The Larnachs Read Online Free PDF Page A

older. William tries not to show his desolation when they are together, and she attempts the same in an open way that is entirely moving.
    Colleen and Alice remain aloof and disapproving of the marriage. I have gone out of my way to be both civil and hospitable, but they are seldom at The Camp. I hope in time to have a friendship with them both, and to be accepted as their father’s wife, and mistress of the house.
    William is bewildered and cross with their studied reserve, but I have told him allowances must be made, for a time at least. It is more difficult for a daughter than a son to have a stepmother. Women have more areas of common dispute. Besides, they will marry, no doubt, and become busy with their own families. Alice is seeing much of William Inder, who is a lawyer in Naseby, and Colleen will not wish to lag behind her younger sister.
    Coming to William’s house here in Otago has not been as I imagined it, or would wish it, and much has had to be set aside because of Kate’s death and his grief, but I am not a girl bride with fanciful expectations. My concern is to support William in his loss and then to establish myself with people of some distinction of mind and character who can be our friends. Always I have my music, and that is a boon for us both. William spends much time listening to me play, and though Douglas, like his father, has only a rudimentary knowledge of music, he sometimes sits with us. The grand piano is a fine one, because William has ensured that everything in his house is of the best available quality. There is a certain ostentation in his nature that my brother Alfred mocks, and an element of profligacy as well, but there is also such generosity and genuine goodwill, such shrewd perception of human nature, that his vanity seems only a cheerful expansiveness.
    Yesterday afternoon several businessmen came to see William in connection with the international exhibition held in Dunedin last year. The doomsayers claimed it would fail because of the times, but William was an energetic supporter, and not only did hundreds of thousands of people visit over the months, but it was also a financial success. The deputation gave William a book on Scottish history and sought his advice on the best way to thank Richard Twopeny for his support when he was the editor of the Otago Daily Times . Although William has not wanted to see people much, he was cheered by the thanks and by the reminder of the exhibition’s achievement. When we were alone, he made play with Twopeny’s name, recalling other oddities such as a Dr Bigg-Wither, whom he knew while in England with his uncle, and the Goodenough family, with their history of naval valour and rank. A laugh in private at the Twopeny name was certainly not a laugh at the man himself: along with Dr Hocken, Robert Stout and William Hodgkins, he has been a conspicuous leader for art and music in the city.
    In the evening William’s lighter mood continued. He talked of the building of The Camp, and of the friendship he had with my father. Although Father was much older, they had similar political views and a similar sense of humour. William came often to our house, and we were all free with him in conversation. In our family, sons and daughters alike were accorded a hearing and judged on the perception of their comments rather than their gender.
    I remember clearly the first time I became aware of William as a man, and not just a family friend. Father had been appointed to the Legislative Council and he and William had been at an informalrecognition of that with friends at Parliament. They came home together for the evening meal. As usual, Mary was not with him. She spent much time in Otago. It was generally known that, after Eliza’s death, William had married her half-sister, long resident with them, largely to ensure the care of little Gladys. I met her only once, found her a conventional, obliging woman, closely in the orbit of her forceful husband. Kate had