bookhunter wrote:
Several posts have mentioned possible connections between Raverly the foxhound used in hunting, the painting of the deer killed by a hunter, and the name Robert Hunter.
Even though he is the supposed tragic figure, it is making me laugh. My last name is Hunter, and my husband's family tree dates back to Hunters of Scotland! There is a Hunterston castle that we have visited. (Only open to members of Clan Hunter) When I read of the summer house in the book and the old, musty atmosphere of the manor, I am reminded of the contrast between the Hunterston castle and the "New House" that dwarfs the ancient castle. Of course, everything is relative--the "new" house is only a couple of hundred years old!
The Clan home page link is below, and while I doubt it relates to the story, you might find it interesting. The crest is pictured with the motto "Cursum Perficio" which means "Finish the course" or "I follow the course." And now that I look at it again, might that be a Scottish thistle on the buckle?
http://www.clanhunter.org.uk/index.html
So "Cursum Perficio"....
Ann, LADY bookhunter
AHA! The butler didnt do it! It was Ann's husband of the Scottish Hunter clan that did it!
OK,here are the things of why it appears sure that Grace is an offspring of one of the members of the house of Riverton:
1. She looks very familiar to Hannah, too familiar
2. She has the same features of them, the same colouring was it>
3. Frederick freaked out when he saw her on the balcony, like he had seen a ghost (or her mother).
4. We know her mother got pregnant while working there and had to leave and there is no father around and she wont talk about him.
5. And one that we havent mentioned yet, when she is interviewed by Lady Violet, "She paused and the looked at me closely, in a way that made me feel trapped, like a mouse inside a jar. Was Lady Violet just checking her out to see if she was clean as Grace supposes, or to look at her that closely, could she be looking for a family resemblance she doesnt want to see?
Now think of this. If she is lets say Frederick's daughter, and she has an instant crush on David....what happens if they grow up together falling in love, thats her half brother! What could drive a young passionate poet to suicide, if thats what it was? hmmmm
1. She looks very familiar to Hannah, too familiar
2. She has the same features of them, the same colouring was it>
3. Frederick freaked out when he saw her on the balcony, like he had seen a ghost (or her mother).
4. We know her mother got pregnant while working there and had to leave and there is no father around and she wont talk about him.
5. And one that we havent mentioned yet, when she is interviewed by Lady Violet, "She paused and the looked at me closely, in a way that made me feel trapped, like a mouse inside a jar. Was Lady Violet just checking her out to see if she was clean as Grace supposes, or to look at her that closely, could she be looking for a family resemblance she doesnt want to see?
Now think of this. If she is lets say Frederick's daughter, and she has an instant crush on David....what happens if they grow up together falling in love, thats her half brother! What could drive a young passionate poet to suicide, if thats what it was? hmmmm
vivico1 wrote:
...Now think of this. If [Grace] is lets say Frederick's daughter, and she has an instant crush on David....what happens if they grow up together falling in love, thats her half brother! What could drive a young passionate poet to suicide, if thats what it was? hmmmm
I thought it was Robbie, not David, who was the young poet who committed suicide (or, my speculation maybe was murdered or died in a tragic accident that somebody should have prevented).
nickco3 wrote:
I've seen in early posts, that some people have concluded that Grace was in her 40's when she had Ruth. How did you come to that conclusion? I missed it. Thanks
Well Grace was 14 when she sent to work a Riverton, and this was before the Great War broke out in 1914. Grace mentions on page 8 that Ruth is a child of the second war which ended in 1945.
England declared war on Germany in 1939. If Ruth was born during the war then Grace would be 39-45. My personal opinion is that Ruth was old enough to have experienced part of the war. Grace says "child of the second war," I took that to mean part of her childhood was during the war. When Grace mentions the "air of woe" that surrounds children born in stressful times, it is easy imagine Ruth actually having memories of the Blitz and London burning and of Britain being alone against Hitler until 1941. So I think Ruth may have actually been born around 1936. I think the rise of Germany in the 30's would still qualify as stressful times in England.
