CHAPTER XIII.
Extraordinary Disappearances 229

CHAPTER XIV.
Honoured Hearts 253

CHAPTER XV.
Romance of Wealth 262

CHAPTER XVI.
Lucky Accidents 279

CHAPTER XVII.
Fatal Passion 289

Index 309

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

1. "For the blast of Death is on the heath,
And the grave yawns wide for the child of Moy."
Frontispiece.

2. She opened it in secret page 38

3. "Madam, you have attained your end. You
and I shall meet no more in this world" 72

4. The figure stood motionless 150

5. Lady Sybil at the Eagle's Crag 168

6. Dorothy Vernon and the Woodman 214

7. Lady Mabel and the Palmer 248

8. There came an old Irish harper, and sang an
ancient song 272

STRANGE PAGES

FROM

FAMILY PAPERS.

CHAPTER I.

FATAL CURSES.

May the grass wither from thy feet! the woods
Deny thee shelter! Earth a home! the dust
A grave! The sun his light! and heaven her God.
BYRON, _Cain_.

Many a strange and curious romance has been handed down in the history
of our great families, relative to the terrible curses uttered in
cases of dire extremity against persons considered guilty of injustice
and wrong doing. It is to such fearful imprecations that the
misfortune and downfall of certain houses have been attributed,
although, it may be, centuries have elapsed before their final
fulfilment. Such curses, too, unlike the fatal "Curse of Kehama," have
rarely turned into blessings, nor have they been thought to be as
harmless as the curse of the Cardinal-Archbishop of Rheims, who
banned the thief--both body and soul, his life and for ever--who stole
his ring. It was an awful curse, but none of the guests seemed the
worse for it, except the poor jackdaw who had hidden the ring in some
sly corner as a practical joke. But, if we are to believe traditionary
and historical lore, only too many of the curses recorded in the
chronicles of family history have been productive of the most
disastrous results