Charity Girl Part II

Ashley stops and takes Cherry into his carriage, and she tells him that she's running away from her aunt's house and trying to get to London to see her elderly grandfather. He tells her that her grandfather is generally held to be a recluse and a hard hearted man. She knows that it's wrong to run away, but she is determined to leave. He can see that Lady Bugle and her cousins have been unkind to her and he can understand her wanting to escape. So he agrees to drive her to London. When they arrive in at Lord Nettlecombe's townhouse, he finds that the old man is not in his house, and nobody knows where he has gone. Nettlecombe is a hard man who has never cared much for anyone in his life; he has never been on good terms with his sons, and he did not care for his wife, who is now dead. He had had a major row with Wilfred Steane, Cherry's father, and disowned him. Some people in society felt that Steane was badly treated even though he was far from admirable himself. He seems to have left England many years ago, and Cherry thinks he may be dead. Her mother is also dead. She is not a very clever girl and is not sure how she can support herself if her father or grandfather don't help. She tells Ashley that she does have a talent for looking after sick old ladies. Ashley tells her he will take her to Hetta's house, to stay for a few days while he finds old Lord Nettlecombe. So he drives her to Inglehurst place, and Hetta and her mother take the girl in. Lady Silverdale is a moody lady, but she takes a fancy to Cherry and is willing to have her to stay for a short while. She is more willing to do this because she finds that Cherry's aunt is Lady Bugle, whom was a social rival of hers years ago. Ashley leaves her and goes to see Lord Nettlecombe, at his country seat. But it appears that the old man has let the house to a retired merchant. He sees Nettlecombe's lawyer, and finally the man lets slip that he has gone to Harrogate, the spa town. He travels there in a post chaise and finds the hotel where Nettlecombe is staying. Lord Nettlecombe is not willing to see him, nor to hear that his granddaughter is homeless and needs help. Then Ashley is startled to find that a rather over dressed lady comes in. Nettlecombe introduces her as his bride. She is his middle aged housekeeper, who was like Nettlecombe himself, very economical. He thought it would be cheaper to marry her than to continue to pay her. However, they have now just married, and Lady Nettlecombe is spending a lot of money on herself. Ashley is a little amused at the situation but he finds that he can't get the old man nor his wife to do anything for Cherry. The lady does offer to take her into the house. But she gives a strong hint that if they take her in, she will work for them. He tells them that he does not intend to have helped Cherry leave Lady Bugle's house, only to put her into a house where she will still be an unpaid servant. He leaves Yorkshire to go home. When he gets back, he finds that Hetta is worried about Cherry. Her mother, Lady Silverdale, is prone to take a liking to someone and then to find fault with her. She is starting to get a little picky with Cherry. The only solution seems to be to try and find her a job as a companion to an old lady.