The Bride Elect: or, The Doom of the Double Roses — page 141: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

132 THE BRIDE ELECT. drew Thompson’ the particulars of my lady’s message, mounted his horse, and taken the direct route from Bracken Hough to Golspie, seeing with hawk’s eye and eagle intel- - ligence the drift of my lady’s intentions with the coming steamer. So here he was on the ground before her, to console her pending disappointment perhaps. _ ** Heaven’s benison on my fair niece!” eried the old man, with a-courtly air, as the winsome couple rode down upon him. ‘* And where goes Lady Kilmeny to-day?” My lady seemed little troubled by awe of this old man, who could make the stoutest fisherman in Strathmore ter- ritory tremble by a silent glance of his gray eyes. She- crested her haughty head, and regarded him eye to eye, and Laird Tyndale, who was as well aware of her intentions as she was herself, saw that it was diamond cut diamond. ‘We are on our way to Golspie. Where may you be go- ing, Lord Tyndale?” queried my lady, with mocking eyes. ‘‘T’ll turn my horse and accompany you, fair niece, un- less I interfere in good company,” answered the laird, with smiling significance. Unconsciously Robin’s blue eyes sparkled and leaped to- ward Lady Kilmeny at that, but she, with scornful amuse- ment on her lips, still traveled on, looking at his father full in the face. “You won’t spoil good company,” she said. ‘‘We were wrangling all the way down.” : ‘“And that’s Scotch wooing,” cried the laird, with a lou laugh. - “So,” continued my lady, with never a change on her cold face, save deeper scorn and defiance, ‘‘ considering that you came down all this way to intercept Robin and me in our visit to the steamer, and deprived yourself of your after- dinner nap, poor man, you shall make a third in the pleas- ant company; and won’t we make a goodly three to welcome to Strathmore the blithe Lowland friend who comes allthis way for Kilmeny’s sending?” With the gesture of a triumphant queen she sat upon her horse, gathering tight her white reins in one little nerved hand; and all the silver bells tinkled a fairy stream of de- fiance, and her black, coal-lit eyes shot forth daring exulta- tion over her shoulder as she swept in front of father and son, leading off the cavalcade. (E(0) Gomichooks