this walk, Mr. Mercer gave me
the history of poor Susan Meynell.

"I didn't care to talk about the story the other night before the young
lass," he said, gravely; "for her heart's so full of pity and
tenderness, pretty dear, that any tale such as that is like to upset
her. But the story's known to almost all the folks in these parts; so
there's no particular reason against my telling it to you. I've heard
my poor mother talk of Susan Meynell many a time. She was a regular
beauty, it seems; prettier than her sister Charlotte, and she was a
pretty woman, as you may guess by looking at _our_ Charlotte, who is
thought the image of her grandmother. But Susan was one of those
beauties that you don't see very often--more like a picture than flesh
and blood. The gentry used to turn round to look at her at Barngrave
church, I've heard my mother say. She was a rare one for dress, too;
for she had a few hundreds left her by her father and mother, who had
both of them been very well-to-do people. The mother was daughter to
William Rand, of Barngrave, a man who farmed above a thousand acres of
his own land; and the father kept a carpet warehouse in
Aldersgate-street."

This information I received with respectful deference, and a
hypocritical assumption of ignorance respecting Miss Meynell's
antecedents.

Mr. Mercer paused to take breath, and then continued the story after
his own rambling fashion.

"Well, my lad, what with her fine dress, and what with her pretty
looks, Susan Meynell seems to have thought a little too much of
herself; so that when Montagu Kingdon, of Kingdon-place, younger
brother to Lord Durnsville, fell in love with her, and courted her--not
exactly openly, but with the knowledge of her sister, Mrs.
Halliday--she thought it no more than natural that he should intend to
make her his wife. Mr. Kingdon was ten years older than Susan, and had
served in Spain, and had not borne too good a character abroad. He had
been in a hard-drinking cavalry regiment, and had spent all his money,
and sold out directly the war was over. There was very little of all
this known down hereabouts, where Mr. Kingdon stood very high, on
account of his being Lord Durnsville's brother. But it was known that
he was poor, and that the Durnsville estates were heavily encumbered
into the bargain."

"Then this gentleman would have been no grand match for Miss Meynell,
if--" "If he had married her? No, my lad; and it might have been the
kno