Lady Castleton shortly afterwards joined the party, and having been introduced to her brother-in-law, warmly welcomed her nephew.
Headland received a still more enthusiastic welcome from the old general, who quickly made his appearance.
“And here comes Harry and another gentleman galloping along the avenue as if the fate of the kingdom depended on their speed,” he exclaimed.
Julia and the captain went out to meet them, and in another minute returned accompanied by Harry and the lawyer. Harry could scarcely speak. Julia knew by the way he embraced her and his mother, that his heart was bounding with joy.
“She can no longer be looked upon as unworthy of marrying a Castleton, for she is a Castleton herself, though all my May desires is to bear my name,” he exclaimed at length; “but Mr Shallard will explain the discovery we have made more clearly than I can. Our good cousins promise to bring her here as soon as a carriage can be obtained.”
Sir Ranald, as may be supposed, listened to this announcement with the deepest interest, as he did to the account given by the lawyer.
Mr Shallard, after briefly describing the discovery of the chest which had been so long hid by Martin Goul in the old mill, then went on to state that, having examined the documents in it, he had no doubt whatever that the little girl who had been rescued from the wreck on board which the chest had been found, was the child of the long lost Ranald Castleton. This was corroborated by the locket with the initials of M.C. which she had on, and with the dress which had been carefully preserved by Dame Halliburt, while several of the articles in the chest had the Castleton arms and crest.
The eyes of those who knew Sir Ranald were turned towards him.
“Through the mercy of heaven my two children have been restored to me on the same day,” he exclaimed. “I had embarked for England after her mother’s death, with my little daughter and her native nurse. While we were still in ignorance that the war had broken out, we were captured by a French privateer. A heavy gale was blowing at the time, and I, with other passengers, had just been removed, when all further communication between the ships was prevented by the fury of the wind and sea. I was almost driven to despair when I found that the ships had separated during the night. It was the opinion of our captors that only a few men having been put on board, the crew had risen and retaken the vessel. They searched in vain for her. It was believed, with savage satisfaction by the French, that a wreck we fell in with two days afterwards, which went down before she could be boarded, was her. I had no reason to doubt that they were wrong in their suspicions, and mourned my child as lost to me for ever.”
All listened with breathless interest to what Sir Ranald Castleton was saying. Harry’s satisfaction can better be imagined than described.