Vellenaux A Novel by Edmund William Forrest (phonics reading books TXT) π
Sending A Flood Of Soft, Mellow Rainbow Tinted Light Through The
Quaintly Curved And Deeply Mullioned Windows Which Adorned A Portion Of
The Eastern Wing Of That Grand Old Baronial Residence, Vellenaux, On A
Fine September Morning, At The Period During Which Our Story Opens. This
Handsome Pile, Now The Property Of Sir Jasper Coleman, Had Been Erected
By One Of His Ancestors, Reginald De Coleman, During The Reign Of The
Fifth Henry.
This Gallant Knight Had Rendered That Monarch Great Service During His
Wars In France, Especially At Agincourt, Where His Skill And Bravery Was
So Conspicuous, And Used To So Great Advantage, That King Henry, On His
Return To England, Rewarded His Faithful Follower With A Grant Of Land
In Devonshire, On Which He Was Enabled, With The Spoils He Had Acquired
And The Ransoms Received From His French Prisoners Of Note, To Erect A
Magnificent Chateaux, Which He Called Vellenaux, After Francois, Count
De Vellenaux, A French Noble, Whose Ransom Contributed Largely To Its
Construction. Here He Continued To Reside Until His Death, Which
Occurred Several Years After.
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- Author: Edmund William Forrest
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One, And I Delayed No Longer Than Was Necessary To Complete It, But What
I Saw And Heard During My Journey To And Fro, I Will Relate To, You In
The Evening."
The Lively Girl Was About To Make Some Reply To Her Good Natured Uncle
When A Light Rapping Was Heard; The Door Gently Opened And A Lady About
Five And Thirty Entered; She Was Attired In A Dress Of Black Silk Of
Most Undeniable Paris Cut, Which Fitted Her To A Miracle; To Edith She
Made A Slight Inclination Of The Head So As Not To Disarrange Her
Coiffure Which Was Most Elaborately Got Up Doubtless With A View To
Produce An Effect.
"I Trust, Sir Jasper, You Slept Well After Your Tedious Journey."
"Very Well, I Thank You. Oh! I See You Have The Post Bag, I Am Somewhat
Anxious About Some Letters I Expect To Receive."
Moving Around The Back Of The Baronet's Chair She Came Between Him And
Edith, Who Took The Bag From Her And Held Out Her Hand To Her Uncle For
The Key To Open It With, As Was Her Usual Custom Of A Morning; The Key
Was Handed To Her, And While They Were Thus Engaged The Eagle Eye Of The
Lady In Black Fell Upon The Will Which Was Still Lying Partially Exposed
On The Escritoire Just As It Had Fallen From Sir Jasper's Hand Ere He
Had Sank Into That Reverie Which Had Been Disturbed By The Entrance Of
Edith; She Obtained But A Hurried Glance, Yet It Was Sufficient For Her
To Decipher Its Full Meaning. As She Realized This A Dark Cloud Passed
Across Her Features, She Moved Silently To The Window And Looked Out;
When She Again Turned The Cloud Had Vanished And Her Face Was Calm And
Serene. So Occupied With The Mail Bag Had Been Both Uncle And Niece That
The Action Of The Lady In Question, In First Glancing Over The Paper On
The Desk And Her Subsequent Movement Towards The Window, Had Remained
Unnoticed By Either.
"There Is A Letter For You, My Dear," Said The Baronet Handing One To
Edith. "Oh!" Said She Joyously, "It Is From Arthur. He Is The Dearest
Old Fellow, And One Of The Best Correspondents Alive; He Tells The
Funniest Stories Of The College Scrapes He Gets Into, And How Cleverly
He Gets Out Of Them, And Makes All Manner Of Fun In His Caricatures Of
The Musty Old Professors."
"There, There Now, Away To Your Own Room," Said Her Uncle, "And Let Me
Know What New Scrape Your Dear Old Fellow Has Been Getting In And Out
Of, During Our Walk After Dinner." Edith Blushed Slightly And Hurried
Out Of The Apartment.
Chapter 1 Pg 5
Are The London Papers, I Have No Time At Present To Look Over Them, And
Would Feel Obliged If You Would Lay Them On The Library Table." She Took
Them, And With A Graceful Courtesy, Smilingly Left The Room, And Went
Direct To The Library, Sat Down At The Table And Drew The Writing
Materials Towards Her As If About To Write; But Ere She Commenced Her
Head Sank On Her Hand And She Appeared To Be, For Some Moments, Lost In
Thought. As She Will Be Brought Prominently Forward As Our Story
Progresses, We Had Better Inform The Reader At Once, All We Know Of Her
Antecedents.
Mr. Fraudhurst Had Been A Lawyer Of Some Standing In The Village Of
Vellenaux; He Was Reported Wealthy, And When On The Shady Side Of Fifty
Married The Niece Of His Housekeeper, Much To The Disgust Of The Said
Housekeeper, And Several Maiden Ladies Of Doubtful Ages Who Resided In
The Neighbourhood, Who Had Each In Her Own Mind Marked Him As Her
Especial Property, To Be Gobbled Up At The First Opportunity He Or
Chance Might Afford Them For So Doing, And They Waxed Wrath And Were
Very Bitter Against Her Who Had Secured The Prize And Carried It Off
When As They Thought It Just Within Their Grasp. The Lawyer And The
Baronet Had Been Upon Terms Of Intimacy For Several Years Prior To The
Marriage, And Sir Jasper Being A Bachelor Saw No Objection To His
Friend's Wife Visiting Vellenaux, Although She Had, As He Would
Facetiously Observe, Risen From The Ranks.
The Lady In Question Was, At Eighteen, Tall, Pretty And Ambitious. She
Had At An Early Age Determined To Rise Above The Station In Which She
Was Born, And For That Object She Had Studied Most Assiduously At The
Village School, Where She Attained The Reputation Of Being The Most Apt
Scholar Of Her Class. A Few Years Residence With A Relative London
Served To Develop Her Natural Abilities, And She Lost No Opportunity Of
Pursuing Her Studies Or Of Affecting The Tone And Fashion Of Persons
Moving In A Far Higher Circle Than Her Own.
Education And Application She Knew Would Doubtless Do Much To Elevate
Her In The Social Scale, But The Position She So Earnestly Sought For
Was To Become The Wife Of Some Man Of Good Standing In Society, Whose
Means Would Be Sufficient To Support Her In That Style To Which Her
Ambition Led Her To Hope For, And For This She Strove Hard And Was
Rewarded For Her Perseverance By Becoming The Wife Of A Reputed Wealthy
Barrister Some Thirty Years Her Senior, And For A Few Years Enjoying The
Position She Had Attained, Visiting And Visited By The Uppercrusts Of
The Place And Not Unfrequently Dining At Vellenaux And Otherwise
Enjoying The Hospitality Of Its Owner.
When Little Edith Was About Seven Years Old, Mr. Fraudhurst Was Gathered
To His Fathers, And The Sorrowing Widow Was Left In A Very Different
Position Than Was Anticipated Either By Herself Or Others Who Took Any
Interest In Such Matters; The House And Grounds Which She Fully Believed
To Be Her Own Property, Passed Into The Hands Of A Distant Relative Of
The Deceased Barrister, And With The Exception Of The Furniture And Some
Three Hundred Pounds In Cash, She Was No Better Off Than She Had Been
Prior To Her Marriage; But, Being A Woman Of Great Tact, She Contrived
To Keep This Circumstance From The Knowledge Of The Enquiring
Neighbours, And Having Applied To The New Owner Of The Premises She
Obtained Permission To Occupy Them For A Period Of Six Months.
On The Baronet Calling To Pay His Visit Of Condolence The Lady, Who Had
Chapter 1 Pg 6Previously Arranged What She Should Say And Do On The Occasion, Unfolded
To Sir Jasper Her Real Position And Out Of Friendship For Her Late
Husband Claimed His Advice And Assistance. The Worthy Old Bachelor
Declared His Willingness To Assist Her If She Could Only Point Out The
Way; As To Advice He Could Realty Give None On So Difficult A Matter.
"Oh! Sir Jasper," Exclaimed The Widow, In A Voice So Excellently
Modulated To Suit The Occasion, That The Old Bachelor Was Beginning To
Feel A Real Interest In Her Affairs, "So Like Yourself, So Good Of You
To Allow Me To Suggest The Way In Which You Can Best Serve Me In My
Peculiar And, I May Say, Awkward Position."
"There Is A Way, My Dear Sir Jasper, (And Here The Widow Bent Over And
Placed Her Soft White Hand On His Arm) In Which I Believe You Can
Materially Serve Me, And At The Same Time Advance The Interest Of One
Who Is, Without Doubt, More Dear To You Than Any Living Being; I Allude
To Dear Little Edith." At The Mention Of His Niece's Name He Looked Up
Enquiringly As If Not Quite Catching The Meaning Of Her Words.
"You Must Understand, Sir Jasper," She Continued, "That The Little
Darling Is Now Of An Age That Will Require Some Person To Guide And
Direct The Development Of Her Young Mind And Superintend Her Studies. Of
Course, Old Nurse Simms Is An Excellent And Worthy Woman, But Not Such
An One As The Future Heiress Of Vellenaux Should Be Entrusted To, As She
Advances From Childhood To Maturity. It Is An Important And Responsible
Position, And Should Only Be Undertaken By Those Who Have Already Passed
Through The Struggles And Trials Of The World, And Drank Of The Cup Of
Affliction." Here A Pearly Tear Fell Upon The Hand Of The Good-Natured
Baronet, And Here She Applied Her White Laced Cambric To Her Eyes.
This Was The _Coup De Main_ That Carried The Day. The Soft-Hearted
Bachelor Was Not Proof Against This, Besides There Was Truth And Reason
In Her Suggestions For His Darling Little Niece, And He Did Not See How
He Could, For The Present, Do Better Than To Offer To Mrs. Fraudhurst
The Charge Of Edith, And Before He Took Leave It Was Arranged That The
Widow Should Call At Vellenaux Daily And Endeavor To Gain The Confidence
Of The Child, And At The End Of The Six Months She Should Give Up
Housekeeping And Be Installed As Governess And Companion For Edith; And
So Well Did She Play Her Cards That She Had Scarcely Been There Twelve
Months When She Ruled The Household As Though She Were Its Legitimate
Mistress; Always Heading The Table When Sir Jasper Entertained His
Bachelor Friends, And Thus, We May Say, For Several Years Lived In
Clover. Her Chief Duties Consisted In Educating Edith And Arthur, Which,
For Several Years, Was A Task Which Did Not Require Much Mental
Endowment Or Physical Exertion. It Was, In Fact, More Of A Pastime Than
Otherwise, And As She Always Accompanied Edith When Visiting The
Neighboring Families, There Was But Little Monotony To Complain Of.
She Had A Double Object In Becoming An Inmate Of Vellenaux. First, That
Of Securing A Comfortable Home For Several Years. But Her Grand Scheme
Was That Of Making Herself So Necessary To The Baronet, That She Could,
In Time, Undermine The Defences, Carry The Citadel By Stratagem, And
Finally Become The Envied Mistress Of Vellenaux. But A Few Months
Residence Under The Same Roof Served To Convince Her Of The Fallacy Of
The Project; For There Were Two Grand Difficulties That She Could Not
Overcome; His Strong Objection To Matrimony, And His Affection For His
Niece. Therefore, The Shrewd And Cautious Widow Had To Relinquish Her
Attack In That Direction; And As Edith Advanced Towards Womanhood, Her
Chapter 1 Pg 7Position Became More Precarious. There Were Two Events To Be Dreaded,
And In Either Case She
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