Ellen Percy; or, The Memoirs of an Actress — page 305: what you’re looking at

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299 lowing morning she still further rejoiced both her husband and myself by appearing in the breakfast parlour. The habit of taking her repast in the boudoir was thus given up; and the lady’s-maids no longer waited at meal times upon their mistress. Two or three days passed—and Lady Kelvedon was now improving visibly and undoubtedly under the influence of the peculiar drug which kad been added to the other ingredients of her medicine. I should observe that the invitations had been sent to the Countess of Belgrave and to Major and Mrs. Gower: they had been accepted on the part of both the ladies—but business unexpectedly took Major Gower to the north of England, so that he did not propose to accompany his wife on the oc- casion to Kelvedon Hall. CHAPTER CXY. MATILDA, I am now about to speak of incidents which oc- curred on the fourth day after my arrival at Kelve- don Hall. It was the 20th of December; and it was on the 13th that Hermione had begun to take the old gipsy-woman’s medicine: the lapse of a week had beyond all doubt done much for this amiable lady—and I had not the slightest mis- giving left in reference to her eventual cure. It was about noon, and I was seated with Lord and Lady Kelvedon in an _ elegantly-furnished apartment called “the morning room,” and which was situated in the front part of the house. Presently, a young man on horseback was seen approaching along the avenue; and Lord Kelve- don remarked in a casual manner, “It is young Brownlow.” “Ab, indeed!” ejaculated Hermione; “ this reminds me of something. I am sorry to say I shall shortly lose Agatha.” “How so?” inquired his lordship: and it may be easily conceived by the reader how I myself was suddenly rendered an interested person in this discourse. “She has told me very candidly,” continued Lady Kelvedon, “that she is going to settle her- self by marriage. She has therefore intimated her desire to leave me at the expiration of a month; and the young woman spoke very feelingly, I can assure you—for you would not think by her coun- tenance that she possessed such a good heart as I know that she does.” “But how does the appearance of this young Brownlow, the tax-gatherer’s son,” added Lord Kelvedon, “put you in mind that Agatha has given you warning? Do you mean that ” “Yes,” replied Hermione, with a smile: “I mean precisely what I see that you already more than half conjecture; for it is this very iden- tical Richard Brownlow that Agatha is going to marry.” I started: but as my kerchief at the same mo- ment fell from my lap upon the carpet, it seemed as if this were the cause of that abrupt movement On my part, and thus it passed without farther notice. “Ah, indeed,” said Lord Kelvedon: “so Agatha is gcivg to marry young Brownlow? Well, she is ————Vv1_6 TC tr rr ee eee eS ELLEN PERCY; OB, THE MEMOIRS OF AWN ACTRESS, a fortunate girl. His father is tolerably well off, and the young man himself seems to be industrious. I have noticed for the last twelvemonth that he has gone about collecting the assessed taxes ; so that I suppose old Brownlow has delegated the office of collector to him.” While Lord Kelvedon was thus speaking, I was surveying Richard Brownlow from the window. He was advancing on horseback, at a moderate pace ; and | therefore had a full opportunity of thus studying his appearance. He was a good. looking young man, about five and twenty years of age: he was neatly dressed, without any pre- tension ; and there was nothing in his countenance to justify the suspicions which I entertained con- cerning him. And then anidea struck me. How could ke be a tax-collector if he were unable to write, and was compelled to get his mistress to perform the part of secretary? But then the next moment another thought occurred to me,— which was, that the receipts might be already filled up and signed by his father—so that he him- self had nothing to do but to deliver them on re- ceiving the respective amounts. The young man rode up to the entrance of the mansion; and just at the moment Lord Kelvedon remarked, “ He rides a very nice nag.” “Yes,” I said: “so far as I am a judge, it seems a nice horse.” I hastened to avail myself of the excuse thus afforded for approaching the window; and under pretence of looking at the horse, I was in reality studying the proceedings of its rider. The hall- porter was standing on the steps; and Richard Brownlow was lcoking over one of those long narrow-shaped books containing the printed forms used by tax-collectors. In a few moments the young man found the receipt for which he was searching; and he mentioned a sum to the hall- porter. ‘This official counted out the money from his own pocket; and then I beheld Richard Brownlow filling up the printed form with a pencil as he still maintained his seat on horseback. “ Perhaps,” I thought to myself, “ he may just be enabled to write his name, and that is all P” The receipt was handed to the porter, and Richard Brownlow rode away. In a few moments a footman brought the receipt into the morning. room ; for Lord Kelvedon was always very parti- cular in respect to his accounts. “Are the taxes heavy in this part of the country,” J inquired, longing to obtain a sight of the document which the old nobleman now held in his hand. “ Look, Miss Percy,” he said: and he tendered me the paper. I took it:—the entire form had just been filled in with pencil-writing,—the date, the sum, and the young man’s own name, all being written in the same hand—and this a good fluent hand ; 80 that i was lost in astonishment as I compared the present fact with my previous impression that the man was utterly incapable of writing at all! * And so you think this will be a good match for Agatha ?”’ I said to Lord Kelvedon. “A very good one,” responded the nobleman. “Young Brownlow is steady : he belongs to a re- spectable family—perbaps you may have noticed that he is by no means bad-looking—and his father gave him a good education.” CORNICLOCC) | ! (E@)