the Darrock
house and lands in Cumberland, an estate also in Yorkshire, and a very
large property in Jamaica, which produced, at that time and for some
years afterward, a great income. Out in the West Indies he met with
a pretty young lady, a governess in an English family, and, taking a
violent fancy to her, married her, though she was a good five-and-twenty
years younger than himself. After the wedding they came to England, and
it was at this time that I was lucky enough to be engaged by them as a
servant.

I lived with my new master and mistress three years. They had no
children. At the end of that period Mr. Norcross died. He was sharp
enough to foresee that his young widow would marry again, and he
bequeathed his property so that it all went to Mrs. Norcross first, and
then to any children she might have by a second marriage, and, failing
that, to relations and friends of his own. I did not suffer by my
master's death, for his widow kept me in her service. I had attended on
Mr. Norcross all through his last illness, and had made myself useful
enough to win my mistress's favor and gratitude. Besides me she also
retained her maid in her service--a quadroon woman named Josephine, whom
she brought with her from the West Indies. Even at that time I disliked
the half-breed's wheedling manners, and her cruel, tawny face, and
wondered how my mistress could be so fond of her as she was. Time showed
that I was right in distrusting this woman. I shall have much more to
say about her when I get further advanced with my story.

Meanwhile I have next to relate that my mistress broke up the rest of
her establishment, and, taking me and the lady's maid with her, went to
travel on the Continent.

Among other wonderful places we visited Paris, Genoa, Venice, Florence,
Rome, and Naples, staying in some of those cities for months together.
The fame of my mistress's riches followed her wherever she went; and
there were plenty of gentlemen, foreigners as well as Englishmen, who
were anxious enough to get into her good graces and to prevail on her to
marry them. Nobody succeeded, however, in producing any very strong or
lasting impression on her; and when we came back to England, after more
than two years of absence, Mrs. Norcross was still a widow, and showed
no signs of wanting to change her condition.

We went to the house on the Yorkshire estate first; but my mistress did
not fancy some of the company round about, so we moved aga