The time was approaching fast when Alfred would be of age.

I returned from college to spend the long vacation at home, and made some advances toward bettering my acquaintance with young Monkton.

They were evaded--certainly with perfect politeness, but still in such a way as to prevent me from offering my friendship to him again.

Any mortification I might have felt at this petty repulse under ordinary circumstances was dismissed from my mind by the occurrence of a real misfortune in our household.

For some months past my father's health had been failing, and, just at the time of which I am now writing, his sons had to mourn the irreparable calamity of his death.
This event, through some informality or error in the late Mr.Elmslie's will, left the future of Ada's life entirely at her mother's disposal.
The consequence was the immediate ratification of the marriage engagement to which my father had so steadily refused his consent.