How could she love him at
such a moment as this? And then she thought of his wife. Could it be
possible that Fanny Robarts, her own friend Fanny, would be so untrue
to her as to lend any assistance to such a marriage as this; as not
to use all her power in preventing it? She had spoken to Fanny on
this very subject--not fearing for her son, but with a general idea
of the impropriety of intimacies between such girls as Lucy and such
men as Lord Lufton, and then Fanny had agreed with her. Could it be
possible that even she must be regarded as an enemy? And then by
degrees Lady Lufton began to reflect what steps she had better take.
In the first place, should she give in at once, and consent to the
marriage? The only thing quite certain to her was this, that life
would be not worth having if she were forced into a permanent quarrel
with her son. Such an event would probably kill her. When she read of
quarrels in other noble families--and the accounts of such quarrels
will sometimes, unfortunately, force themselves upon the attention
of unwilling readers--she would hug herself, with a spirit that was
almost pharisaical, reflecting that her destiny was not like that of
others. Such quarrels and hatreds between fathers and daughters, and
mothers and sons, were in her eyes disreputable to all the persons
concerned.
Pages:
590
591
592
593
594
595
596
597
598
599
600
601
602
603
604
605
606
607
608
609
610
611
612
613
614