THE POOR RELATION.

CHAPTER I.

MANEUVRING.

DURING the absence of Lady Harriette and her son, which was prolonged far beyond their original intention owing to the confusion in which the earl had left his affairs, and the complicated legal business consequent upon this disorder, the health of Sir Hercules Ashton became so precarious that Ella was in constant attendance in the sick-room; while her cousins, suddenly deprived of their usual sources of amusement, moved listlessly about the house, thankful when some casual visitor broke in

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even for an hour, upon the monotony of their existence. Lord Elwood, debarred from the constant companionship of Matilda, had seized the opportunity of arranging some business in a neighbouring county; and a strange depressing quiet had fallen upon Ashton Court, which affected the spirits of the whole household.

The reflections of the orphan, as she moved noiselessly about the bed of her uncle, were very sad. The letters of Lady Harriette contained constant accounts of her father's reckless expenditure; the heavy mortgages which burthened his estates; the property which he had alienated; the difficulties which she encountered in the transfer of the title to her son; and the enormous expenses of the necessary legal documents.

The mental irritation produced by these perpetual annoyances had a very unfavourable effect upon the physical condition of the baronet, whose attacks of gout became more frequent and more severe than ever; and, during his periods of comparative ease, he dwelt unceasingly upon the embarrassments

which had accumulated upon him; and from which he should be unable to liberate himself probably for years. Now, more than she had ever yet done, the orphan felt herself oppressed by a sense of dependence at once irksome and painful, for she knew too well that after the return of Lady Harriette, when the excitement occasioned by the important events by which she was then engrossed had subsided, she would make no effort to conceal her displeasure and indignation at the attachment which she had presumed to feel, and even to acknowledge, for her cousin.

That this attachment was now utterly hopeless was evident from the tone of her aunt's letters, in which details of the pompous interment of the earl, for whom Horace had officiated as chief mourner; and undisguised exultation at the amount of the property which he must ultimately inherit, were blended with her lamentations over present difficulties. Her son had, by the express desire of His Royal Highness, been presented to one of the Princes, who had kindly assured him of the pleasure which he should feel in seeing him

succeed to the honors of his grandfather; while many of her old acquaintance, who had long forgotten her existence, suddenly became anxious to resume a friendship interrupted from the period of her marriage, and to introduce their children, among whom were several fair and fashionable girls, who were all smiles and courtesy.

The countess, as she was styled until the transfer of the title should be effected, had received all their advances with equal civility, and had ostentatiously presented her son to the young beauties who fluttered about her; and, although the recent death of her father precluded her own appearance in public, the first two months of mourning had no sooner expired than she insisted that Horace should avail himself of the most eligible of the invitations which were showered upon him. Even harassed as she was by the constant demands made upon her time by lawyers, stewards, and agents, she resolved not to lose so favourable an opportunity of weaning her son from his attachment to his cousin; and of impressing him with the social importance of rank

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and station. Surely, she argued to herself, he will never be mad enough, after he has become familiar with the highly-born and elegantly-mannered women by whom he is now surrounded, to cling to the insane fancy of his boyhood. She reasoned, however, with the head, and not with the heart. That the young man was dazzled by the splendour to which he was thus suddenly introduced, and somewhat intoxicated by the flattery which, as if inadvertently, met his ear is undeniable; but not one among the bevy of beauties who crowded the gilded saloons of the duchesses and peeresses who welcomed him so warmly, appeared to him comparable to the absent Ella.

Had any idea been entertained in the courtly circle he now frequented, that the estate of the deceased earl had been so heavily encumbered as to render the inheritance merely nominal for years, and that its only present effect was to cripple the family of the inheritor, Horace would undeniably have been met by fewer smiles and less earnest greetings; but even while aware of the reckless career of Lord