Agnes, or, Beauty and Pleasure — page 242: what you’re looking at

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

234 “You bave alluded to an incident that mate- rially coocerns myself: 1 mean my visit to the house of Mrs. Maddox to purchase Mrs. Chiek- lade’s letters. It is true that I did so. Certain letters from Hector t2 Mrs. Chicklade were in ex- istence,—letters which compromised me! I need say nO more on this point: you understand me, sir! Well then, it was vitally important to me to procure those letters; and I purchased them accordingly.” “And amongst them,” interjected Mr, Har- grave, “was one from Mr. Timperley to Mrs, Chicklade.” “T will explain the point,” resumed Cicely, “I AGNES; UR, B.ACTY AND PLrASUae. atd say sufficient in that letter—although it was brief enuugh—to enable me to comprebend when it fell into my hand, what stupendous secret it was wbich Mrs Chicklade had got in her possession, and likewise by what means it had come to her knowledge.” “And that letter,” said Lord Ormsby,—“ what has become of it ?” “I gave it to my uncle,” replied Cicely, “ and he destroyed it. It is true, Mr. Hargrave, as you have stated, that he purchased it from me with a dower of thirty thousand pounds. But tell me how this fact came to your know)l-dge,” “Agnes Evelyn casually mentioned that such met Mrs. Chicklade but a short time before she | was your dower,” rejoined Lord Ormsby; “and was killed. She demanded money of me; and one | then, as other circumstances gradually came to my Sunday, when the greater portion of the household | knowledge, it was easy by putting two and two were at chureb, I admitted her into the house in | together, to conjecture how you wrung such an im- Lincoln’s Ino Fields. I took her into my uncle’s private office: I went up to my own room to fetch my purse—and the circumstance of a housemaid commencing to dust down the lower flight of stairs, prevented me from returning to the office for twenty minutes or half-an-hour. In the mean- while the old hag was there by herself; and the writing-table was strown with documents of tke utmost importance—for my uncle had departed for church with the impression that he had locked the door of that office, whereas he had not. The infamous woman examined those papers; and she saw enough to convince herself, by certain memo- vyanda or letters—perhaps both — that forgeries had been committed! Yes, forgeries by the late Mr. Waldron!—forgeries te which my uncle must have undoubtedly been privy!” “ Forgeries concerning what case P” asked the nobleman. “ You may speak frankly: I will be- tray nothing that you tell me.” “ Forgeries,” answered Cicely, “concerning that noted business of the Ormsby Peerage—an affair, which as I have heard, caused so great a sensation about nineteen or twenty years ago. But of course you know that the very claimant himself was Agnes Evelyn’s father!” “ Proceed, Mrs. Hardress — proceed,” said the nobleman, “ You were telling me that Mrs. Chicklade saw those papers lying upon your uncle’s desk. He had doubtless been referring to them ve “Yes. Somehow or another,” continued Cicely, “he was always harping on that case—always ex- pressing his conviction that something would some day or anothercome of it. But toreturn to Mrs. Chicklade,—you can doubtless now conjecture, Mr. Hargrave, how she availed herself of the know- ledge which she had that day acquired in my uncle’s office, to endeayour to extort money from bim. It is evident that she wrote him a note de- manding five thousand pounds; and she insisted upon 4 positive answer, yea or nay, by a certain hour, to be left ata certsin house; and that house was the one in Norton Street. My uncle senta reply; and it was this letter which I found amongst the papers of the deceased Mrs. Chicklade when I purchased them from Mrs. Maddox. How my uncle could bave been so imprudent as he was to gar co much in that letter which he wrote as an ansver, I cannot tell. Such impradence was most incensistent with the general cautivusness of his cuaracter. However, very sure it igs that my atcle : mense sum from the niggardness and selfishness of Mr. Timperley. And now, Mrs. Hardreas, before we quit this topic, I would fain make an observa tion or two. You ere now expressed a wonder that your uncle, usually so cautious and so prudent, should have committed himself so fatally in that letter. Let me tell you, Mrs. Hardress, that the solution of the seeming mystery is easy :—it was Providence that did it! Yes!—how often do we mark that when 4 crime is perpetrated, the crimi- nal commits some oversight or some inadvertence which ultimately leads to his detection! Here, in the case of which we are speaking, your uncle com- mitted the oversight of recording on paper an alla- sion to one crime—namely, the forgery; and this very same letter subsequently led to the detection of his guilt in respect to the other crime which he afterwards committed—namely, the murder! It is thus by ways apparently so mysterious and in- scrutable that Rrovidence works out its objects !” Mrs. Hardress refi cted seriously for a few minutes upon the observations which had just ii from the lips of her visitor ; and then with a sigh she murmured, “ Yes—it must be so!” “It is so, Mrs. Hardress,” rejoined Lord 'Ormsby solemnly. “But now let us proceed to enother topic. I sceidentally learnt just now, on making certain inquiries, that young Mr. Barring- ton and his wife had been staying at this very hotel.” ‘ “Yes—it was a week ago,” replied Cicely. “They were only here a few hours ‘ “And something unpleasant occurred, I be- 'Eave?” said Lord Ormsby. “At least so the ‘landlord just now told me.” ' “Ab! then you were inquiring after them, Mr. Hargrave P” / “Not exactly,” responded the nobleman; “for I thought that they would have left immediately ‘upon hearing of the death of old Mr. Barrington | —which intelligence must have reached them a week back “Tt did so reach them,” rejoined Cicely. “ But I was inquiring,” pursued Mr. Hargrave, “ whether a certain Mr. De Vere “ “Ah! Mr. De Vere?”—and Mrs. Hardress could scarcely repress a start or keep back a | blush, “Yes — Charles De Vere,” continued Lord Ormsby. “I am aware that you know him. | Well then, as I was saying, I inquired if he were _known at this hotel; for I knew not exactly a lNOOLK OO co 5}