They were very happy ones.

My dear father lived, and our mutual affection only grew stronger as time went on.
Then, when I was a man, it gradually dawned upon me, through many hints, that my father had the same anxiety for me that Aunt Maria had had for the Rector.

He wished me to marry.

At one time or another my fancy had been taken by pretty girls, some of whom were unsuitable in every respect but prettiness, and some of whom failed to return my admiration.

My dear father would not have dreamed of urging on me a marriage against my inclinations, but he would have preferred a lady with some fortune as his daughter-in-law.
"Our family is an old one, my dear boy," he said, "but the estate is much smaller than it was in my great-grandfather's time.