Book Description

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1876 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER VII. It will be remembered that while Marion was living in Hulme Terrace, Madam Zulmann, her mother, discovered her attachment to Tom, encouraging her in nursing that passion, and giving her some advice respecting it. She saw the young girl's promise of marvellous beauty, and could not believe but that the lad, brought continually in contact with her, must needs fall in love with her. When that time came, and she should see her daughter married to him, happily or otherwise, she would undo the evil she had done him, disclose to him his birth, and enable the Squire to realise his dream of seeing the Burtons, in the person of his nephew, take their place in their native county, and revive the glories of their house. She had never professed much love for her daughter, and at no time were her visits frequent to her. She had placed her, at an early age, in the charge of others, and had never given her any information as to her birth or parentage, or the manner of life her mother lived. It will not be wondered at, then, that there should be little of that love existing between them that should exist between a mother and daughter. To Marion, her mother had always been a mystery. She would, perhaps, be in her company a few hours two or three times in the course of the year, but never in those interviews were there any of those endearments between them which one would look for between persons so nearly related. If she knew little of her mother, she knew absolutely nothing of her father, whether he was dead or alive, or anything respecting him. It is true she defrayed the cost of Marion's maintenance and education until she obtained her first engagement as an actress; but beyond that nothing had ever passed between them. There were no...