A Heart's Bitterness — page 163: what you’re looking at

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

A HEART’S BITTERNESS. 155 you to the station. There’s a train starts soon for Derby. Pll tell the guard to see to you. You have to change at Chester.” She handed Violet over to the pleasant-faced guard, re- ceived another douceur, which charmed her, and went sing- ing back to her bed-making, while the truant little Count- ess of Leigh, shut alone in a first-class carriage, sat in tremb- ling terror at the change at Chester. Miserable indeed were the. five hours spent in the rushing train. Violet looked with heavy eyes at the landscape lying under the broad sunlight. Her head was hot and dull, her heart thumped and fluttered, hot flushes and miserable rigors passed over her slender, tired frame. , | Finally the train stopped; there was a great noise of shout- ing and screaming; the guard came to her. ‘It is Chester, if you please, my lady. I hope you have some one to meet you?” | ‘“ No one,” said Violet, forlornly. ‘¢ You look very ill,” said the guard, anxiously. ‘‘It is riding in the train,” said Violet, hastily bracing herself up. ‘‘I never liked it. I shall be better.” ‘‘The first train on the left-hand track will be for Der- by,” said the guard. ‘‘ Don’t miss it, my lady.” Then the car that had brought her so far whirled away, and Violet felt asif she had lost her last friend in that kindly guard. : Another long agony in a train, where several people in the carriage with her stared at her dreadfully. — Finally she was at Derby. She had sense to recognize her exhaustion and get a cup of tea. Then she began in- quiring for the village of Dee. ‘¢ Dee!” No one had ever heard of sucha place. ‘“Ihere was Belper, and Metlock, and Burton, but no Dee.” | «¢ A small country place,” explained Violet, ‘‘ on the river Derwent; off the railroad, probably.” But no one had ever heard of Dee. The handle said he had fished all up and down Derwent water, and never — heard of a Dee in Derbyshire; and then the station-agent- got a gazetteer, and proved to her out of print that the shire of Derby had no place in it called Dee. a Violet felt as if her reason were forsaking her. No Dee! Where, then, should she go? Where find Helen Hope? What did it mean? Was she betrayed? She turned away. or S) (eco) GEomichoo ‘ nS x _— my « a fa be . : va ‘ U Na < vay La < a Se 7 >. iP he - — a s» is e a “ 4 ad