Penny Blood Serial Fiction — page 260: what you’re looking at

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

THE RETREAT IN WALES 243 on, and her ladyship became more her own mistress. She was gradually relieved from the species of restraint which her brother-in-law had put upon her. Sometimes she went to stay with the Princess Sophia at St. James’s Palace, _ but generally she dwelt at the Park. She felt dull and lonely, and she invited Miss Dalrymple and Miss Villers to stay with her. These two young ladies were cousins, — they were orphans, too,—and totally dependent upon distant relatives, whom they did not love. It was therefore a pleasure to them to experience the friendship of my poor mistress, while on the other hand it was a pleasure to her to have them with her. They became her bosom friends. It was in the year 1832 that her ladyship inquired of her brother sir John Marston whether any tidings had been heard of your lordship. The reply was in the negative, but doubtless sir John informed Lord Everton — or Mr. Everton as he all along ought to have been called — that such an inquiry had been made. That bad man, naturally trembling lest his sister-in-law’s affection for your lordship was as strong as ever, and might lead to the revival of a correspondence between you, paid a visit soon afterward to the Park, and displayed a letter which he purported to have received from some place on the Continent, and which letter contained an account of your lordship’s marriage.”’ ‘“A base fabrication —a vile forgery,’ interjected the Marquis of EKagledean. “Alas! we knew it not at the time, and the intelligence, ”’ continued Mrs. Jameson, “‘ struck my poor mistress as with a death-blow. It destroyed a hope, — the last hope which she had all along cherished: namely, that you would still return. She became dangerously ill; once more did delirium seize upon her, and one evening in her ravings she betrayed her secret to Miss Dalrymple and Miss Villiers. But they were kind-hearted, generous-minded girls, — the elder not more than twenty-one at that time, the other two years younger, and they deeply sympathized with their friend and benefactress. As she got better, she experienced a deep yearning to see her children, and they were accordingly brought by Mrs. Burnaby to the Park. This was with the - consent of her brother-in-law, but only on the condition that immediately afterward Elizabeth should be removed from the care of Mrs. Burnaby and sent to a boarding-school.”’ (EO) Gomicdoo “S$