The Argosy, Vol. 49

About this issue

This serialized domestic novel follows Hester Halliwell, a plain but virtuous young woman whose romance crystallizes when George Archer, a handsome clergyman and friend of her brother Alfred, arrives as a guest. Despite their contrasting temperaments—he the ornament of society, she practical and unadorned—they fall in love. Her mother Mrs. Halliwell consents to an engagement conditional on his securing a living. When Archer is appointed curate at Seaford rather than Alfred (who takes a Welsh curacy), Hester remains silent despite her mother's disapproval, burdening herself with guilt over her selfishness. At his first service, Hester glimpses the beautiful young Lady Georgina of Seaford Park, the Earl's daughter, whose eyes fix upon Archer. Mrs. Halliwell summons Hester to nurse her ailing brother in Wales, separating her from Archer, who has confided his hopes that Lord Seaford's favor may secure him ecclesiastical preferment. The narrative traces Hester's loneliness and quiet suffering.