The Argosy — page 101: what you’re looking at

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

86 Court Netherieigh. were between them. Sarah, next to Grace, and one year younger} she had married Major Hope, and was in India; Mary, Harriet, and Frances ; Adela coming last. Not a whit less beautiful was she than when we saw her a year ago at Court Netherleigh. ‘‘Here’s the grub again,” whispered Harriet, for the girls were given to be flippant amongst themselves. Not that they disliked Mr. Grubb personally, or wished to cast derision on him, but they made a standing joke of his name. He was in trade—and all such people they had been taught to hold in contempt. ‘The house “ Christopher Grubb and Son” was situated somewhere in the City: it did business with India, and the colonies, and ever so many more places; though what the precise business was the young ladies did not pretend to understand; but they did know, or believed, that it was second to few in wealth, and that their father was a pretty considerable debtor to it. While liking Mr. Grubb personally very well indeed, they yet held him to be of a totally different order from themselves. “Dinner at once,” cried the Countess, impatiently, to the butler. ‘Of course it’s all cold,” she sharply added, for the especial benefit of her husband. Mr. Grubb went to the upper end of the room after greeting the Countess, and was speaking with the young ladies theres Lord Acorn bent over the back of his wife’s chair, and began to whisper to her. ‘Betsy, here’s the strangest thing! Grubb wants to marry one of the girls.” “ Absurd !” responded the wrathful little woman. ‘So it does appear, at the first blush. But when we come to look at the advantages—now do listen reasonably for a moment,” he broke off, “‘you are as much interested in this asIam. He will settle hundreds of thousands upon her, and cancel all my debts to him besides.” “Did he say so?” quickly cried the Countess, putting off her anger to a less interested moment. ‘“ He did,” replied the Earl, forgetting that he had improvised the hundreds of thousands. ‘‘ And in addition to putting me straight, he will give me a handsome sum down. You shall have five hundred pounds of it for that importunate muilliner woman, Damereau, which will enable you all to get a new nig out,” concluded the wily man, conscious that if his self-willed better-half set her temper against the match, the Archbishop of Canterbury himself could never tie it into one. | ‘Which of them does he want ?” inquired the Countess, snappishly, as if wishing to intimate that, though she might have to say Yes, it should be done with an ill grace. ‘“ He’s talking now with—which is it p—Mary.” ‘“‘T thought it was Grace,” began the Earl, in a deprecatory tone ; *T took that for granted ee Gomicbooks (E©) im