Rickety Giggs; but these great names were
much thrown away upon poor Mary. The doctor entered the room first,
and the heiress followed him with downcast eyes and timid steps. She
was at first afraid to advance, but when she did look up, and saw
Frank standing alone by the window, her lover restored her courage,
and rushing up to him, she threw herself into his arms. "Oh, Frank;
my own Frank! my own Frank! we shall never be separated now."

CHAPTER XLVII

How the Bride Was Received, and Who Were Asked to the Wedding

And thus after all did Frank perform his great duty; he did marry
money; or rather, as the wedding has not yet taken place, and is,
indeed, as yet hardly talked of, we should more properly say that
he had engaged himself to marry money. And then, such a quantity of
money! The Scatcherd wealth greatly exceeded the Dunstable wealth; so
that our hero may be looked on as having performed his duties in a
manner deserving the very highest commendation from all classes of
the de Courcy connexion.

And he received it. But that was nothing. That _he_ should be feted
by the de Courcys and Greshams, now that he was about to do his duty
by his family in so exemplary a manner: that he should be patted on
the back, now that he no longer meditated that vile crime which had
been so abhorrent to his mother's soul; this was only natural; this
is hardly worthy of remark. But there was another to be feted,
another person to be made a personage, another blessed human mortal
about to do her duty by the family of Gresham in a manner that
deserved, and should receive, Lady Arabella's warmest caresses.

Dear Mary! It was, indeed, not singular that she should be prepared
to act so well, seeing that in early youth she had had the advantage
of an education in the Greshamsbury nursery; but not on that account
was it the less fitting that her virtue should be acknowledged,
eulogised, nay, all but worshipped.

How the party at the doctor's got itself broken up, I am not prepared
to say. Frank, I know, stayed and dined there, and his poor mother,
who would not retire to rest till she had kissed him, and blessed
him, and thanked him for all he was doing for the family, was kept
waiting in her dressing-room till a very unreasonable hour of the
night.

It was the squire who brought the news up to the house. "Arabella,"
he said, in a low, but somewhat solemn voice, "you will be surprised
at the news I bring you. Mary Thorne i