the object of his love. He
was not, however, deterred by this consideration, and he soon
succeeded in making a strong impression upon Lady Neville's heart.
They soon contrived means of meeting each other in private,
resorting to all sorts of manoeuvres and inventions to aid them in
keeping their guilty attachment to each other from the knowledge of
those around them.

[Sidenote: The Duke of Gloucester.]

In the mean while, the Duke of Gloucester himself, who was now,
however, considerably advanced in life, lost his wife, she dying about
this time, and he almost immediately conceived the idea of making Lady
Neville her successor. He thought it not proper to say any thing to
Lady Neville herself on this subject until some little time should
have elapsed, but he spoke to her father, the Earl of Salisbury, who
readily approved of the plan. Gloucester was at this time prime
minister of England, and the lady whom he should choose for his wife
would be elevated by her marriage to the highest pinnacle of grandeur.
Of course, the importance and influence of her father also, and of all
the members of her family, would be greatly increased by so splendid
an alliance.

[Sidenote: Splendid prospect.]

So it was agreed that the match should be made, but the arrangement
was to be kept secret, not only from the public, but from the intended
bride herself, until a suitable time should have elapsed for the
widower to recover from the grief which the death of his former wife
was supposed to have occasioned him.

[Sidenote: Gloucester's declaration.]

At length, when the proper time for mourning had expired, Gloucester
made his declaration of love. Lady Neville listened to it, thinking
all the time what Somerset would say when she came to communicate the
news to him. She did communicate it to him on the first opportunity.

[Sidenote: Perplexity of Lady Neville.]

Great was the distress and the perplexity which the lovers felt while
consulting together and determining what was to be done in such an
emergency. They could not endure the thought of a separation. They
could not be married to each other, for Somerset was married already.
For Lady Neville to remain single all her life in order to be at
liberty to indulge a guilty passion was an idea not to be entertained.
They knew, too, that their present relations to each other could not
long be continued. A thousand circumstances might happen at any time
to interrupt or to terminate