Page:Authors daughter v1.djvu/299

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AN INVITATION FROM A BROTHER.
295

half-sister, was as willing as Anthony to believe in the liberality of the unknown Australians, and was perfectly satisfied to leave matters as they stood.

With some relenting thoughts with regard to to his mother and his unknown sister in his heart, and with some annoyance at his aunt and Edith's willingness to accompany him to Stanmore, where he would have preferred to be at perfect liberty, Anthony determined to look into matters on the estate, and to see if more could not be made of it than his grandfather had done.

One of the first farmers whom he went to see was Mr. Copeland, and when he was introduced to George and his Australian wife, he naturally felt more interest in them than he could have done a month before. Politeness might have dictated his questions about Australian life and Australian scenery, but Anthony Derrick always spoke of what interested himself, and if his thoughts had not recently been turned in that direction, he would have asked few questions about the great south land. Old Mr. Copeland was pleased to see the kindly interest the young squire took in George and Jessie, it augured well for Millmount being left in the hands of the family. Jessie was pleased, too, to find that Mr. Derrick really was more amiable than she