FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124  
125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   >>   >|  
bushman, and have been out of practice for many years," said Mr. Brandon. In spite of Elsie's being an admirable dancer, she was too much excited to do her best, and the stranger made no great figure in his first debut in that line. Miss Rennie was inwardly rejoicing that she had herself got rid of him. "What part of Australia do you come from?" asked Elsie, in the first pause. "From Victoria, as it is called now. It was called Port Phillip when I went there." "Have you been long in the colony?" "A long time--long enough for all my friends to forget me. But yet I need make no complaint; they have all been very kind; but I think I am entitled to a spell now." "To a what?" asked Elsie, to whom the term was new. "To a rest, or rather a fling--a holiday. Ah! Miss Melville, you can have no idea what a rough life I have led for many years. You cannot fancy how delightful, how perfectly beautiful it is to me to be in such society as this after the Australian bush." Miss Melville had a better idea than he fancied. It is curious to meet people as strangers of whom you know a great deal, and when Elsie looked at the very gentlemanly man beside her, whose dress was perfectly fashionable, whose air and mien were rather distinguished, and whose language, in spite of a few colonial colloquialisms, had the clear, sharp tone and accent which agreeably marks out an educated Englishman among an assembly of Scotchmen, and recollected the description of his dress and habitation which Peggy had given, and the scenes and conversation which she had narrated, she was almost afraid of betraying her knowledge by her countenance. "Have you been long home from Australia?" she asked, as a safe question. "A few months, and am enjoying it intensely." "And what brings you to Scotland? I suppose your relations are all English?" "Oh, an Australian thinks he ought to see the whole of Britain, when he can visit it so seldom. A man is treated with contempt on his return if he has not seen the Cumberland lakes and the Scottish Highlands. But I have relations in Scotland besides;--the old lady sitting by Mrs. Rennie in black MOIRE (is it that you call it?) is a sort of aunt of mine, and is connected in some inexplicable way with the Rennies. Your Scotch cousinships are an absolute mystery to me; it is a pity I cannot understand them, for I am indebted to them for a great deal of hospitality and kindness, of which this is one of t
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124  
125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
called
 

perfectly

 

Australian

 
Rennie
 

Scotland

 
relations
 

Australia

 

Melville

 

suppose

 

intensely


question

 
months
 

enjoying

 

brings

 

afraid

 

Englishman

 

educated

 

assembly

 

Scotchmen

 
agreeably

accent

 

recollected

 
description
 

narrated

 

betraying

 

knowledge

 

countenance

 
conversation
 

habitation

 
scenes

kindness

 

Scotch

 

sitting

 

cousinships

 
mystery
 

absolute

 

Scottish

 
Highlands
 

connected

 

inexplicable


Rennies

 
Britain
 

seldom

 

treated

 

English

 

thinks

 

hospitality

 

contempt

 

understand

 

Cumberland