'Only let me win
you,' he had said, 'and I will submit to all that.' But now her
lack of warmth seemed to irritate him, and he conducted himself
towards her with a resentfulness which led to her passing many hours
with him in painful silence. The heir-presumptive to the title was
a remote relative, whom Lord Uplandtowers did not exclude from the
dislike he entertained towards many persons and things besides, and
he had set his mind upon a lineal successor. He blamed her much
that there was no promise of this, and asked her what she was good
for.
On a particular day in her gloomy life a letter, addressed to her as
Mrs. Willowes, reached Lady Uplandtowers from an unexpected quarter.
A sculptor in Pisa, knowing nothing of her second marriage, informed
her that the long-delayed life-size statue of Mr. Willowes, which,
when her husband left that city, he had been directed to retain till
it was sent for, was still in his studio. As his commission had not
wholly been paid, and the statue was taking up room he could ill
spare, he should be glad to have the debt cleared off, and
directions where to forward the figure. Arriving at a time when the
Countess was beginning to have little secrets (of a harmless kind,
it is true) from her husband, by reason of their growing
estrangement, she replied to this letter without saying a word to
Lord Uplandtowers, sending off the balance that was owing to the
sculptor, and telling him to despatch the statue to her without
delay.
Pages:
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113