y far
apart--the one lying in the county of Galway, the other in that
of Cork--he was strongly attached to his brother, and evinced his
affection by an active correspondence, and by deeply and proudly
resenting that neglect which had branded Sir Arthur as unfit to mix in
society.

When I was about eighteen years of age, my father, whose health had
been gradually declining, died, leaving me in heart wretched
and desolate, and, owing to his habitual seclusion, with few
acquaintances, and almost no friends. The provisions of his will were
curious, and when I was sufficiently come to myself to listen to, or
comprehend them, surprised me not a little: all his vast property was
left to me, and to the heirs of my body, for ever; and, in default
of such heirs, it was to go after my death to my uncle, Sir Arthur,
without any entail. At the same time, the will appointed him my
guardian, desiring that I might be received within his house, and
reside with his family, and under his care, during the term of my
minority; and in consideration of the increased expense consequent
upon such an arrangement, a handsome allowance was allotted to him
during the term of my proposed residence. The object of this last
provision I at once understood; my father desired, by making it the
direct apparent interest of Sir Arthur that I should die without
issue, while at the same time he placed my person wholly in his power,
to prove to the world how great and unshaken was his confidence in
his brother's innocence and honour. It was a strange, perhaps an
idle scheme, but as I had been always brought up in the habit of
considering my uncle as a deeply injured man, and had been taught,
almost as a part of my religion, to regard him as the very soul of
honour, I felt no further uneasiness respecting the arrangement than
that likely to affect a shy and timid girl at the immediate prospect
of taking up her abode for the first time in her life among strangers.
Previous to leaving my home, which I felt I should do with a heavy
heart, I received a most tender and affectionate letter from my uncle,
calculated, if anything could do so, to remove the bitterness of
parting from scenes familiar and dear from my earliest childhood,
and in some degree to reconcile me to the measure. It was upon a fine
autumn day that I approached the old domain of Carrickleigh. I shall
not soon forget the impression of sadness and of gloom which all that
I saw produced upon my mind