‘I have never heard of him.’ The members of the committee were gathering to finalise the arrangements for the horse racing and sports. Neither Justin nor the Professor had yet arrived and Aunt Bartrum had just repeated the gossip that the doctor was the second son of Viscount Rockbourne. ‘He was Vice-Admiral Sir Joshua Tremayne,’ Captain Gosforth told them. ‘He was granted the title for his exploits in saving the West Indies for the British Crown back in eighty-two. The Battle of the Saints, they called it, on account of the islands being named after saints. I was there, a lowly midshipman, but it was a fierce encounter and he acquitted himself with great honour.’ ‘Oh, a new title.’ Her ladyship was not going to give way easily. ‘New titles have been scattered like falling leaves in the last few years, no matter that the recipient has no ancient family background to support it. Why, it denigrates the position of those whose antecedents go back hundreds of years. Mancroft can trace his line back to Elizabeth’s time…’ ‘To be sure,’ Mrs Bartrum soothed.
What do You think about Marrying Miss Hemingford (2005)?
