On the anniversary of her birth we never manifested any signs of rejoicing, because it was also the anniversary of my late mistress's death.

Her father invariably spent that day alone in the library; and walked, at dusk, as far as Gimmerton kirkyard, where he would frequently prolong his stay beyond midnight.

Therefore Catherine was thrown on her own resources for amusement.

This twentieth of March was a beautiful spring day, and when her father had retired, my young lady came down dressed for going out, and said she asked to have a ramble on the edge of the moor with me: Mr.Linton had given her leave, if we went only a short distance and were back within the hour.
'So make haste, Ellen!' she cried.

'I know where I wish to go; where a colony of moor-game are settled: I want to see whether they have made their nests yet.' 'That must be a good distance up,' I answered; 'they don't breed on the edge of the moor.' 'No, it's not,' she said.