ance, as it would during that time be in the hands. of trustees, who were not likely to suffer any part of it to be applied to the payment of his debts. But, in the event of his daughter's marriage, the whole income of this fortune would be at her disposal; and if her husband were himself wealthy, might probably be devoted, in a great measure, to relieve the distresses of her father. These considerations made Mr. Morton eager to hasten this event, and ready to bestow her upon one who, in point of worldly circumstances, was so unexceptionable a match as Lacy; and this will account for his present civility to that gentleman, on whom, in this their first interview, he made a very favourable impression. CHAPTER XIV. The property by what it is should go, All's Well that Ends Well. LACY, on his return from Westcourt, had a conversation with his father on the subject of his visit, when, after entertaining him with a humorous account of his reception by Lord Rodborough, and the acts and sayings of that important personage, he came at length to the more interesting relation of his meeting with Mr. Morton, and the conversation that passed between them. Sir William listened in silence, with a manner from which it would be difficult to collect whether he was gratified or displeased. He gave a slight shrug, when his son had ended, and made no immediate reply. "Well!" he exclaimed at length, "to give the devil his due, Morton is a well behaved man, and I find no fault with you for liking him. He can act the gentleman, very creditably. Civility is his forte. The man delights in picking up a fresh subject to practise upon. He has won all the rest of his neighbours, and now he wishes to subdue us." "I cannot think him unwise, Sir," replied Herbert, "in wishing to cultivate your acquaintance; and I hope you will not suppose that there can be any thing mean or discreditable in such an endeavour on his part.' "Discreditable! certainly not. There, Herbert, you go too far. If I appeared at all displeased, it was only because I thought that, considering our relative situations, he might have been somewhat less precipitate. He might have suffered the first overtures to come from me. "In that I entirely agree with you, Sir. Sir. But I think you will find that he has not been at all wanting in delicacy towards you. His invitation was to me, and only with a view to my meeting Sackville: he expressed no intention of calling upon you, or of drawing you into a visit to him: he rather seemed to take it for granted that you would not visit him-inquired after your health, and spoke as if he thought that nothing but indisposition on your part had hitherto prevented him from being better acquainted." "Why, what the deuce!" exclaimed the baronet, with a humorous look of vexation, "does the fellow think I am bedridden? I hope you did not allow him to go away with the persuasion that your father is so poor a creature that he cannot pay a morning visit." "Perhaps, Sir, I was wrong; but I did not attempt to undeceive him. Indeed I hardly knew what other cause to assign, and I thought it was better that he should attribute the cessation of your intercourse to your ill health, than to any feeling of hostility." "Hostility! Herbert-God forbid. I am sure I wish the man no harm; and if we have never been very good friends, it is quite as much his fault as mine. If he means to be civil, so do I: if he does not, c'est égal. You say he has asked you to his house. Very well-then go and see him. I have not the least objection to that; only don't drag your aged father out of his sanctuary, and set him down to the troublesome task of bandying civilities with this polished piece of hardware." VOL. I. 13 "I thank you, Sir," said Herbert, after a short pause, for the permission you give me; but I would, at the same time, mention that my visiting that family will place you in such a situation that you cannot, without either a marked display of incivility, or some strong plea, as that of illness, refrain from visiting them too. Mr. Morton may probably extend some invitation to yourself, and you will then be compelled to do at last, what could have been done with a better grace in the first instance, and you will be placed under the disagreeable necessity of following where you ought to lead. On this account, I cannot help wishing "I understand you," interrupted Sir William; "you wish that I should call upon him first. Very well--I will think about it. You may call at all events. But," he added, after a pause, "I cannot understand, Herbert, why you are now so eager to be acquainted with the very persons whom you used to hold in such aversion. It may here be observed, in order to account for what will otherwise appear a very remarkable want of quick-sightedness, that Sir William Lacy was hitherto unacquainted with the fact of his son having met any of the Morton family at Huntley Park. Far from suspecting him of having fallen in love with Miss Morton, he was not even certain that any such person existed. He knew that the lady who was Miss Morton was now married to Lord Malvern; but his information did not extend to the fact of her having a younger sister. All the little details respecting the affairs of his neighbours, which the microscopic mind of Lady Lacy gleaned and retained so faithfully, were to him a species of rubbish which he impatiently dismissed from his thoughts. Nor did he often avail himself of his lady's retail assortment of petty information. Led, by a pardonable predilection for beauty, into marrying a woman of a very ordinary mind, he soon disco vered that there was little similarity in their turn of thought. Her vapid and pointless conversation generally gave him a sensation of weariness; and as she never understood his jokes, he had as little satisfaction in talking as in listening to her. Lady Lacy's love of talking was not checked by this want of a willing hearer: but if she did not relax in her volubility, Sir William did in his attention, and in course of time relaxed into a habit of seldom hearing any thing she said. His mechanical assent, though it might perhaps have deceived a stranger, and was even some satisfaction to Lady Lacy, was, nevertheless, the sure indication of perfect ab sence. Lady Lacy, despairing of finding in her husband a willing listener to her matrimonial views respecting Herbert, had not communicated to him any of the little machinery which she had put into play, in conjunction with her daughter, for the purpose of withdrawing him from the fascinations of Miss Morton. She had, however, said a little about this young lady being at Huntley, to which little Sir William paid no attention, and was now as unconscious as if that piece of intelligence had never been uttered in his presence. We left the baronet expressing his wonder that his son should be anxious to visit the Mortons. A silence followed this remark. Herbert was to speak, and his rising colour and anxious countenance showed that he was with some difficulty making up his mind to a communication of no common importance. His father attentively watched him, and preserved an air of silent expectation. 66 "I could give you," said Herbert, speaking slowly and with evident effort, many reasons for my wish to be better acquainted with the Mortons-reasons that would be quite satisfactory, and partly real. But I could not reconcile myself to any thing short of a full explanation. I have one |