FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   86   87   88   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   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   >>   >|  
Mrs. Jersey was very glad to see her, and as soon as Dolly was rested a little, entered upon the fulfilment of her promise to show the house. Accordingly she took her visitor round to the principal entrance, in another side of the building from the one Dolly had first seen. Here, before she would go in, she stood to admire and wonder at the rich and noble effect; the beauty of turrets, oriels, mouldings, and arched windows, the wide and lofty pile which stretched away on two sides in such lordly lines. Mrs. Jersey told her who was the first builder; who had made this and that extension and addition; and then they went in. And the first impression here was a contrast. The place was a great hall of grand proportions. There was nothing splendid here to be seen; neither furniture nor workmanship called for admiration, unless by their simplicity. There were some old paintings on the walls; there were some fine stags' horns, very large and very old; there were some heavy oaken settles and big chairs, on which the family arms were painted; the arms of the first builder; and there were also, what looked very odd to Dolly, a number of leather fire buckets, painted in like manner. Yet simple as the room was, it had a great charm for her. It was lofty, calm, imposing, superb. She was not ready soon to quit it; and Mrs. Jersey, of course, was willing to indulge her. "It is so unlike anything at home!" Dolly exclaimed. "That's in America?" said the housekeeper. "Have you no old houses like this there, ma'am?" "Why, we are not old ourselves," said Dolly. "When this house was first begun to be built, our country was full of red Indians." "Is it possible! And are there Indians there yet, ma'am?" "No. Oh, yes, in the country, there are; but they are driven far off,--to the west--what there are of them.--This is very beautiful!" "I never heard anybody call this old hall beautiful before," said the housekeeper, smiling. "It is so large, and high, and so simple; and these old time things make it so respectable," said Dolly. "Respectable! yes, ma'am, it is that. Shall we go on and see something better?" But her young visitor had fallen to studying the ceiling, which had curious carvings and panellings, and paintings which once had been bright. There was such a flavour of past ages in the place, that Dolly's fancy was all alive and excited. Mrs. Jersey waited, watching her, smiling in a satisfied manner; and then, after
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   86   87   88   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   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Jersey

 

smiling

 

builder

 
beautiful
 
Indians
 

painted

 
manner
 

simple

 

housekeeper

 

country


paintings
 

visitor

 

rested

 

driven

 

Accordingly

 
America
 

exclaimed

 

unlike

 

entered

 
fulfilment

houses

 
promise
 

bright

 

flavour

 

panellings

 

carvings

 

studying

 
ceiling
 

curious

 

watching


satisfied

 

waited

 

excited

 

fallen

 

Respectable

 

things

 

respectable

 

proportions

 

splendid

 

effect


furniture

 

admiration

 

admire

 

workmanship

 

called

 

contrast

 
beauty
 

lordly

 

stretched

 

windows