The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 305: what you’re looking at

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

i THE YOUNG DUCHESS; OR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY. 291 “‘Alas!” said Condamine, “I suppose that we must not for a single minute attempt to blind our- selves to the real truth ? But your Grace’s un- fortunate mother-in-law is not responsible for her actions !” ‘‘ My God!” groaned the young Duchess, “do not rush to hasty conclusions !” ‘What | is there any doubt ?—amy mystery ?” asked Condamine, while the governess manifested an equal degree of awefelt suspense and fearful interest in respect to the tragedy. ‘“‘I know not what to tell you——I am at a loss how to answer you,” said the young Duchess, who was terribly agitated. ‘It would be horrible to suspect any one unjustly!” ‘Good heavens !” murmured Condamine, shock and appalled; “is there any reason to suppose that another, hand than that of your. Grace’s unfortunate mother-in-law could have dealt the blow? Has Murder been stalking through this mansion during the night ? Dreadful as it vould be to find ourselves forced to look upon the L’ow- ager as the authoress of the deed, yet ’twere better far that such should be the solution of tie mystery, imasmuch as with her, poor creature ! if cannot be looked upon as a crime!” ‘You are right, Mr. Condamine—you are right,” said the young Duchess hurriedly. “With her it cannot be accounted a crime !— she is not the mistress of her own actions—and therefore she is not responsible for them !” “ Assuredly not, your Grace.” ‘““Ah, reverend sir,” exclaimed the young Duchess, ‘ you may conceive how awful ‘a thing it is for me to associate the name of even my poor demented mother-in-law with this shocking deed! And therefore if I hesitated at first to pro- claim the sad truth—if I could not bring my lips immediately to shape the words which should bid you go and strike the pointed daggers of af~ fliction into the hearts of your young pupils ad ‘Oh, dear lady,” cried Mrs. Boyle, weeping, ‘‘we are at no loss to understand all the delicacy and generosity of your conduct !” ‘‘Enough, dear madam,” said the Dvuchess. ‘“* Go—and you too, dear sir—and to your respec- tive charges break the horrible tidings as cau- tiously and as considerately as possible! I have sent for my husband Tell them therefore that their brother will be here presently to comfort and console them ; and you may add that if they wish to see me, I will come to them.”’ The tutor and the governess bowed respectfully to the young Duchess, and retraced their way slowly along the passage, whispering mournful comments upon the horrid traged'y that had taken place, and upon the sad task ‘which it now re- mained for them to fulfil Ass; for the young Duchess herself, she returned to her own apart- ment,—where, with Lavinia’s assistance, she per- formed her morning toilet. At first there was a long and profound silence between the patrician Mistress and the maid, until it was at length broken by the former, who said, ‘ This is a fear~ ful occurrence, Lavinia !” ‘‘ Fearful, indeed, my lady. Might I venture to ask what your Grace thinks——” ‘“ Alas, Lavinia,” replied the Duchess, as for an instant she flung a searching look upon her hand- maiden, ‘“‘ what cas I think, but the same that everybody else must think! My unfortunate mother-in-law—doubtless in some terrible aber- ration of the intellect But run, Lavinia, and see how her Grace is !—inquire of those who are attending her toilet! I feel that an awful re- ‘sponsibility now rests upon me; and if there should be any danger of my poor mother-in-law breaking out into some paroxysm of insane pas- _sion, or being seized upon by some fearful hallu- cination, I must not expose the lives of those comparatively helpless young women who are now attending upon her! Go, for heaven's sake, Lavinia!—and bring me back word ; for I am nervous and agitated I feel as if this excite- ment would drive me mad !” Lavinia, sped from the room; and in abcut ten minutes she returned, saying, “ Her Grace seems to be perfectly quiet and harmiess: but I think there is a more marked péculiarity in her gaze— she looks strange —-half vacant—half wild— though her air is listless, languid, and droop-~ img ‘I will go to her the moment my toilet is finished,” said the young Duchess, ‘ Where is she now ?” ‘‘ They have taken her away from the scene-of~ the shocking occurrence,” responded Lavinia : ‘and they are now giving her Grace her break- fast in the Green Drawing-room.” ‘‘ Did the maids discover any traces of the \leed ?” asked the young Duchess, hesitatingly, and with a visible shudder,— I mean, any marks o\” blood upon the: hands or night-dress of the un- fartunate Dowager ?” “' Nothing of the sort, my lady,” answered La- wonia. ‘“ But then your Grace must recollect that Folood-stained hands had been washed in the basin in the dressing-room and wiped upon the towel that was picked up.” ‘‘ Ah, true,” said the young Duchess; and again she flung a rapid but searching glance upon La-- vinia. ‘“Every now and then,” continued the abigail, who did not seem to notice that she was thus scru- tinisingly regarded by her. mistress, “ the Dowager murmurs, ‘ The ghost! the ghost .°—and thenshe appears as if she were shuddering with a cold terror. One would really think she had seen something z ‘What do you mean, Lavinia?”—and the young Duchess stooped to pick up her kerchief as she put the question. “I mean nothing particular, your Grace I cam mean nothing,” replied the young woman. ‘Indeed I daresay it is only an illusion on the part of her ladyship,” — thus alluding to the Dowager. ‘ But one gets bewildered with barely thinking of the hideous circumstance—and that while we were most of us, if not all, quietly sleep- ing in our beds, a life was being taken—a knife was being driven deep down into a human heart: ” “Yes—my God! it was shocking!—terrible !” murmured the young Duchess in a hollow tone. ‘*]T will go and see if my unfortunate mother-in- law: ‘ At this moment there was a knock at the ante- room door; and Lavinia hastened to answer the summons. It was a maid-servant who came to announce that Mr. Brooks, the surgeon of Beacons- field, whom a mounted messenger was sent off to fetch, had just arrived, in company with the a oO COMO Colin