Trotter was possessed of little besides
his pension, which died with him; so Mrs. T. was obliged to eke out
a miserable subsistence on the receipts from a little city property
left her by her father. Soon after her husband's demise Mrs. Trotter
removed to Lachine (a small village on the river side about nine
miles above Montreal), in order to live more economically, and soon
became acquainted with Mr. and Mrs. Dombey, who had taken up their
abode there for the summer season. Mrs. Dombey took quite a fancy to
the fascinating widow, and they soon became inseparable.
Every evening on the promenade might be seen Mrs. Trotter leaning
on the arm of Mr. Dombey, his wife following accompanied by his
friend Fairfax; or they were together on the river boating, or
enjoying a picnic on "Dixie" Island. Occasionally, when the weather
was unfavorable to out-door amusements, they would engage in a
rubber of whist, generally ending the evening with a little music.
Dombey did not know one tune from another, but his wife praised
Mrs. Trotter's singing so highly that he soon imagined that in that
art, as in others, she was nearly, if not altogether, perfect. When
it became time for Mrs. Trotter to go home, Jacob used to escort her
to her cottage on the river bank, about a mile distant from his own
residence, and after a few weeks there sprang up an intimacy between
them which culminated in the incidents which gave rise to my
narrative.
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