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Far to Seek - A Romance of England and India by Maud Diver
page 56 of 598 (09%)
that seemed fated to wreck their brave adventure. To gain all, they had
risked all: and events had amazingly justified them.

Within a year of his ill-considered marriage Sir Nevil had astonished
all who knew him with the unique Exhibition of the now famous Ramayána
pictures, inspired by his wife: a series of arresting canvases, setting
forth the story of India's great epic, her confession of faith in the
two supreme loyalties--of the Queen to her husband, of the King to his
people. His daring venture had proved successful beyond hope. Artistic
and critical London had hailed him as a newcomer of promise, amounting
to genius: and Lilámani Sinclair, daughter of Rajputs, had only escaped
becoming the craze of the moment by her precipitate withdrawal to
Antibes, where she had come within an ace of losing all, largely through
the malign influence of Jane--her evil genius during those wonderful,
difficult, early months of marriage.

Nevil had returned to find himself a man of note; a prophet, even in his
own county, where feathers had been ruffled a little by his erratic
proceedings. Hence a discreetly changed attitude in the neighbourhood,
when Lilámani, barely nineteen, had presented her husband with a son.

But--for all the gracious condescension of the elderly, and the frank
curiosity of the young--only a discerning few had made any real headway
with this attractive, oddly disconcerting child of another continent;
this creature of queer reserves and aloofness and passionate pride of
race. The friendliest were baffled by her incomprehensible lack of
social instinct, the fruit of India's purdah system. Loyal wives and
mothers who 'adored' their children--yet spent most of their day in
pursuit of other interests--were nonplussed by her complete absorption
in the joys and sanctities of home. Yet, in course of time, her patent
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