The baronet placed his ward on one side of the table, and seated
himself opposite to her.
No servant waited upon them. Sir Oswald himself attended to the wants
of his guest. He heaped her plate with dainties; he filled her glass
with rare old wine; but she ate only a few mouthfuls, and she could
drink nothing. The novelty of her present position was too full of
excitement.
During the whole of the repast the baronet asked her no questions. He
talked as if they had long been known to each other, explaining to her
the merits of the different pictures and statues which she admired,
pleased to find her intelligence always on a level with his own.
"She is a wonderful creature," he thought; "a wonderful creature--a
priceless pearl picked up out of the gutter."
After luncheon Sir Oswald rang for his carriage, and presently Honoria
Milford found herself on her way to her new home.
The mansion inhabited by the Misses Beaumont was called "The Beeches."
It had of old been the seat of a nobleman, and the grounds which
encircled it were such as are rarely to be found within a few miles of
the metropolis; and they would in vain be sought for now. Shabby little
streets and terraces cover the ground where grand old cedars of Lebanon
cast their dark shadows on the smooth turf seven-and-twenty years ago.
Honoria Milford was enraptured with the beauty of her new home.
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