Ness very often, Mr. Corbet along with him if he was in Hamley, a
stranger friend, or one of his clients. Sometimes, reluctantly, and when
he fancied he could not avoid the attention without giving offence, Mr.
Wilkins would ask Mr. Dunster, and then the two would always follow
Ellinor into the library at a very early hour, as if their subjects for
_tete-a-tete_ conversation were quite exhausted. With all his other
visitors, Mr. Wilkins sat long--yes, and yearly longer; with Mr. Ness,
because they became interested in each other's conversation; with some of
the others, because the wine was good, and the host hated to spare it.
Mr. Corbet used to leave his tutor and Mr. Wilkins and saunter into the
library. There sat Ellinor and Miss Monro, each busy with their
embroidery. He would bring a stool to Ellinor's side, question and tease
her, interest her, and they would become entirely absorbed in each other,
Miss Monro's sense of propriety being entirely set at rest by the
consideration that Mr. Wilkins must know what he was about in allowing a
young man to become thus intimate with his daughter, who, after all, was
but a child.
Mr. Corbet had lately fallen into the habit of walking up to Ford Bank
for _The Times_ every day, near twelve o'clock, and lounging about in the
garden until one; not exactly with either Ellinor or Miss Monro, but
certainly far more at the beck and call of the one than of the other.
Pages:
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52