Aunt Margaret's Visit; Or, the False and the Real (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. A FAMILY RE-UNION. I 0 Miss Hamilton is come!' was the first exclamation which reached Margaret's ears, in a voice which she recognised as that of her sister-in-law; and with an expres- c sion of great surprise at the announcement of her arrival, that lady, followed by her daughters, entered the drawing-room. Mrs Hamilton greeted her husband's sister with what she doubtless meant for cordiality, though her welcome lacked the genial warmth and kindliness which the sensitive, timid Margaret felt was necessary to set her at ease with a relative to whom she was almost a stranger. But whatever was wanting in the mother's welcome was more than supplied in that of the daughters, two beautiful girls, whose engaging manners and pleasing appearance quite justified the praises of Miss Hamilton's cottage acquaintance. Ellinor, the eldest of the sisters, was undoubtedly what would be considered the handsomer of the two; for she possessed all that beauty which regular features, a dazzling complexion, fine eyes and hair, combined with much grace and elegance of figure, can give; and her appearance was much more calculated to command admiration at first sight than that of her sister. But the intelligent and gentle expression which shone in the soft hazel eyes of Alice, imparted a charm to her face which was altogether wanting in that of Ellinor. For, after the animation which had lighted up her features as she welcomed her aunt had subsided, and her countenance was once more in repose, the latter could not fail to observe that a certain haughty superciliousness, united, with a good deal of apparent self-satisfaction?whether arising from a consciousness of beauty or from some other cause ?seemed to be the chief characteristic of the elder sister, and greatly marred the e...