Dorrien of Cranston

At Cranston Hall a stern retired officer presides over a household riven by pride, duty, and long-standing estrangement. Years earlier his eldest son died in a mountain accident, making the impetuous younger son the heir despite a bitter quarrel and exile to America after a disgrace involving a threatened breach of promise. A terse letter announcing the younger man's return reopens old resentments: the father vows conditional acceptance while threatening disinheritance for further misconduct, and the mother's divided loyalties reveal competing impulses of justice, reputation, and maternal affection, placing family tensions and social standing at the heart of the narrative.