Lady Hester

Lady Hester

The Project Gutenberg Etext of Lady Hester or, Ursula's Narrative
by Charlotte M. Yonge (#24 in our series by Charlotte M. Yonge)
Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the
copyright laws for your country before downloading or redistributing
this or any other Project Gutenberg file.
Please do not remove this header information.
This header should be the first thing seen when anyone starts to view
the eBook. Do not change or edit it without written permission. The
words are carefully chosen to provide users with the information
needed to understand what they may and may not do with the eBook.
To encourage this, we have moved most of the information to the end,
rather than having it all here at the beginning.
**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts**
**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since
1971**
*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of
Volunteers!*****
Information on contacting Project Gutenberg to get eBooks, and further
information, is included below. We need your donations.
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a 501(c)(3)
organization with EIN [Employee Identification Number] 64-6221541
Find out about how to make a donation at the bottom of this file.

Title: Lady Hester or, Ursula's Narrative
Author: Charlotte M. Yonge
Release Date: November, 2003 [Etext #4659] [Yes, we are more than
one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on February 23,
2002]
Edition: 10
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
The Project Gutenberg Etext of Lady Hester or, Ursula's Narrative by
Charlotte M. Yonge ******This file should be named ldyhs10.txt or
ldyhs10.zip******
Corrected EDITIONS of our etexts get a new NUMBER, ldyhs11.txt
VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, ldyhs10a.txt
Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US unless
a copyright notice is included. Thus, we usually do not keep eBooks in
compliance with any particular paper edition.
The "legal small print" and other information about this book may now
be found at the end of this file. Please read this important information,
as it gives you specific rights and tells you about restrictions in how the
file may be used.
*** This Etext was prepared by Sandra Laythorpe,
[email protected].
A web page about Charlotte M Yonge will be found at
www.menorot.com/cmyonge.htm.

LADY HESTER;
OR,
URSULA'S NARRATIVE.

CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
SAULT ST. PIERRE
CHAPTER II.
TREVORSHAM
CHAPTER III.
THE PEERAGE CASE
CHAPTER IV.
SKIMPING'S FARM
CHAPTER V.
SPINNEY LAWN
CHAPTER VI.
THE WHITE DOE'S WARNING
CHAPTER VII.
HUNTING

CHAPTER VIII.
DUCK SHOOTING
CHAPTER IX.
TREVOR'S LEGACY
CHAPTER I.
SAULT ST. PIERRE.

I write this by desire of my brothers and sisters, that if any reports of
our strange family history should come down to after generations the
thing may be properly understood.
The old times at Trevorsham seem to me so remote, that I can hardly
believe that we are the same who were so happy then. Nay, Jaquetta
laughs, and declares that it is not possible to be happier than we have
been since, and Fulk would have me remember that all was not always
smooth even in those days.
Perhaps not--for him, at least, dear fellow, in those latter times; but
when I think of the old home, the worst troubles that rise before me are
those of the back-board and the stocks, French in the school- room, and
Miss Simmonds' "Lady Ursula, think of your position!"
And as to Jaquetta, she was born under a more benignant star. Nobody
could have put a back-board on her any more than on a kitten.
Our mother had died (oh! how happily for herself!) when Jaquetta was
a baby, and Miss Simmonds most carefully ruled not only over us, but
over Adela Brainerd, my father's ward, who was brought up with us
because she had no other relation in the world.
Besides, my father wished her to marry one of my brothers. It would

have done very well for either Torwood or Bertram, but unluckily, as it
seemed, neither of them could take to the notion. She was a dear little
thing, to be sure, and we were all very fond of her; but, as Bertram said,
it would have been like marrying Jaquetta, and Torwood had other
views, to which my father would not then listen.
Then Bertram's regiment was ordered to Canada, and that was the real
cause of it all, though we did not know it till long after.
Bertram was starting out on a sporting expedition with a Canadian
gentleman, when about ten miles from Montreal they halted at a farm
with a good well-built house, named Sault St. Pierre, all looking
prosperous and comfortable, and a young farmer, American in his
ways- -free-spoken,