The Lady of the Isle: The Island Princess
Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte Southworth
9781465522306
213 pages
Library of Alexandria
Overview
It was the first of May, the marriage day of the Viscount Montressor, of Montressor Castle, Dorsetshire, and Estelle, only daughter and heiress of Sir Parke Morelle, Hyde Hall, Devonshire. A glorious morning! the cloudless, blue sky smiled down upon the green hills and dewy dales and deep woods of Devon; and the park around the Hall was all alive and musical with the joyous songs of birds, and the merry laughter of young men and maidens gathering to celebrate their May-day festival, and to do honor to the marriage of their landlord’s daughter. The elm-shaded, winding avenue that led from the highway to the house, was arched at each terminus by a mammoth wreath of flowers, and many were the carriages that passed under them, on their way to assist at the wedding; and these contained only the bridesmaids, and the nearest friends and relatives of the family, whose relationship or position gave them the right to attend the bride to church;—for a still more numerous party had been invited to meet her at the altar. The villagers and tenants, grouped about under the shade of the great old trees, or wandering over the greensward on either side of the grand avenue, watched these equipages as they rolled on, commenting—as usual—“That is Sir William Welworth’s carriage—he is the bride’s uncle by her mother.” “Who don’t know that?—Hush! my eyes! lend me a rumberrell, Joe, or I shall be dazed blind, along o’ looking at this turn out! Whose is it? since you know everything.” “That?—that’s Lord Dazzleright’s—the great cove’s as made a fortin’ and riz by the law—(not at a rope’s end, though, as you’ll rise one of these days, Bill, my lad, if you don’t keep out o’ the squire’s preserves)—but by reading and pleading, and keeping on the right, do you see, of the powers that be; until he got himself made a Baron of;—which people do say he’ll get upon the woolsack yet,” replied the gamekeeper, Joe, as the splendid equipage of the new member of the house of peers dashed past them. “Yes; but what does he he do here?” inquired the laborer, Bill. “He’s the god-father of the bride, you know, besides being a bachelor without children, I mean sons-and-heirs.” “Here comes somethin’ like a huss—my granny! how solemncolly! who’s comin’ to a funeral?” “Oh let me see!—that? why that’s the carriage of the old Duchess of Graveminster, the grand-aunt of Lady Morelle. She was expected at the hall yesterday; something must o’ stopped her,” said Joe, as a large, sombre, dark-colored traveling carriage lumbered heavily past. “What o’clock is it, Mr. Joe? you’re a weatherwise, and you can tell,” inquired a young girl leaving a group of maidens and joining the two men. “What o’clock, my dear?” replied the gamekeeper, looking up at the sun with an air of confidence. “Well, I should say it was just about a quarter to ten.” “Oh—dear me! and the weddingers won’t pass till nearly twelve! and here we are to wait two mortal hours! and I want to be away at the Maypole so much.” “Hush! my darling; look! here comes his lordship’s carriage, itself, just as sure as you’re the prettiest lass in the country,” whispered the gamekeeper, as a very plain but handsome traveling carriage of dark green, drawn by a pair of spirited grey horses, rolled on up the avenue toward the Hall. “Whose Lordship’s? What are you thinking about, Mr. Joseph?” asked the little maiden, fretfully. “Why, his Lordship’s! The Lorship’s—the only Lordship to be thought about now, my dear! Lord Montressor’sLordship!” “Now that’s impossible, Mr. Joseph! If you be gamekeeper, you sha’n’t make game of me, at that rate. Lord Montressor! Marry-come-up! What should he, of all men, be doing here at this, of all hours?” “Come up to marry, I suppose. Anyhow it is he.” “Nonsense! It can’t be, I tell you! It would be out of all manners! Don’t I know? He’s to bring all his groomsmen, and his friends and relations to the church, and wait there for Miss Morelle and her friends and relations! That’smanners.”
