The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 289: what you’re looking at

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

THE YOUNG DUCHESS; OR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY. 275 ‘“‘Oh, my lady, there’s no telling what strange ideas mad people may take into their heads. But if your Grace would just go and speak coaxingly at the door, your mother-in-law would come out, and I would take care your Grace shall not be disturbed for the rest of the night.” The young Duchess had for the last few! brown hair. minutes been so confused and hewildered by the perilous aspect which circumstances had assumed, that she had not known how to act: but now completely regaining her self-possession, she ap- proached the door, and said in a coaxing, cajoling voice, ‘ Do let me in, dear mother !—unlock the door! You know I would not hurt you!” At that moment a violent scream burst from with dear Mrs. Quinlan—she will take care of you—leave these disagreeable rooms as soon as you can.” oo ““Do you want me to go, Mary?” asked the Dowager, now playing caressingly with the-long luxuriant masses of her daughter-in-law’s light “T wish you to return to your own chamber, dear mother—and I will come and see you early in the morning,” po i Ba “But I can’t leave you there!” suddenly ex-~ claimed the Dowager, her voice well-nigh swelling into a scream as she pointed towards the door of the bed-chamber. “It’s always better to prove to persons in her inside the bed-chamber; and the young Duchegg , Grace’s state of mind that there’s really nothing felt as if all the pains and horrors of pan-/ to be frightened at,” whispered Mrs. Quinlan to demonium itself were fastening upon her. Scream | the young Duchess: then at once turning towards after scream pealed forth from the lips of the | the Dowager, she said in her usual. coaxing tone, Dowager-Duchess; and Mrs. Quinlan exclaimed | ‘You remain, dear ma’am, with your daughter in a determined voice, ‘We must break open the | just fora minute—only a minute!—and I'll go door, your Grace!” and look into that room.” But searcely were the words spoken, when the} ‘No, no—you shan’t!” shrieked the Dowager, key was suddenly turned in the lock—the door | recoiling in visible horror from the idea. ‘The was opened violently—out rushed the Dowager- | ghost is there, I tell you !—an evil spirit !—a fiend! Duchess, with the direst terror depicted upon | a fiend !: her countenance—and closing the door with! ‘I am afraid,” hastily whispered the young violence again, she thrust the key into the lock, | Duchess, ‘you will only be frightening her Grace turned it, and then tottering towards the sofa, | more and more.” sank down upon it, crying, “The ghost! the ghost !” It struck the young Duchess that at the very ‘“Not I, my lady,” responded Mrs. Quinlan. “T know best how to manage her.” Having thus spoken, she moved towards the instant when the door was burst open, by her|door of the bed-chamber: the young Duchess mother-in-law, she caught the sound of a window | made one slight gesture as if she would have held closing inside the bed-chamber. | A sensation of; her back; but then suddenly recollecting the sound relief was thus suddenly experienced by her mind, | of the closing window, she felt reassured, and she which an instant before was suffering tortures | said to herself, ‘He is gone! All is safe!” that harrowéd and excruciated it ; and now flying; “She then resumed her soothing and tranquil- towards the Dowager-Duchess, she wound her! lizing efforts in respect to her mother-in-law, while arms about her neck, saying everything soothing | Mrs. Quinlan opened the door of the bed-chamber and endearing and tranquillizing that she could | and crossed the threshold. It was a large room think of. and furnished in the most elegant style; it was “The ghost! the ghost!” exclaimed the un-| however only now dimly lighted by two tapers on fortunate lady, with passionate vehemence. ‘I | the toilet-table, which was near the further extre- saw it! a horrible dark shape gliding through | mity. Mrs. Quinlan had left the door wide open ; the room! Oh, yes! I saw it !it was wrapped | but in the position where the young Duchess now ina pall! A demon! a demon! Good spirits} was—namely, bending over her mother-in-law who are white—evil spirits are black! Oh, if it should} was lamenting and whining upon the sofa—she come again!”—and the Dowager-Duchess flung; could not command an entire view of the interior her. shuddering looks towards the door which she/ of the sleeping-apartment. Thus there was still had so carefully locked. acertam amount of suspense and uncertainty in ‘What shocking hallucinations!” whispered | the mind of the young Duchess, notwithstanding the young Duchess to Mrs. Quinlan, at the same} the incident of the closing window with which she time bending a searching look upon this female’s| sought to reassure herself; for the recollection countenance to ascertain whether she suspected | forced itself upon her mind that the height from anything sinister or not. the window to the ground was at least twenty feet ‘“‘Let me try, your Grace, to get her away|—and who could tell but Mandeville was even now,” said the keeper, whose looks expressed no-| then lying maimed, and with broken limbs, be- thing calculated to trouble the young Duchess. | neath the casement? | Mrs. Quinlan accordingly began to practise her| While continuing to speak in a soothing tone own wonted wheedlings and cajoleries with the} to her mother-in-law, the young Duchess listened demented lady; and it now seemed as if a com-| with the keenest attention to the movements of plete ‘revulsion of feeling had taken place within | Mrs. Quinlan in the adjoining room. -Never had her in respect to her keeper; for ‘she no longer| her power of hearing been more keen—more vivid seemed afraid of the woman, nor to entertain an|—more acute! She could almost comprehend _ aversion towards her; but on the contrary she| how it was that a sharpened and refined sense of | turned to her as if to one who had the power of| hearing on the part of the blind materially com- protecting her from harm. peusated them for the loss of their eyesight. She “That's right, my dear mother,” said the! could follow as it were the ‘footsteps cf Mrs. young Duchess, speaking to her as if it were aj Quinlan throughout the adjoining room—now mere child whom she was thus soothing: ‘“go| towards this corner, now towards that—now to ~~ en CoOmichooks. con