Angelina: Or, The Mystery of St. Mark's Abbey — page 96: what you’re looking at

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

THE MYSTERY OF ST. MARK 8 ABBEY, 83 around. The floor was richly carpeted, the tables were of highly-polished mahogany , inlaid with mother of pearl; the chairs and sofa were covered with rich crimson damask, and arranged on :helves on one side of the apartment, were a number of books in elegant bindings. Angelina could scarcely believe the evidence of her eyes, snd stood for a few mements in utter amazement. For what purpose could she have been placed so near this room, and who bad been its occupant or occupants, she was at a loss to conjecture. The discovery, however, by no means displeased her, for if she was doomed to remain a prisoner within those gloomy walle, here was a change, and something to lighten the tediousness and melancholy of her incarceration. But then she remembered the peculiar emphasis with which Bridget had uttered the words, *“‘ Examine the Portrait;’”’ and at the same time the deep solemnity of her countenance, which seemed to imply that she bad every thing to dread; besides, she had told her that “she feared the baron intended her no good,” and, consequently, ehe concladed that she had directed her attention to the apartment for some purpose which she coald not at present fathom, byt it was evident that it was not as a means of escape, for here she was as much confined aa in the adjoining rooms; true, she saw a door on the other side of the apartment, but it was locked, and therefore she had no means of effecting an escape that way. : In vain endeavouring to fathom this mystery, our heroine advanced to- wards the library, and was about to take a book from the shelf, when she was startled by hearing a loud nolee like the banging of'a door, which seemed to proceed from no great distance from her. She trembled and lovked around her, expecting to see some one in the apartment, but all was (he same as when she entered it. That she was not mistaken, she was certain; and shortly afterwards, es she listened with breathless anxiety and curiosity, she could plainly distinguish the murmuring of voices, which evidently proceeded from that side of the apartment on which the door was. Onur heroine, more surprised than ever, approached, on tiptoe, the door, and with an emotion almost insupportable, she stooped and peeped through the key-hole. For a second or so she could not clearly distinguish any particular objects, but at length she observed that the room beyond was very small, and apparently entirely of stone, and contained bat little furnitare. But her attention was soon wholly engrossed by two objects that bad at first been bidden from her view, and who now advanced towards the table. It was the Baron de Morton and Rufus; the former held something in his hand, upon which he was intently gazing, and by the colour of the ribbon which hung from it, Angelina had not | the least doubt but that it was the locket which she had lost. The baron at length raised his head, and she could perceive an expression of unusual agitation in his strongly-lined features. He folded his arms a moment, and traversed the room hastily, as if buried in deep and painfal reflec- tion, then he returned to the table again, at which his faithfal myrmidon was standing, and once more fixed his eyes earnestly on the locket. ‘s Rufus,” at length he uttered, ‘‘it is the sames and this at once con- firms our suspicions—this is the very locket.I have seen worn by Algernon! The truth is now evident, and. this pretended peasant’s brat—this girl whose beauty has caused such a semation among the young men in the neighbours — ml COL @ OO SS (CO)