The Project Gutenberg EBook of April's Lady, by Margaret Wolfe Hungerford

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Title: April's Lady
A Novel

Author: Margaret Wolfe Hungerford

Release Date: May 29, 2007 [EBook #21641]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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APRIL'S LADY.

A NOVEL.

BY "THE DUCHESS"

_Author of "Molly Bawn," "Phyllis," "Lady Branksmere," "Beauty's
Daughters," etc., etc._

Montreal:
JOHN LOVELL & SON,
23 St. Nicholas Street.

Entered according to Act of Parliament in the year 1890, by John Lovell
& Son, in the office of the Minister of Agriculture and Statistics at
Ottawa.

APRIL'S LADY.

"Must we part? or may I linger?
Wax the shadows, wanes the day."
Then, with voice of sweetest singer,
That hath all but died away,
"Go," she said, but tightened finger
Said articulately, "Stay!"

CHAPTER I.

"Philosophy triumphs easily over past and over future evils, but
present evils triumph over philosophy."

"A letter from my father," says Mr. Monkton, flinging the letter in
question across the breakfast-table to his wife.

"A letter from Sir George!" Her dark, pretty face flushes crimson.

"And _such_ a letter after eight years of obstinate silence. There! read
it," says her husband, contemptuously. The contempt is all for the
writer of the letter.

Mrs. Monkton taking it up, with a most honest curiosity, that might
almost be termed anxiety, reads it through, and in turn flings it from
her as though it had been a scorpion.

"Never mind, Jack!" says she with a great assumption of indifference
that does not hide from her husband the fact that her eyes are full of
tears. "Butter that bit of toast for me before it is _quite_ cold, and
give Joyce some ham. Ham, darling? or an e