Agnes, or, Beauty and Pleasure — page 151: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

AGNES; OR, BEAUTY AND PLEASURE. he locked up the safe and consigned tho key to his pocket; ‘‘ but I would much rather decline the transaction. { am sorry, my lord—but—but : me Speak ! ! tell me your meaning !” cried Ramo- rino. “Speak! I adjure—I command you !”— for he was utterly bewildered by the conduct of the old man. “ Do not press me, my lord,” said Furlo. “ You have married the lady Well, of course it is your lordship’s choice Yes, indeed, 4 hope for your Excellency’s sake ® “ Turlo, I beseech you to explain your mean- ing,” said the Minister of Police. “I do not de- mand—I implore and entreat! Is not Lucrezia di Mirano rich ?” “No doubt of it, my lord,” answered Farlo. “ Yes—rich beyond all question " “ And beautiful,” continued the Count. ‘ But pshaw!” he cried, stamping his foot with angry impatience: “ what bas beauty to do with a money-transaction like this ?—or what concern bas an old miser with female loveliness ?” “ True, my lord—I have no concern with any- thing of the kind,” stammered Furlo. “TI hope your Excellency will excuse me if I say no more on the subject - * Al! but more must be said!” ejaculated the Minister. ‘“ You must tell me, old man, where- fore you so suddenly declined the bargain which you had at first accepted,—and why you gave vent to an ejaculation when the name of a noble lady was mentioned—that lady who has now become my wife P” * Ab, my lord! if you force me to speak,’ re- plied Furle, “I must o’en tell the truth. Iam sorry for your lordship—but perhaps it may be hushed up * What mean you?” ejaculated the Minister ; and he wondered how anything of all that was uppermost in his own thoughts, could be known to the old miser. ** Methinks, my lord,”’ rejoined Furlo, “ that the sooner you take some step, the better: for La Dolfina told me La Dolfina!” cried Ramorino: vile harridan A “Ah, my lord! if there had not been such ladies as the Marchioness di Mirano—saving your Excellency’s presence—to patronise La Dolfina, she would not have been enabled to drive the traflic that she did “Well, well,’ interrupted the Count, burning with impatience: “ but what about Lucrezia di Mirano ? She patronised La Dolfina, you said ?” “Yes, my lord: and a certain French gentle- man it appears his name was M, Marcel- lin “what that »”? “ Yes—M. Marcellin—a French gentleman. Proceed !” “‘ He made her confess, my lord, before the French Ambassador, that she had sold poison to the Marchioness di Mirano. He had found a phial in her ladyship’s writing-desk “ And do you mean to tell me,” asked the Count, while a shudder passed throughout his form,—* do you mean to tell me that the wretched woman La Dolfina told such a tale of falsehood against the Marchioness of Mirano ?” ' **Whether true or false, my lord,” rejoined Furiv, sue told the tale—she gave it in writing 143 to the French Ambassador—she signed it with her own hand.” * And M. Marcellin was present P” inquired Ramorino. “Yes : and he bade her lose no time in leaving Florence, my lord.” “ Then this was yesterday P” said the Minister of Police. “ Yes—this was yesterday. Perhaps, my Jord, you will be astonished that I should know anys thing of all these circumstances,” continued Furlos “ but I will tell you how it happened. For some years past, La Dolfina has been accustomed to leave ber little savings in my hands, so that I might place them out at interest; and she suddenly came to me yesterday for the purpose of recalling what was due to her. Haviog known her for so long a time : * An eligible acquaintance, Signor Fvrlo!” said the Minister. ‘ Proceed. Having known her for so long a time a “It was natural enough, my lord, that we should got chatting together,” continued Furlo; “ al- though of course I did not admire La Dolfina’s character generally. But however, we got chat. ting together ; and she explained to me the rea- sons which induced her to leave Florence. In fact, my lord, she asked me to receive a few little debis that are owing to her, and to sell off her furniture, and remit her the produce ; but 1 would have no- tning to do with the business until she acquainted me with the reasons of her abrupt departure.” “ Perdition!” muttered the Minister of Police to himself; ‘‘step by step I seem to be floundering further and further into a morass of difficulties! And Lucrezia too—danger upon danger accumu- lates !—peril upon peril!” He mused paiofully for a few moments; and then he said, ‘But tell me, old man—what has this silly gossip of La Dolfina got to do with the transaction which I was just aow proposing to youP —why reject tho security that was offered? Have I not told you that the lady of whom we are speaking bas become my wife ?” “Since your lordship compels me to proclaim the truth,” answered the old man; “I am bound to confess that I do not like the business, nor yet the security. You are very powerful as a Minister no doubt, my lord: but you would be totally un- able to protect the lady against the hand of justice, if that hand were outstretched to clutch her, And then I have heard in fact, I know that accord- ing to the law a person’s property is always liable to confiscation for high crimes and felonies such as this; and it is very evident that something hostile is intended by that M. Marcellin:—or else why should he have everything taken down in bluck and white before the French Ambassador ?” * But remember, Furlo,” said the Minister, “that Lucrezia di Mirano’s property has become mine by marriage !” “T am not so sure of that, my lord,” inter- rupted the old man. “Some eighteen or twenty years ago, I lost a good round sum through a par- ticular decision rendered by the criminal tribuoul at Leghorn: for I was living at Leghorn at the time - ‘¢ And that decision?” said the Minister impa- tiently. A lady borrowed a sum of money of mo—a CoOmiclook co S|