Ellen Percy; or, The Memoirs of an Actress — page 285: what you’re looking at

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

-_—_— oO ee ea ie se I Oe re ee ELLEN PERCY; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF AN ACTRESS. —_ ee ne etme SO and I walked leisurely to and fro for about half- an-hour. During all this time I saw a light burn- ing in the front drawing-room on the first floor ; and once or twice I perceived a female figure passing behind the curtains: so that i was tole- rably confident that this was Zarah and that no- thing had as yet happened to her. It was close upon twelve o’clock when a cab drew up ata short distance from the house; and three persons got out. One was a stout elderly gentleman, dressed in black, and carrying a gold-headed cane : the other two were men of some inferior condition —and I did not like their looks. I drew as near as I could without standing the chance of exciting suspicion that I was thus on the watch; and I saw the stout gentleman and the two men proceed to the house in which Zarah dwelt. The gentleman gave a slight rap at the front door; and then I felt all the more convinced that some mischief was brewing; for it seemed intended as if this mode of knocking should not startle Zarah nor put her on her guard. The door was presently opened by a female servant: the gentleman and his two fol- lowers at once entered; and the door was shut. The cab then proceeded slowly a little way along the street—turned round—and drew up right op- posite the front door. Without a moment’s hesi- tation I went up to the cabman, put a sovereign into his hand, and said, ‘Tell me what is the meaning of all this?—‘ Why, my man,’ he at once answered, ‘it’s a little bit of lunacy affair, and that’s all.’—‘ Where are you going to take the person to?’ I demanded.—‘ I don’t know,’ he replied: ‘that gentleman and his two men got out of an omnibus down in Piccadilly, and at once called me off the stand. They told me in a few words that they were going to take a patient to an asylum, and that therefore I must not mind anything she said. The stout gentleman assured me it was all right, as the medical certificates had been signed; and so you see, my man, the busi- ness is straightforward enough. It isn’t the first time I have had todoa bit of work of this sort.— ‘ Well,’ I immediately said, ‘I am interested in the matter; and if, when you have returned from taking the patient to the asylum, you will meet me again, I will give you another sovereign. But not a word to the doctor or his men!’ —‘ All right,’ answered the cab-driver: and he named a public- house in some street off Piccadilly, which keeps open all night, and where he promised to join me. I then hastened away to a little distance; and in a few moments I saw the front door open, and a female, who seemed to be struggling violently, was hastily borne out between the two men and thrust into the cab. She was erying loudly for help: several persons stopped: I rushed back to the spot, as if attracted by thuse cries: but a police- man, On receiving some hurried intimation from the old gentleman with the gold-headed cane, said it was all right. That gentleman jumped into the cab, which his men had already entered ; the win- dows were drawn up; and the vehicle dashed away at a rapid rate. I don’t think that the whole proceeding, from the instant that the front door opened for the men to come out with poor Zarah, until the cab drove off, occupied more than a minute.” ‘* And did the driver keep his appointment with your” I anxiously asked. me Seas ee“ tS eae es “ Ob, yes, Miss,” replied William Lardner: “there was no fear of his disappointing me: he had another sovereign to earn. You will of course understand, Miss, that the instant I found it was a lunacy-affair—though no doubt a pretended one —I was compelled to keep myself quiet: I dared not interfere for the rescue of poor Zarah—I should only have been given into custody—and that would have made matters worse instead of bettering them.” ‘Yes, you could not have acted otherwise than you have done,” I hastily interjected: “ your con- duct was most discreet under the circumstances. But now for the remainder of your narrative 2” * I went to the public-house,” continued Wil- liam Lardner ; “ and there I sat for a good hour and a half before the cabman made his appear- ance. Indeed it was about half-past one o’clock in the morning when he came: and he then gave me the information I wanted. He told me that he had driven to an asylum right at the end of Notting Hill: it stands all alone, up a by-road to the right: it is called Norland House; and the name of the doctor himself is Beresford. And now, Miss, I have nothing more to say.” I expressed my sincere thanks to William Lard- ner for the services that he had rendered; and I insisted that he should accept from me the sum of ten guineas, which I placed in his hand, He would have declined to receive a_ single shilling more than the amount which he had ac- tually expended : but I declared that I should feel hurt and angry if he refused, and that on no future occasion should I ever avail myself of his services. He therefore yielded ; and I left him alone for a few minutes with Beda, that he might bid her farewell. I ascended to my chamber, and sat down to re- flect upon the course which was now to be adopted. My estimate of St. Clair’s character had not been wrongly made: his fiendish capa- city for mischief had indeed devised a terrible means of ridding himself of Zarah. I knew enough of the infamous lunacy laws to be well aware that if a couple of unprincipled surgeons, lured by bribes, had signed a particular certificate —and that if Dr. Beresford was also one of those willing instruments of mischief whom such a vil- lain as St. Clair seldom fails to pick up with readiness—Zarah’s position was indeed a most awkward one. The law was entirely against her; while the whole fiction of it, with all its associated iniquity, was completely on the side of St. Clair. There was consequently no authority to whom I could appeal on Zarah’s behalf and yet I was resolved not to abandon her. I now saw that cunning must be met by cunning, and artifice must be encountered by artifice. Already certain plans were suggesting themselves to my mind ; and I had matured them by the time Beda made her appearance, at the expiration of about ten minutes,—she having taken leave of William Lardner. I explained to Beda enough of the lunacy laws to convince her how completely Zarah was now vanquished by her merciless enemy, unless we took speedy measures for her rescue. “For the next six months,” I observed, “ she may remain in a madhouse before the visiting Commissioners can be appealed to on her behalf. GoOnmiGdooks Com a