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A Life's Eclipse, by George Manville Fenn
The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Life's Eclipse, by George Manville Fenn This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: A Life's Eclipse
Author: George Manville Fenn
Illustrator: J. Nash
Release Date: May 4, 2007 [EBook #21317]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
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A Life's Eclipse
CHAPTER ONE.
"What insolence!"
John Grange's brown, good-looking face turned of a reddish-brown in the cheeks, the warm tint mounting into his forehead, as he looked straight in the speaker's eyes, and there was a good, manly English ring in his voice as he said sturdily--
"I didn't know, Mr Ellis, that it was insolent for a man to come in a straightforward way, and say to the father of the young lady simply-- yes, and humbly--`I love your daughter, sir.'"
"But it is, sir, downright insolence. Recollect what you are, sir, only an under-gardener living at the bothy on thirty shillings a week."
"I do recollect it, sir, but I don't mean to be an under-gardener always."
"Oh, indeed," said James Ellis sarcastically, "but poor old Dunton is not dead yet, and when he does die, Mrs Mostyn is quite as likely to appoint Daniel Barnett to his place as yo