5000 he had already offered, and
countenance the wedding by letting Jane be present at it. It was hard to
do all this in the time, but well worth trying for, and not impossible. A
two-horse fly is not a slow conveyance, and he offered the man a guinea
to drive fast; so that it was not nine o'clock when they reached
Silverton Grove House, a place Alfred had never heard of. This, however,
I may observe, was no wonder: for it had not borne that name a
twelve-month.
It was a large square mansion of red brick, with stone facings and
corners, and with balustrades that hid the garret windows. It stood in
its own grounds, and the entrance was through handsome iron gates, one of
which was wide open to admit people on foot or horseback. The flyman got
down and tried to open the other, but could not manage it. "There, don't
waste time," said Alfred impatiently, "let me out."
He found a notice under the bell, "Ring and enter." He rang accordingly,
and at the clang the hall-door opened, as if he had pulled a porter along
with the bell; and a grey-haired servant out of livery stood on the steps
to receive him.
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