 
 and the friends of her youth, to follow his 
 uncertain fortunes. But everything prospered 
 with the young couple. At last, the father 
 relented too, and made them an allowance, 
 and subsequently left them his entire fortune. 
 
 Yet Mrs. Gifford was not quite happy, 
 even in the midst of all this apparent prospe- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 283 
 
 rity ; for she was spoilt. What a doating and 
 too-indulgent father had begun, an adoring 
 husband achieved ; and at forty Mrs. GifFord 
 was a wayward and capricious woman. 
 
 Loving no one but her husband, and of a 
 very jealous temper, she lived in complete re- 
 tirement, which fostered her selfishness. When 
 Mr. GifFord died, the only band which seemed 
 to link her with happiness and humanity, was 
 gone. On her return to England, she found 
 no friends — no interest in life — and she gradu- 
 ally fell into the state of captious misery we 
 have seen. 
 
^84 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 There are who ask not if thine eye 
 Be on them ; who, in love and truth. 
 Where no misgiving is, rely 
 Upon the genial sense of youth. 
 • * • » * 
 
 Oh, if through confidence misplaced 
 
 They fail, thy saving arms, dread Power ! around them cast. 
 Ode to Duty, Wordsworth. 
 
 About six weeks after Laura's return from 
 London, she was sitting, one morning, with 
 Mrs. GiiFord, and endeavouring to subdue 
 a more than usual fit of irritable melancholy 
 which tormented the poor old lady. 
 
 " By the by," said Mrs. GifFord, interrupt- 
 ing Laura with something of a malicious sneer, 
 " have you heard the strange things which 
 are said of your fine sister-in-law, Lady what 's 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 her name ? Oh, you have not ; well then, give 
 me that letter that 's on the little round table ; 
 I received it yesterday from that ill-natured 
 old gossip, Mrs. Smedworth. I suppose you 
 have often heard such reports ; fine ladies are 
 always doing foolish things ; so you wo'n't mind 
 it."*' Laura sighed, for she felt that Helen's 
 manner of life was not what could be exactly 
 termed wise ; yet she did not at all comprehend 
 the sort of foolish things Mrs. Giiford meant. 
 
 The old lady adjusted her spectacles, and 
 looked over the letter. " Ah, Lord Mayfield, 
 that's the man's name, — do you know anything 
 of him, Mrs. Rookmore ?" 
 
 Laura said she had seen him once, and 
 as she said it, her thoughts reverted to that 
 morning when Helen had sent her out of the 
 room in such an abrupt manner. But this 
 recollection did not occasion any positive un- 
 easiness or suspicions, and Laura scarcely knew 
 why she trembled so much while Mrs. Gifford 
 was endeavouring to find and decipher the 
 passage. 
 
2S6 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 « I have heard,'' continued Mrs. Gifford, 
 reading out of the letter with that dull mo- 
 notonous tone in which people quote things 
 which do not particularly interest themselves, 
 and with something of a nasal twang from 
 the old-fashioned spectacles, which rather 
 pinched his nose ; " I have heard that Lady 
 Nightin — what 's the name, she writes such 
 a hand — ah. Lady Nightingale's flirtation with 
 Lord May — Mayfield has come at last to a 
 crisis. It is said that — that she lost a large 
 sum of money at ecarie and — and I wish 
 people would write plain — here, Mrs. Rook- 
 more, if you like to know any more, try to 
 make it out yourself, for it makes my head 
 ache to pore over this scrawl." 
 
 Laura did try, for she felt a most painful 
 interest, and the words which Mrs. Gifford 
 had so slowly, and with such a tone of utter 
 indifference, doled out, excited the most painful 
 suspense. She read one of those common- 
 place paragraphs in which it was said that 
 Lord and Lady Nightingford had separated, — 
 
A GOOD MATCH. S87 
 
 those reports which are, alas, often written 
 from one friend to another, circulated by those 
 who care little whether it be true or false, — 
 heard without producing any further impres- 
 sion on the listeners than some such thoughts 
 
 as this, " Well, this will amuse Mrs. D " 
 
 or " I shall have a nice story to tell O ." 
 
 Few, very few, have a real gratification in 
 hearing of the errors or crimes of their fellow- 
 creatures, but most of us like to have the 
 importance of being the first to tell or to know 
 anything. The world is more thoughtless than 
 ill-natured ; and if any of us stopped to con- 
 sider that among the mass of those who hear 
 an unfavourable report with indifference, there 
 may be some whose hearts it will cause to 
 sink, that a sharp pang may be given when 
 we least expect it, there would be very few 
 evil sayings uttered. 
 
 Had the writer of that letter, whom Mrs. 
 Gifford called ill-natured, known what suffer- 
 ings those words would cause to one human 
 being, she would never have written them. 
 
^S8 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Poor Laura knew so little of the gay world, 
 she was so totally ignorant of the immense 
 exaggeration there usually is in reports, that 
 though she repeatedly said, '' It cannot be 
 true; I am sure Helen could not flirt, and as 
 for gambling, oh, it is impossible ! " yet the 
 tears ran down her cheeks, and she felt so 
 completely wretched that it was impossible to 
 remain any longer with Mrs. GifFord. Again 
 exclaiming " I know it cannot be true," she 
 hastily left the house. 
 
 Poor Laura went home, and confided the 
 sad story, her fears and misgivings, to Rook- 
 more. He endeavoured to cheer her; but he 
 was as ignorant as herself, about the world 
 and its scandalous reports, and tliough he 
 tried to call to mind that Helen had been 
 brought up with care, he was but a bad 
 comforter, for he remembered that she lacked 
 the one thing needful, — that true spirit of 
 Christianity which can alone enable us to act 
 right in a world full of temptations and snares. 
 
 " Yet, surely," said he, " Lady Nigh ting- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 ford would have written to you, if she were 
 really separated from her husband ; she would 
 have turned to you as her best and earliest 
 friend." 
 
 All that long night, poor Laura never closed 
 her eyes. The remembrance of the morning, 
 so happy at the time, which had rescued her 
 family from starvation, became now embittered. 
 The more she thought of the occurrences of 
 that single hour, the more she trembled, and 
 she now wondered that Helen's embarrassment, 
 and her anxiety to be alone with Lord May field, 
 had not struck her as more strange at the time. 
 The next morning, at breakfast, Mrs. New- 
 Ian came running into the room with a beaming 
 countenance. '' Here 's a letter from the darl- 
 ing — here, I know her writing; bless her dear 
 eyes ! It is a large heavy one, too ; may be 
 
 there 's — but what 's the matter, ma'am ? — are 
 
 you ill ? — you are as white as my apron.^"* 
 " Oh no, I am quite well, quite," said 
 
 Laura, seizing the letter, and taking it into 
 
 her little bedroom to read. 
 
 VOL. I. o 
 
^90 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " I know there *s something the matter," 
 muttered the nurse, as she followed Laura to 
 her room ; but the door was closed ere she 
 could reach it, and she heard the key turn. 
 The old woman was sorely disappointed, for 
 Laura generally read some passages aloud to 
 her when she received a letter from Helen. 
 
 The origin of the reports about Lady Night- 
 ingford, which Laura had heard, was this : — 
 On the morning that Laura quitted London, 
 Helen had requested her husband to assist 
 the poor curate and his wife, but he refused. 
 She saw, by the firm determination of his man- 
 ner, that it would be useless to entreat him 
 any more, and she returned to the drawing- 
 room sad and despairing. When she saw 
 Lord Mayfield and thought of his kindness, 
 and the interest he had always taken in Laura, 
 she resolved to inform him of her distress, and 
 therefore contrived to send her sister up stairs. 
 
 Lord Mayfield was but too happy to be 
 of any use, and immediately gave two hun- 
 dred pounds, which he happened, fortunately, 
 
A GOOD MATCH. S91 
 
 to have in his pocket-book at the moment. 
 Helen was delighted that Laura should receive 
 such prompt assistance ; but she feared that, 
 if her sister knew she was indebted for this 
 to a stranger, she would scruple to receive 
 it. She resolved, therefore, to say nothing 
 either to her or Lord Nightingford, meaning 
 to repay the money when her quarter's income 
 should be paid. 
 
 This was the first act she had ever concealed 
 from her husband, and from the feeling that 
 it was so, it imparted an unusual restraint to 
 her manner. She seemed less happy in his 
 society, which she rather avoided than sought. 
 
 On the contrary, with Lord Mayfield she 
 talked oftener than ever, and seemed to enjoy 
 his society far more than that of any one else. 
 He had been charmed with Laura's appearance, 
 and his expressions of ardent admiration de- 
 lighted Helen's affectionate heart. She spoke 
 to him continually of the happy days of her 
 youth, and while expatiating on Laura's cha- 
 racter, and on all the good she did in the 
 
 o2 
 
292 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 neighbourhood of Baynton Hall, her eyes beam- 
 ed with an expression of intense joy which was 
 often mistaken for quite another feeling by 
 lookers on. 
 
 One morning as Helen was answering some 
 notes, at her writing-table, the housemaid Betty 
 came up, twirling the corner of her apron, and 
 looking very impudent. 
 
 " Please, my lady, I wants higher wages,** 
 said the fat domestic. 
 
 " Why do you not speak to the house- 
 keeper about it ?" said Helen, rather surprised 
 that Betty should address her in such an un- 
 ceremonious manner. " You know I do not 
 interfere with her arrangements." 
 
 " I knows that, my lady, well enough ; but 
 I knows other things too ; and besides, Mrs. 
 Patterson has threatened to turn me off, 'cause 
 I was out, she says, for two nights.'* 
 
 " I really know nothing of the matter,'* said 
 Helen. 
 
 " No, my lady, nor I know you don't care, — 
 only I do ; and I must have my wages raised, 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 293 
 
 or a good character given me, or else I '11 
 tell my lord something I 's sure would make 
 a great mischief between you. Ah, I see, 
 you understands me now." 
 
 " What do you mean ? " said Helen, who 
 felt she was blushing violently, for she knew 
 there was one thing that she did not wish 
 her husband to know. 
 
 " I could tell him all about the two hun- 
 dred pound you got from Lord Mayfield that 
 morning, and — " 
 
 " How do you know anything about that ?" 
 said Helen, quite thrown oflp her guard by sur- 
 prise. 
 
 " I heard it all, and many things besides, 
 and — " Here she was interrupted by the 
 entrance of Lord Nightingford, and Helen, 
 trembling and perplexed, burst into tears. 
 
 " What ""s all this ? " exclaimed he ; '* and 
 how came you here, Mrs. What 's-your-name ? 
 the housekeeper has just told me she has dis- 
 charged you for misconduct : go — begone in- 
 stantly ! I have something to say to you, 
 
294f A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 madam, also,"' continued Lord Nightingford, 
 turning to Helen with one of his bitterest looks. 
 
 " My lady, do speak for me," whined Betty ; 
 " don't let me be ill-used afore your face, or 
 else — " and Betty held up her hand in a threat- 
 ening manner. 
 
 " Or else what ? " said Lord Nightingford, 
 surprised at the woman'*s pertinacity. 
 
 " My lady knows all about it ; she knows 
 I 'm innocent as the babe unborn," said Betty. 
 
 '' Come, come, I have other things to think 
 of," said Lord Nightingford, impatiently ; 
 '' go ! leave the room !" 
 
 " May be you know it all aVeady," said 
 Betty with a look of despair, for her worldly 
 wisdom could better interpret the extreme 
 anger depicted on Lord Nightingford's coun- 
 tenance than the guileless Helen could. She 
 made, however, one more appeal, and said in 
 an imploring tone, " my lady, will you help me 
 or not.?'' 
 
 '' I cannot tell what you mean," said Helen 
 with much embarrassment. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. ^5 
 
 " Ah, then, you will not. — Well, my lord, 
 I s'pose you know what sort of woman your 
 wife is. You know as how that she and Lord 
 Mayfield— " 
 
 " Begone, woman ! I know all that you 
 could tell me ; but I am not come here to 
 listen to your insolence ; — begone ! "" 
 
 With clenched hands and menacing air the 
 housemaid withdrew. 
 
 Reports injurious to the character of his 
 wife had reached Lord Nightingford's ear ; he 
 had seen paragraphs in the newspaper. Though 
 Betty meant to be silent about the two hun- 
 dred pounds, she had not been able quite to 
 keep the important news to herself. The story 
 had got about with many additions, and now 
 Lord Nightingford came to inform his wife 
 of all that had been said. 
 
 Poor Helen readily confessed that Lord 
 Mayfield had given her the two hundred 
 pounds; but she was utterly at a loss to 
 imagine why Lord Nightingford suspected 
 her of being faithless, or at least of having 
 
296 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 flirted most blameably with Lord Mayfield, for 
 she felt conscious that her intimacy with that 
 gentleman had been less like a flirtation than 
 her manner with many others. He never once 
 had breathed those kind of tender adulations 
 which had so often annoyed and startled her 
 pure mind from other men. 
 
 There was something so artless, so ingenuous 
 in her defence that Lord Nightingford at once 
 saw that the report was untrue. He remem- 
 bered, too, that she had always appeared to 
 love him, that no coldness or neglect on his 
 part had ever seemed to diminish her afi*ection. 
 He was almost touched at the thought. 
 
 At last the weeping Helen said, " Pray, see 
 Lord Mayfield, and ask him whether he ever 
 said a single word, except about that unlucky 
 money, that he would have not wished you 
 to hear ; ask him, and I am sure — " 
 
 " Lord Mayfield is in the drawing-room," 
 said the footman, who entered at that moment. 
 
 '' Then go to him at once," said Helen, 
 while her countenance brightened with hope ; 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 297 
 
 "and yet, I am afraid it will make him very, 
 very unhappy, and I know I — I could never 
 see him again; what a horrible report! oh, 
 if it should ever reach poor Laura's ears !" 
 
 " That would not much signify ; but you 
 have suffered immensely in the eyes of the 
 world. If you are really innocent," and Lord 
 Nightingford felt that she was, *' it will re- 
 quire a long time, and the utmost care to re- 
 establish yourself in the position you had 
 gained." 
 
 Poor Helen sighed, she felt sick at heart ; 
 and longed never to return again to that heart- 
 less and uncharitable world. 
 
 Lord Mayfield had heard the scandalous re- 
 ports with real sorrow. I have before said 
 that he had been the friend of Lord Night- 
 ingford in early youth, and he had never 
 ceased to take an interest in his fate. Thi.s 
 interest had been certainly increased, when he 
 became acquainted with his wife. He regret- 
 ted much the change which title and fortune 
 had made in his young friend's character, 
 
 o o 
 
298 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 and he lamented deeply that his interesting 
 wife should be so neglected. 
 
 When the reports of his flirtation, as it was 
 called, with Lady Nightingford, reached his 
 ears, he was thunderstruck. His disposition 
 was guileless almost as that of Helen ; he 
 cared, too, but little for the opinion of what 
 is called the world : he thought neither of its 
 smiles or frowns. The society of Helen he 
 found more agreeable than that of any one else, 
 and he insensibly was drawn by the pleasure 
 of it, to frequent those gay parties which would 
 otherwise have possessed for him no charm. 
 
 He now discovered with horror and dis- 
 may, that his conduct had been misinterpreted ; 
 but so kind and sensitive was his disposition, 
 that, instead of feeling angry with a hasty, 
 wrong-judging, and uncharitable world, he be- 
 gan to distrust himself, and looked searchingly 
 into his own heart to see whether there could 
 have been any culpable feeling in the extreme 
 pleasure he took in Helen's society. 
 
 The result of his reflections was a determi- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 299 
 
 nation to visit Lord Nightingford. The inter- 
 view between the two noblemen seemed to have 
 been satisfactory ; for when Lord Nightingford 
 returned to the library, where he had left his 
 weeping wife, he looked more kindly upon her 
 than was his wont. 
 
 " Lord Mayfield is going abroad," said he. 
 *' After all the foolish thino^s which have been 
 reported, he imagines you would rather not 
 see him at present ; therefore, he has commis- 
 sioned me to bid you farewell." 
 
 " Then you are convinced of my inno- 
 cence. — Thank God ! Oh ! this is more than 
 I deserve !" exclaimed Helen, throwing her 
 arms round her husband's neck ; " for all the 
 time you were with him, I have been consi- 
 dering and reflecting, and I have been very 
 thoughtless I fear." 
 
 " It will be a lesson to you to act with 
 more circumspection," said Lord Nighting- 
 ford. " And now I am thinking what course 
 it will be best to pursue. The Duchess of 
 Brandon has a ball to-night.'' 
 
300 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Oh ! do not make me go there !'' said 
 Helen ; " I could not, it would be impossible — 
 I should feel so miserable, and think every 
 one was remarking me." 
 
 " I fear, indeed, )'ou have not sufficient self- 
 possession to act in such a manner as to re- 
 move suspicions ; you certainly always show 
 your feelings too plainly. — There is no tutor- 
 ing you," he continued with something ap- 
 proaching to a smile ; for he felt, for the first 
 time, that the simplicity and innocent charac- 
 ter of his wife had preserved her from many 
 dangers, and himself from much annoyance 
 and dishonour. 
 
 '* I think, Edward," whispered Helen in a 
 faultering voice, " 1 think I have a good excuse 
 for not going to many more parties now.'* 
 
 Lord Nightingford then learned with intense 
 pleasure that there was a prospect of Helen's 
 becoming a mother. This had lonoj been an 
 object of his anxious wishes, as he dreaded 
 the idea that his title and estates should pass 
 into the hands of distant relatives. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 301 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Ye who approach her threshold, cast aside 
 The world and all the littleness of pride ; 
 Come not to pass an hour, and then away, 
 Back to the giddy follies of the day ; 
 With reverend step and heaven-directed eye, 
 Clad in the robes of meek humility, 
 As to a temple's hallowed courts, repair. 
 And come, the lesson, as the scene, to share. 
 
 Gally Knight. 
 
 The circumstances detailed in the last chap- 
 ter, combined with her inability to assist 
 her dear Laura, made a deep impression on 
 Helen's mind. For the first time she saw 
 plainly the evil and sin of extravagance : for 
 Helen was a person of more present impulse 
 than imagination, and all the descriptions she 
 read of misery, never touched her so much as 
 
30^ A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 the sight of poor emaciated Laura — evidently 
 in great distress. 
 
 All these circumstances combined to make 
 Helen reflect deeply on her past life. She 
 had, too, now for the first time, much lei- 
 sure for thought ; and she was thrown more 
 into the society of her husband. He was dis- 
 tant and reserved, but he did not continue 
 to appear angry ; and Helen was touched at 
 this, for she felt very guilty. He seemed, too, 
 unusually solicitous about her health, which 
 rejoiced Helen extremely ; for she did not re- 
 member that he had always been particularly 
 anxious for an heir, and she did not, there- 
 fore, now consider that his anxiety was more 
 caused by the prospect of this wish being 
 fulfilled, than by affection for herself. Oh ! 
 if simplicity and guilelessness are dangerous 
 qualities in this wicked world, yet how many, 
 many dire and painful truths, do they pre- 
 vent from glaring in the eyes of their pos- 
 sessors ! 
 
 Helen was anxious to go to Royston Park 
 
A GOOD MATCH 303 
 
 that she might be near Laura, and Lord Night- 
 ingford promised, as soon as the shooting sea- 
 son began, to take her there. Towards the 
 end of August they made preparations for 
 moving into D — shire, and Lord Nighting- 
 ford invited a large party to be at Royston 
 for the first of September. 
 
 Poor Helen was in dismay at the prospect of 
 a large party ; she dreaded the idea of meet- 
 ing again her usual associates. With a feel- 
 ing of remorse and perplexity, very natural 
 in one who has been so engrossed by the gay 
 world, as to forget their duties and better feel- 
 ings, she wished never to return to it again. 
 It is true that her manner of life had been 
 the means of corrupting Helen''s mind ; and, 
 therefore, she may have been justified in wish- 
 ing totally to avoid such again. Still, she 
 ought to have looked into the depths of her 
 own heart, and searched the defects of her 
 own character, and reflected whether her errors 
 might not fairly be traced to other causes rather 
 than the society in which her lot had been cast. 
 
304 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Few of us do this : we generally cast the 
 blame of our own errors on those who have 
 been our companions in them, and usually 
 the first step to a reformed life is a com- 
 plete avoidance of every person and place 
 which had witnessed our failings : as a 
 child who has knocked his head against a 
 table, on recovering from the stunning blow, 
 feels more anger against the wood than his 
 own awkwardness in running against it. 
 
 Helen implored Lord Nightingford to allow 
 her to visit Laura instead of being at Royston 
 Park while the party were there; but he tried to 
 convince her that it was necessary for the re- 
 covery of her fair fame that she should be pre- 
 sent, and he added that she ought to be very 
 grateful to the Duchess of Brandon for pro- 
 mising to come to Royston, after all that had 
 occurred. 
 
 " I really hardly expected it," said Lord 
 Nightingford, " and I almost trembled when I 
 opened her letter this morning, lest she should 
 have refused to come."" 
 
A GOOD MATCH. S05 
 
 It was with sad and humiliated feelings that 
 Helen approached Royston Park. The road 
 for some miles was the same as that which led 
 to Baynton Hall, and every turn, every hill 
 and river recalled most forcibly to her mind 
 the former journeys she had made when, as a 
 happy school-girl she was returning to her 
 own dear home and her beloved father. That 
 kind and indulgent parent was now no more, 
 and she seemed, for the first time, fully to feel 
 his loss, to deplore his death. And Baynton 
 Hall, that too, was gone, was lost to her for ever ! 
 
 As they passed the gate which conducted 
 to the old place, Helen burst into a flood 
 of bitter tears : she thought of all the poor 
 people whose sorrow Laura had described in 
 her letters, — those letters which at the time had 
 made so little impression on her mind ; or, if 
 they caused any uneasiness, she had sought to 
 stifle the regret they occasioned. All now 
 rose up before her memory with fearful dis- 
 tinctness. 
 
 She thought of the old housekeeper, Mrs. 
 
306 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Sunwell, who had been so kind to her in her 
 youth, and who had died of grief when the 
 place was sold : she now felt almost guilty 
 of the murder of that dear old woman. She 
 thought of Daniel, the old garden-man ; and 
 her imagination pictured to her all their coun- 
 tenances, not smiling as was their wont at 
 meeting the heiress, but seeming to glare upon 
 her reproachfully. 
 
 Helen wept bitterly. Lord Nightingford 
 was angry at her folly ; but when she re- 
 proached herself as the sole cause of all their 
 misfortune, and the loss of Bayiiton, (for He- 
 len was too thoroughly humbled to allow that 
 any one was in fault but herself,) Lord 
 Nightingford seemed rather touched, and in 
 a kinder tone bade her dry her eyes, and not 
 hurt her health by such excess of grief. 
 
 '* Oh, you are far, far too kind to me, dear- 
 est Edward," said the heart-stricken Helen, 
 rather cheered by the kindness of her hus- 
 band ; and with a faint hope that he might in 
 time love her more, Helen tried to be consoled. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 307 
 
 and firmly resolved to make amends for all her 
 errors. 
 
 The company were to arrive the following 
 day, but Helen determined to drive early to 
 
 D , and see Laura. It was fourteen miles 
 
 from Royston ; but she promised to be home 
 in good time to receive the Duchess and her 
 party ; so Lord Nightingford allowed her to go. 
 
 I have described the lodging in which Laura 
 lived, and if it had, at first sight caused her 
 heart to sink, who was accustomed to visit the 
 abodes of distress and misery, how much more 
 miserable must it have appeared to the luxu- 
 rious and splendid Helen ! She had never be- 
 fore seen such a wretched dwelling, and so hor- 
 rified was she with the dark ladder-like stair- 
 case and the small gloomy room, that she could 
 hardly believe it was really Laura who pressed 
 her in her arms. 
 
 " Come to the light!" she exclaimed, "that 
 I may see that it is really my own Laura. 
 How can you see to do anything in this dingy 
 place ?'' 
 
308 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Laura did not tell her that in this little 
 dark room she had painted several highly- 
 finished miniatures, which had enabled them 
 to live during the early part of the last cold 
 winter. 
 
 " And is that your child ? what a darling 
 beautiful creature ! why she looks as happy as 
 if she had always lived in splendour and luxury." 
 
 " Little Helen can scarcely remember to 
 have seen anything better than this room," 
 said Laura, " and therefore has good reason 
 to be satisfied." 
 
 " But you cannot, you must not, continue 
 to live in this horrible place," said Helen ; and 
 she suddenly remembered those young days 
 in which she looked forward with rapture 
 to the time when she would be able to give 
 Laura a fine carriage, a grand piano, and 
 all manner of beautiful presents : that time 
 had long ago arrived ; and how had she ful- 
 filled her eager promises.? She felt and suf- 
 fered from this too deeply to say anything, 
 but bitter tears of remorse, and of those ago- 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 309 
 
 nizing regrets which come too late, ran silently 
 down her cheeks. 
 
 " The fine pretty lady is crying," said little 
 Helen. '' Why she cry ? she got fine clothes, 
 and can give away to poor people. Why do 
 you cry ? " continued the little creature with 
 a sorrowful look, while she wiped the tears 
 from poor Helen's face with the corner of her 
 little frock. '' Dear mamma never cry but 
 when we hadn't enough to eat, and no fire 
 to warm us last winter, and papa was ill, — oh, 
 then she cry, and kissed me so, and den went 
 away, and I so miserable, and poor, poor ma' 
 gone away ; but she came back, and looked so 
 happy, and we had nice dinner, and Nana so 
 pleased, an I never see ma' cry after. Oh, 
 yes, though, she did one day when she came 
 home from Mrs. GifFord ; and she say to pa' 
 poor, poor Helen, she is lost ! and I thought 
 she meant me, so I run up and kissed her ; but 
 she still kept saying ' poor dear Helen,' and 
 cried, oh, so bitterly ! as you are now, and 
 wouldn't wipe the tears, and wouldn't stop." 
 
310 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Here Laura interposed, and tried to re- 
 move the talkative child ; but Helen pressed 
 the little darling to her bosom, and sobbed 
 over her and implored Laura to let her remain, 
 for every word the innocent little creature ut- 
 tered did her good, and seemed like the voice 
 of a warning angel. So Laura breathed a fer- 
 vent ejaculation of thanks, and praise to Hea- 
 ven, for she felt that Helen's hour of repent- 
 ance was come, — that her own unceasing and 
 ardent prayer was granted. 
 
 Long did Helen weep over that lovely and 
 wondering child, and then she poured forth 
 the often repressed feeling of sorrow and re- 
 morse and all the bitterness of her grief to 
 Laura, and received from that dear sister affec- 
 tionate advice, and heavenly consolation. 
 
 Old Mrs. Newlan soon afterwards came in 
 with the baby, and then poor Helen had an- 
 other touching scene to undergo. The old 
 nurse was so delighted, so proud to see her 
 dear child, her darling lady, look so grand and 
 well. In the intensity of present delight and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 311 
 
 the thoughts of former years, when she danced 
 that fine beautiful lady in her arms, the affecti- 
 onate nurse forgot all the failings and strange 
 neglect with which she herself and all she loved 
 had been treated of late years. At last, when 
 the first paroxysm of her joy had somewhat 
 subsided, Mrs. Newlan glanced from the splen- 
 didly attired Helen round the dull apartment ; 
 she remembered all the suffering she had seen 
 there during the past winter, — she thought of 
 Baynton Hall, of poor Mrs. Sunwell, and all 
 the people there, and burst into tears. 
 
 But the kind-hearted nurse saw that her 
 darling child was also affected by these re- 
 membrances. She still read so much affection, 
 and good feeling, and innocence, on the coun- 
 tenance of Helen, that, after a long silence, as 
 if continuing the train of her own thoughts, 
 she said, '' I am sure it was all my lord's fault ; 
 and yet, I shouldn't say that neither, because 
 it may distress my lady. No, no, I wouldn't 
 make her unhappy for all the world," she con- 
 tinued, " or have Helen look sad. My child ! 
 
S12 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 my own darling Helen ! " and again the old 
 nurse clasped her to her heart, and abandoned 
 herself to joy. 
 
 Lady Nightingford returned home with a 
 mind strengthened and prepared to encounter 
 the society of her former associates. The 
 whole object of her thoughts, the business of 
 her life, was to try and repair the immense 
 mischief she had done. Till she could make 
 interest with the Bishop of to get Rook- 
 more a living, she persuaded the clergy- 
 man at Royston to keep a curate, promising 
 herself to pay the salary, if he would induce 
 Rookmore to come. After accomplishing this, 
 she fitted up a cottage just outside the park, 
 for she had not bought a single thing since 
 that unfortunate occurrence about the two 
 hundred pounds, and she now saw with in- 
 finite surprise that it would cost more to 
 purchase a new necklace or other ornament 
 than to furnish the entire cottage, and make 
 it look quite comfortable. 
 
 A happy day it was when she installed the 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 313 
 
 Rookmores and their children, and old Mrs. 
 Newlan, in this sunny and cheerful abode. She 
 looked so beamingly happy that even Lord 
 Nightingford could not help experiencing 
 something of the contagious feeling. He grum- 
 bled far less than usual, and said with un- 
 wonted good-nature that he hoped Rookn^ore 
 and his wife would often come and dine with 
 them. 
 
 VCL. I, 
 
SH A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 I flew to the pleasant fields traversed so oft 
 
 In life's morning watch, when my bosom was young: 
 
 I heard my own mountain goats bleating aloft. 
 
 And knew the sweet strain that the corn-reapers sung. 
 
 Campbell. 
 
 Soon after the curate and his wife had been 
 installed in their new abode, Rookmore re- 
 ceived, one morning, a letter from the Bishop 
 
 of E , appointing him to the living of 
 
 Baynton. So great was his joy and surprise, 
 that the paper fell from his hand, and his coun- 
 tenance became so unwontedly agitated, that 
 Laura was fearful he had heard some bad 
 news. 
 
 " What can have happened?" she exclaimed, 
 hastily taking up the letter. " Is your dear 
 father worse ? " 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 315 
 
 In an instant her eyes perused the important 
 lines, and her heart beat with that pure and 
 intense joy which falls to the lot of few mortals. 
 Their own old home, the dear rectory of 
 Baynton, the scene of all her happiness, would 
 be theirs again; — theirs too, for life, with an 
 income sufficient to enable them to live re- 
 spectably, and to indulge their benevolent 
 hearts in giving to the distressed. 
 
 " Who can have done this ? " said Laura ; 
 '' can Helen ? — But poor Mr. Brewing, I hope 
 he is not dead; oh no, I see he has got a 
 larger living ; but still some one must have 
 asked for it. Oh Helen ! dearest sister, how 
 kind in her ! how completely has this atoned 
 for all her little errors ! " 
 
 But it was not Helen's doing. When Laura 
 flew to thank her, to express her joy and 
 delight, Lady Nightingford disclaimed all 
 knowledge of the transaction. She had, indeed, 
 endeavoured to get a preferment for Rook- 
 more, and Lord Nightingford had written 
 
 several letters to the Bishop of E , but 
 
 p2 
 
SIG A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 hitherto without success. They were both 
 utterly at a loss to imagine who could have 
 interested themselves for the poor curate, par- 
 ticularly as the bishop of the diocese was not 
 a person likely to give church preferment to 
 those clergymen who had no other recom- 
 mendation than that of being true Christians. 
 
 However, there was so much now to do, that 
 the Rook mores had but little time for specu- 
 lating about the unknown friend who had 
 caused their happiness. 
 
 On the day preceding the one destined for 
 their removal to Baynton, Laura drove over 
 
 to D , to see Mrs. Gifford, and bid her 
 
 farewell ; Baynton being twice as far from 
 that town as Royston, it would not be so easy 
 for her to visit the old lady often. 
 
 " Ah, so you are going quite to desert me,"" 
 exclaimed Mrs. GifFord, in a peevish tone, but 
 with a countenance less unhappy than usual. 
 " It is very unkind of you to abandon me, 
 now that my health declines so fast ; ah, I 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 317 
 
 am not long for this world, and yet you refuse 
 to cheer my last days with your sunny face." 
 
 " I leave you, thank God, in a more happy 
 state of mind than you were some morths 
 ago." 
 
 " Ah, well, it 's all your own doing ; but 
 now that you are going so far away, quite 
 beyond the distance of a drive, I shall fall 
 back into all my evil tempers. But you look 
 so happy, — I never yet beheld that lovely face 
 appear so heavenly," continued the old lady, 
 while a tear started to her eye — a tear, not 
 of sorrow, for she smiled and seemed more 
 happy than Laura had ever seen her. " God 
 bless you, my dear ! " continued the old lady, 
 throwing her arms round Laura's neck, '' God 
 bless and preserve you, to be the joy and 
 comfort of all who — " a sob interrupted her — 
 " There, go away now ; if you remain any 
 longer, I shall not let you go at all. I must 
 come and see you soon ; and I hear, too, the 
 old Hall — that Baynton Hall you have talked 
 
318 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 to me so often about — is to be sold. I shall 
 come and look at it, and perhaps — but go 
 now, I can't talk to you any more."" 
 
 It was on a fine day in early spring, that 
 the rector of Baynton, and his happy wife, 
 took possession of their beloved old home. 
 The joy of their former parishioners knew 
 no bounds, and they testified their delight 
 in the warm and enthusiastic manner of their 
 reception. 
 
 They found the old rectory very little 
 altered, for Mr. Brewing, the late vicar, had 
 thought the house too small for his family, 
 and had resided at a larger place in the neigh- 
 bourhood. Laura's piano, the gift of old Mr. 
 Baynton, was still there, and the carved oak 
 desk where Rookmore wrote, occupied the same 
 place. 
 
 Few but those who happen to have strong 
 local attachments can understand the intense 
 delight which Laura experienced in returning 
 to her early home. 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 319 
 
 The form of everything around, — the smell 
 of the ivy which twined round the grey-stone 
 window-frames, — the old boards, even those 
 time-worn boards on which she knelt, the 
 evening of her wedding-day, and invoked the 
 blessing of her heavenly Father on her union — 
 oh, with what a thrill of delight did she again 
 view them I It was there, too, she had im- 
 plored forgiveness, if she had erred in con- 
 senting to what appeared a very imprudent 
 marriage. Her tender conscience had felt mis- 
 givings that she might be a stumbling-block 
 in the way of her husband's ministry. 
 
 If these two loving hearts had erred in unit- 
 ing their destinies while their future prospects 
 were so uncertain, they had been punished ; 
 but they returned to the place where their 
 prayers had been first offered up together, 
 with a conviction that God had led and sus- 
 tained them through all their trials, — that, 
 where they went some good had been done, 
 and that they had been made the happy in- 
 
320 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 struments by which many poor desponding 
 sinners and suffering people had been re- 
 he ved. 
 
 Adversity had never caused them to repine, 
 and the hardsliips and privations they had 
 experienced only served now to heighten the 
 delight with which they returned to this be- 
 loved place. 
 
 It was a lovely moonlight night of early 
 spring, when Laura threw open the casement 
 of her own room that she might feast her 
 eyes once more, after such an absence, on the 
 dear and well-remembered prospect. There 
 was the old church spire glistening in the 
 moon-beams, the meadows beyond, and in the 
 distance the towers and pinnacles of Baynton 
 Hall. The song of the nightingales came min- 
 gling in a lovely serenade ; and never had any 
 sounded so sweet. From the direction, she 
 thought their nests must be in the same spot 
 as formerly, in the old beech tree : that wide- 
 spreading tree whose branches almost touched 
 the western casement of her room. How 
 
A GOOD MATCH S2l 
 
 thankful Laura felt that the late incumbent 
 had spared the old trees, and left everything, 
 even the quaintly cut yew-hedges, in the same 
 state ! 
 
 Next morning, oh, what a joyful awaken- 
 ing — what a crowd of blissful thoughts darted 
 through Laura's mind ! with what a thrill of 
 delight she descended to the oak parlour, and 
 found Rookmore sitting at his own carved 
 writing-desk ! She could scarcely believe that 
 all was real — that it was not some delightful 
 dream. 
 
 But in the midst of her joy, she missed 
 old Daniel : that faithful servant had not 
 appeared the preceding day among the crowd 
 of well-known faces that greeted the arrival 
 of the new rector. Laura feared to ask about 
 him lest she should be told that affectionate 
 heart had ceased to beat. 
 
 Laura placed the breakfast table in its for- 
 mer position near the south window. A bright 
 sun shone through the open casement upon 
 the old Turkey carpet, and pencilled on it the 
 
 p5 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 shadows of the jasmine and myrtle, which grew 
 round the ancient stone-work. 
 
 "This is the same well known carpet!" 
 exclaimed Laura, as her eyes were fixed on 
 its faded pattern in a luxurious reverie of de- 
 light. Before they were withdrawn, the shadow 
 of a figure appeared, clad in the smock-frock 
 and respectable-looking broad-brimmed hat, 
 
 which the older peasantry of D shire still 
 
 wear. Laura hastily raised her eyes, for the 
 shadow was of a figure familiar to her, and 
 united with the pleasantest associations of 
 younger days. 
 
 " It is Daniel," she exclaimed, running to 
 the window ; " I am so delighted to see you. 
 I was afraid, as you did not appear yesterday, 
 that—" 
 
 " That I was dead," interrupted the old 
 man ; " no, the Lord be praised for having 
 spared me to see you here again ! I have 
 prayed — I have prayed earnestly for this. 
 'T was Mr. Rookmore — blessings be upon 
 his head! — as first taught me to pray; and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 323 
 
 night and morning I'se petitioned God to give 
 him his own again. I prayed for another 
 thing too ; but never mind — now that you are 
 come back ; 't is as if life was corned into the 
 old place again. God bless you ! God bless 
 you, and the children ! — the little darlings." 
 
 Old Daniel turned away to hide the tears 
 of joy which bedimmed his eyes, and his voice 
 almost failed from the choking sensation pro- 
 duced by deep emotion. 
 
 "Psha!" said he, "this makes me quite 
 childish ; but I knew it would be so," he 
 added in a quicker and more brisk tone, for 
 the intensity of his feeling had before given a 
 solemnity to his voice, and imparted to his 
 whole person an air of dignity. " ' For a little 
 while all was dark, and the Lord hid his face 
 from us ; but though sorrow may endure for 
 a night, joy cometh in the morning.'' You see 
 I have become a scholar — I have learnt to read. 
 You went away in sorrow, but God has in- 
 creased you, and turned your mourning into 
 
 joy." 
 
3^4 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " And what are you doing now ? *" in- 
 quired Rookmore : " you seem still strong 
 and healthy." 
 
 " I haven't wanted for work ; and I live 
 now wi' — but," continued the old man with 
 a hesitating look, " but I was thinking now, 
 may be, you might like some one to look 
 after yer garden ; for now I suppose Miss 
 Lau — beg pardon, Mrs. Rookmore — wo 'n't be 
 always working with them pretty hands, and 
 digging, as she used to do, and wouldn't let 
 anybody help her." 
 
 " No," said Rookmore, with tears of proud 
 affection at the remembrance of all Laura's 
 exertions; "no, thank God! my dear wife 
 will not now have to toil and labour. We 
 can afford to keep a gardener, and if you 
 choose — " 
 
 " 'T wasn't that I meant," exclaimed Daniel, 
 while the colour became deeper on his old 
 withered cheek ; " *t wasn't that you could 
 afford it, but, but ye know. Miss — Mrs. Rook- 
 more never 'ud let any of us help her, because 
 
A GOOD MATCH. S25 
 
 — but, however, ye well know^," he continued 
 with more confidence, " ye well know 't was 
 never the thoughts of gain that made me love 
 the old place. I would have worked night and 
 day—" 
 
 " Yes, indeed," interrupted Laura, who well 
 remembered having discovered old Daniel weed- 
 ing in the cold moonlight after his hard 
 day's work, " I know it all ; but, my dear 
 Daniel, you must allow us the pleasure of 
 making you comfortable in your old ao-e, — 
 you must come and be our gardener. There 
 will not be very hard work, and I shall often 
 help you ; for I should never bear to give up 
 the delightful occupations which employed me 
 in those happy, happy years of our abode here.'* 
 
 " Thank ye, thank ye kindly for this. I am 
 no ways a gardener, but I have seen Mr. Joderel 
 up at house, plant and sow, and I thinks, with 
 your advice, I could manage to cultivate the 
 vegetables, and plant the flowers : but, remem- 
 ber, I don't want anything but my victuals. 
 I have saved a little money in my last place — " 
 
326 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Laura would not, of course, hear of this ; 
 and after some difficulty an arrangement 
 was made, and old Daniel installed in his 
 office. 
 
 Soon after this, Helen came to see the new 
 rector and his wife. How sad is the difference 
 which the same objects excite in minds of those 
 who have done well or ill ! Poor Helen ! she 
 shrank away like a culprit from the greetings 
 of old Daniel and others. Every beloved 
 and familiar countenance spoke daggers to 
 her soul. Painfully did all around recall the 
 image of her dear lost parent ! it was as if 
 she had never felt he was really gone till now 
 — as if she never knew that she was an exile 
 from her father's house — that it had passed into 
 other hands. 
 
 She marvelled at the strange insensibility 
 that had made even the idea of losing the home 
 of her youth, her own inheritance, at all bear- 
 able ; she wondered that ever since her re- 
 turn to the neighbourhood, she had withstood 
 the feeling which had secretly made her long 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 327 
 
 to visit the haunts of her childhood. She 
 determined now to see the old Hall; but Laura, 
 who saw how deeply the village and distant 
 sight of Baynton affected her, implored that 
 she would not visit it. 
 
 " Oh no ; I must, I will go !" she exclaimed 
 " you told me they allow strangers to see it — 
 strangers," she repeated with bitterness, *' yes, 
 even the unworthy heiress, by whose folly 
 it was lost.*" 
 
 Impelled by the energy of despair, Helen 
 hurried across the fields, and through the 
 old ruins near the river. Laura followed, 
 but there was something sacred in the in- 
 tensity of Helen's woe, which prevented her 
 from speaking ; even a near approach, she felt, 
 would be an intrusion. Helen climbed to the 
 summit of the ruined tower — that spot, hal- 
 lowed in Laura's memory by the most eventful 
 moments of her life, by the recollection of poor 
 Mr. Denman's kind and heroic generosity, and 
 the first declaration of her dear Henry's long- 
 tried love. 
 
S28 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 But Helen had no such blissful thoughts; 
 she gazed, in speechless sorrow, upon the 
 whole scene of her early days, which was then 
 spread out before her gaze. It was a fine 
 bright afternoon, and the old house and ter- 
 raced gardens were reflected in the river's sur- 
 face — all looked calm and smiling as ever; 
 and Helen gazed till she began to doubt that 
 any time had elapsed since she lived there. 
 It looked so beautiful, she felt a momentary 
 bound of the same childish joy she had for- 
 merly experienced, it was one of those short 
 rapturous moments when the mind forgets to 
 think of what has occurred, and the heart 
 only feels the same enchanting sensation, — the 
 happiness of former years. 
 
 Helen longed to ramble over every part : 
 she ran down the old staircase, and hurried 
 across the foot-bridge ; all was still the same, 
 nothing as yet had occurred to destroy the 
 illusion ; she fancied she was going to her own 
 home, that she should find her father there, 
 
 Laura's quick affection penetrated her 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 329 
 
 thoughts, and she dreaded the revulsion which 
 must so soon occur ; she grieved to see her 
 fly up the sloping lawn with all her former 
 buoyancy, for she felt that when her sister 
 reached the upper terrace the great change 
 must strike her. 
 
 But Helen seemed scarcely to heed it, — 
 on she ran, till she reached the library window, 
 in which her father was wont to sit ; that 
 window, where, in playful youth, she had so 
 often disturbed his studies, and jogged his 
 book, or upset his papers, with all the wilful 
 glee of a spoilt pet. It opened to the ground 
 and was open now ; Helen started back, and 
 became deadly pale, — she would have fallen to 
 the ground if Laura had not caught her. 
 
 " He is not there — he is crone — o-one for ever ! 
 Oh, how his dear spirit must hate me now ! 
 — he who was so fond of this place, who often 
 talked with such delight that it had been in 
 our family for centuries. Oh, what a sacrilege 
 to part with it! — but, it was all my own 
 fault." 
 
330 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Laura endeavoured in vain to soothe He- 
 len's suffering. She tried to lead her away 
 from a spot where everything now marked 
 the change of masters ; but Helen was resolved 
 to see all. 
 
 '*The walls are the same, and that painted 
 glass window remains ; but all the books, the 
 old things it lighted, where, oh ! where are they? 
 — why did not I, at least save his medals 
 — and those antiquities that he prized so high- 
 ly, and spent his life in collecting ? Do not 
 endeavour to prevent me, dear Laura, I must 
 see all the rooms." 
 
 The servants being out of the way, they 
 met no one, and Helen ran wildly over the 
 whole house. The only part which did not 
 bear the marks of change, was the upper story. 
 The nursery, that large room which she had 
 shared with Laura before she v^^ent to school, 
 and became entitled to an apartment of her 
 own, remained as before. The same old-fash- 
 ioned striped paper covered its walls, — the 
 same antique and grotesquely carved chest 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 331 
 
 Stood in the corner. Helen had not been in 
 the room for years ; and as she stood at the 
 window, so vivid was her recollection of all 
 around her, that she almost persuaded herself 
 she was still a child. 
 
 Next to this apartment was another, which 
 had also undergone but little change. Helen 
 entered it, and burst into a bitter flood of tears. 
 — It was the old housekeeper's. 
 
 " So the dear good woman, Mrs. Sunwell 
 died ; tell me, Laura, was it here, in her own 
 room, she — " 
 
 " It was," said Laura, in a solemn tone, 
 for her eyes rested on the very same bed 
 whence that affectionate spirit had winged its 
 flight. The whole scene — the sound of the 
 auctioneer's hammer, which Mrs. Sunwell in 
 her delirium, had mistaken for the closing 
 of her old master'*s coffin — the unfeeling 
 visiters — the hard-hearted steward — the poor 
 people's sorrow — all flashed across Laura's 
 mind, and depressed her spirit : she almost 
 forgot that poor Helen stood weeping there. 
 
332 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 " Dear Mrs. Sunwtll ! " exclaimed Helen, 
 as she thought of all her various acts of kind- 
 ness, how she had palliated her faults, and 
 often, at the expense of veracity, screened her 
 from punishment when she had been guilty of 
 any childish misdemeanour. And then came 
 the bitter conviction of her own ungrateful 
 forgetfulness ; she had suffered her to die, 
 perhaps, from a broken heart. 
 
 " Oh Laura ! you were with her ; did she 
 curse me, did " 
 
 " No, her last words invoked blessings upon 
 your head." 
 
 " Alas ! this is still worse ; oh, how far 
 beyond my deserts have I been loved ! — you 
 say the people suffered more from the thought 
 that I, unworthy I, had forgotten them, than 
 from their misfortunes. I never can forgive 
 myself — never be happy again." 
 
 " Dearest Helen, do not give way to this pas- 
 sionate grief. Remember the gracious Saviour 
 will accept — he has accepted — your repentance. 
 You have long suffered from remorse, you 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 833 
 
 have deplored your sin and thoughtlessness, 
 you have done all in your power to repair the 
 mischief; do not, therefore, now despond, 
 but pray to be strengthened in the right path 
 which you have at last chosen. Come, dearest, 
 this is enough of trial : if you have erred, 
 you have suffered bitterly, and learnt that 
 there is no peace, no happiness, but in the 
 paths of religion, no merits but those of our 
 Saviour, no real satisfaction but in endeavour- 
 ing to follow in his steps. All this you have 
 deeply learnt, and I trust will never live to 
 forget !" 
 
SS4! A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 There are a thousand joyous things in life, 
 Which pass unheeded in a life of joy 
 
 till breezy sorrow comes 
 
 To ruffle it ; and daily duties paid 
 Hardly at first, at length will bring repose 
 To the sad mind that studies to perform them. 
 
 Talfourd, 
 
 Lord Nightingford's anxiety about his ex- 
 pected heir tended to increase his affection for 
 Helen, and great was his rejoicing at the 
 birth of a son. He now seemed to take far 
 less pleasure in the vain and hollow pursuits 
 of his former life, and all his interest was cen- 
 tered in his idolized child. 
 
 And yet this anxiety to have an heir had 
 been first caused by feelings of pride and 
 vanity — by the wish to transmit his titles and 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 335 
 
 honours to his posterity. This was gratified 
 by the appearance of his son, and he uncon- 
 sciously learned to love for its own sake the 
 beautiful infant. 
 
 Since the days of his own early youth, when 
 he knew a tender mother's care, this was the 
 first time Lord Nightingford had really loved 
 any one. It may be easily imagined that 
 the little Lord St. Justin was spoilt. Even 
 before he could speak, he domineered over 
 the whole establishment at Royston ; and if 
 any dared to thwart his slightest wish. Lord 
 Nightingford visited them with his utmost 
 displeasure. Even Helen was sharply repri- 
 manded if she did not indulge the little lord 
 in everything ; and poor Laura, who one day 
 ventured to hint the danger of such unbound- 
 ed indulgence, was in disgrace for a fort- 
 night. 
 
 " Such folly," Lord Nightingford would say ; 
 "it is so foolish to judge of my child by 
 others, those of poor people ; to talk of trials 
 in after-life, and all that sort of nonsense. 
 
336 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 What is to hinder him from always having 
 his wishes gratified ? Have we not an ample 
 fortune to leave ? which will soon be almost 
 doubled for him by our altered mode of liv- 
 ing. He will have a clear fifty thousand a- 
 year ; and I should like to know what that 
 would not procure ?"" 
 
 Helen felt some vague misgivings that even 
 the fifty thousand a-year would not entirely 
 suffice to realize every wish, or insure unin- 
 terrupted happiness ; but she idolized the 
 child herself, and was delighted to see her 
 husband so entirely engrossed by it, as in 
 a great measure to be withdrawn from his 
 former heartless manner of life, that she was 
 fearful of doing anything that might annoy 
 or vex him. She prayed, however, fervently 
 to God that all this indulgence might not 
 injure her darling boy. 
 
 At length the object of so much unwise af- 
 fection was taken dangerously ill of a fever. 
 The child was so little accustomed to be con- 
 tradicted that he could not be induced to take 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 337 
 
 the medicines prescribed, and so unused to 
 any kind of restraint that he could scarcely 
 be kept in bed. Lord Nightingford himself 
 attended him night and day, with the utmost 
 solicitude, yet he did not for a moment doubt 
 of his recovery. He felt that it was impos- 
 sible " such a child could die." God would 
 surely not take away the little being which, 
 he was now conscious, had been the means of 
 winning him from frivolous and unworthy 
 courses. 
 
 With such thoughts as these Lord Night- 
 ingford sought to stifle his anxiety, and to 
 persuade himself that all would be well, even 
 when he saw that Helen feared the child 
 would not recover. 
 
 Helen did fear, for she had felt and suffered 
 far more than her husband had done. She 
 had the consciousness of having loved her 
 child, even as she had long loved her hus- 
 band, to the exclusion of other affections, and 
 to the forgetfulness of many duties. 
 
 A secret voice within told her she was guilty 
 
 VOL. I. Q 
 
S38 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 Still, — that she loved the creature more than 
 the Creator; and she trembled lest God in his 
 anger should punish her again. 
 
 At the risk of infection for her own children, 
 Laura came to try to support and console the 
 unhappy parents. A universal gloom over- 
 spread the house ; for the child's recovery was 
 pronounced hopeless. Lord Nightingford was 
 at length seriously alarmed. Every one stepped 
 on tip-toe, and conversed in whispers, dread- 
 ing the anger of their excited master. 
 
 As for poor old Mrs. Newlan, she almost 
 lost her reason. After two long years of suf- 
 fering, she had of late basked in the sunshine 
 of prosperity, and centered all her affection on 
 the child of her own dear Helen. " It was," 
 she exclaimed in the bitterness of woe, " the 
 finest boy as ever was seen, the dearest babe she 
 ever had nursed. 'Twas all the fault o' them 
 nasty gipsies; \ was they who brought the 
 fever into the neighbourhood." 
 
 Her words reached the ears of the distract- 
 ed Lord Nightingford. In his fury he vowed 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 339 
 
 vengeance against the whole race of gipsies 
 — none cf that accursed tribe should ever 
 enter the place again ; — the murderers of his 
 child ! 
 
 But anger and reproaches, and tears and 
 prayers, were alike unavailing. The object of 
 so many proud hopes was visibly approach- 
 ing the last extremity. 
 
 The haughty earl tore his hair ; he tried to 
 pray : with strange and unwonted humility, he 
 threw himself at the feet of Rookmore and 
 Laura, and implored them in despairing accents 
 to intercede for him, to entreat their God for 
 the life of the now senseless child. 
 
 A night of agonizing suspense passed slowly 
 away, and the grey morning faintly dawned 
 upon the now despairing parents. Every mi- 
 nute of that dreadful night seemed a year 
 to the distracted father ; and had they indeed 
 been years of suffering and trial, they could 
 scarcely have effected a greater change on his 
 proud heart than that single night produced. 
 
 But the petition so earnestly and humbly 
 
340 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 offered u}3 in this first season of sorrow and 
 bitter contrition was not granted. A bright 
 summer sun had just risen to gild with its 
 cheering rays the face of rejoicing nature, when 
 the little Lord St. Justin expired. 
 - The father's agony was at first terrific ; 
 poor Helen felt not less sorrow, but her affec- 
 tionate heart was somewhat diverted from its 
 own grief by alarm on her husband's account; 
 she dreaded lest he should lose his reason. 
 
 Now was the time for Rookmore and Laura 
 to use their most strenuous exertions to con- 
 sole the mourners, and endeavour to improve 
 this trial to their advantage. For days and 
 weeks they were constantly at Royston, and 
 their society became so necessary to Lord Night- 
 ingford, that he could not bear them to be ab- 
 sent from him. 
 
 Their prayers and efforts were gradually 
 successful ; and Helen, after all her sufferings, 
 had at length the delight to find in Lord Night- 
 ingford the more than lover of her youth, 
 — the Edward Melville of other days, now 
 
A GOOD MATCH. 341 
 
 softened and improved by affliction, and ele- 
 vated by the purifying spirit of religion. 
 
 Little more remains to be told. Mrs. 
 Gifford, to whose influence Rookmore after- 
 wards discovered he was indebted for the 
 living, purchased Baynton Hall, where she 
 lived, some years enjoying the society of the 
 rector and his wife, and improving in bene- 
 volence and happiness. She breathed her last 
 in the arms of Laura, full of peace and hope. 
 On opening her will, it was found that she 
 had left her whole fortune, including Baynton 
 Hall, to the rector's eldest son, — that darling 
 
 child which had been born at D in the 
 
 midst of all their misery. 
 
 Some time before this event took place, 
 Helen had given birth to another son. But 
 this Lord St. Justin was not spoilt as the 
 former one had been ; and several other chil- 
 dren afterwards made their appearance to share 
 with him his parents' fondness. 
 
 The last news I heard from Baynton was, 
 that a marriage is confidently talked of be- 
 
343 
 
 A GOOD MATCH. 
 
 tween the youthful heir of the Hall and Lady 
 Helen Melville, Lord Nightingford's eldest 
 daughter. 
 
 The people of the village, and old Daniel 
 above all, gossip over the probability of this 
 event with no small glee : nothing would de- 
 light them so much as to see the grand-daugh- 
 ter of their late beloved master in possession 
 of the old place. As the youthful pair seem 
 in every way formed for the happiness of 
 each other, and of those around them, I fully 
 anticipate that the wishes of these good peo- 
 ple will one day be realized. 
 
 END OF THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 LONDON : 
 PRINTED BY SAMIEI. BENTLFY, 
 
 Bangor House, S)ioe Lane. 
 
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