By no means," replied Mr. Fleetmond; "he may yet have an heir, for he
will certainly marry."

"Marry!" cried the Baronet.

"Yes," answered the other, "it was that I meant by the joy it might
probably give him, beyond the possession of his estate and title."

"How he married?" said Lady Luneham, "Has he not taken a vow never to
marry?"

"Yes," answered Mr. Fleetmond, "but there are no _religious_ vows, from
which the sovereign Pontiff at Rome cannot grant a dispensation, as
those commandments which are made by the church, the church has always
the power to revoke; and when it is for the general good of religion,
his Holiness thinks it incumbent on him, to publish his bull, and remit
all penalties for their non-observance; and certainly it is for the
honour of the Catholics, that this Earldom should continue in a Catholic
family. In short, I'll venture to lay a wager, my Lord Elmwood is
married within a year."

Miss Milner, who listened with attention, feared she was in a dream, or
deceived by the pretended knowledge of Mr. Fleetmond, who might know
nothing--yet all that he had said was very probable; and he was himself a
Roman Catholic, so that he must be well informed on the subject upon
which he spoke. If she had heard the direst news that ever sounded in
the ears of the most susceptible of mortals, the agitation of her mind
and person could not have been stronger--she felt, while every word was
speaking, a chill through all her veins--a pleasure too exquisite, not to
bear along with it the sensation of exquisite pain; of which she was so
sensible, that for a few moments it made her wish that she had not heard
the intelligence; though, very soon after, she would not but have heard
it for the world.

As soon as she had recovered from her first astonishment and joy, she
wrote to Miss Woodley an exact account of what she had heard, and
received this answer:

"I am sorry any body should have given you this piece of information,
because it was a task, in executing which, I had promised myself extreme
satisfaction--but from the fear that your health was not yet strong
enough to support, without some danger, the burthen of hopes which I
knew would, upon this occasion, press upon you, I deferred my
communication and it has been anticipated. Yet, as you seem in doubt as
to the reality of what you have been told, perhaps this confirmation of
it may fall very little short of the first news; especially when it is
enforced