Gotobed at his
house during his sojourn in the county. Then he added in a
postscript that the hounds met at Rufford Hall on Tuesday and that
he had a horse that carried a lady well if Miss Trefoil would like
to ride him. He could also put up a horse for Mr. Morton.
This was all very civil, but there was something in it that was
almost too civil. There came upon Morton a suspicion, which he did
not even define to himself, that the invitation was due to
Arabella's charms. There were many reasons why he did not wish to
accept it. His grandmother was left out and he feared that she
would be angry. He did not feel inclined to take the American
Senator to the lord's house, knowing as he did that the American
Senator was interfering in a ridiculous manner on behalf of Goarly.
And he did not particularly wish to be present at Rufford Hall with
the Trefoil ladies. Hitherto he had received very little
satisfaction from their visit to Bragton,--so little that he had
been more than once on the verge of asking Arabella whether she
wished to be relieved from her engagement. She had never quite
given him the opportunity. She had always been gracious to him in a
cold, disagreeable, glassy manner,--in a manner that irked his
spirit but still did not justify him in expressing anger. Lady
Augustus was almost uncivil to him, and from time to time said
little things which were hard to bear; but he was not going to
marry Lady Augustus, and could revenge himself against her by
resolving in his own breast that he would have as little as
possible to do with her after his marriage.
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