Stella Rosevelt — page 342: what you’re looking at

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

336 MRS. RICHARDS’ GREAT EXPECTATIONS. wife, impatiently. ‘‘A/y mother was half-sister to Sir Charles Thornton's mother. Sir Charles had no familv; there are no other relatives to be found cn either side, it seems, or his lawyers would not have advertised thus, and I believe that Jam ‘the nearest of kin.’” ‘Nonsense, Ellen! Don’t get such a wild idea as that into your head, for you will surely be disappointed,” Mr. Richards answered, skeptically. ‘“‘T dont know about that. But one thing I have long. known, and that is that the Thornton branch of the family is nearly, if not quite, extinct. It is evident that no heirs are to be found in Englard, or Compton & Bailey would not have advertised in the United States papers,” she returned, feeling more and more sure in her own mind that her first impressions had not been at fault. ‘That is a good argument, truly,” Mr. Richards said, with sudden interest, and then began to question his wife, and to examine more closely into the matter. The result was that the next steamer bore a long letter to Compton & Bailey, No. 54 Lincoln’s-inn-fields, stating Mrs. Richards’ relationship to Sir Charles Thornton, of Halowell Park, Devonshire, together with proofs of what they asserted. A month passed, and they had begun to think they had been nourishing a chimera, when, ore day, there came an answer from Compton & Bailev, saying that they had faithfuilv studied the chronological tables of both sides of the Thornton family, and had arrived at the conclusion that Mrs. Richards was un- doubtedly the nearest of kin to the late Sir Charles. They stated that they had been advertising for a long time in English papers, and no one had presented any claim. They had then concluded to publish a similar notice in the American papers, and as it had met with no other response, they would undoubtedly decide the matter in favor of her. : However, they suggested that she come to London at once, . Gomicbooks, co