Joseph Wilmot, or, The Memoirs of a Man-Servant — page 138: what you’re looking at

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

JOSEPH WILMOT; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF A MAN-SERVANT. 125 or less equivocal, the better. It was prefer- able to sit in a carriage with her throughout the rest of the night, than to halt at an hotel with a female companion of whom I could give no account, and whom I did not even know how to ad- dress by name. My situation was an awkward one; and as the journey was now continued in silence, I could not help thinking that no sooner was I fairly out of one adventure than I was being dragged into the midst of another. I now fancied that my unknown companion was asleep, as I judged from her slow and regular breathing. Perhaps she was exhausted mentally, if not bodily ; and her highly wrought feelings, being relieved by asense of safety, had experienced a reaction which thus deepened into slumber? Or perhaps she was only feigning to be asleep, in order to avoid further discourse? I knew not which if might be: but still I was inclined to the belief that she really slept—for there was an undefinable expression of artless sincerity flowing through her manner and her language, as well as in the silver tones of her voice, which seemed to forbid the idea that she would dissemble in any way. Hours passed on in silence: the town of Mag- liano had been traversed and left far behind; the feeble light of the street-lamps there glimmering through the windows of the chaise, had merely shown me a form enveloped in some dark cloak or scarf, and with a veil over the countenance,—so that I was still without the ability to form the slightest conjecture as to the personal appearance of my companion. During these hours which thus elapsed, and which carried us deep into the night, she remained motionless,—continuing to breathe recularly as if she slept profoundly: but I myself continued broad awake the whole time, for the ad- venture was one which perplexed me to a degree that would not suffer me to obtain an instant’s repose. At several of the posting-houses there was a delay in obtaining horses at those late hours ; but while the chaise had to halt, my companion still remained motionless as if bound fast in the arms of slumber; and I was enabled to descend on two or three occasions to stretch my legs without being held back by her. The suspicion stole into my mind that when she had so passionately besought me to remain with her the first time the equipage stopped after she had become my companion, it was really to prevent me from putting any ques- tions to the postilion in respect to that building which we had passed, and in the immediate vicinage of which I had first encountered her. At Jength, as it got very late, I bethought me that she might need refreshments; and I re- proached myself with neglect in not having ques- tioned her on the subject before. But the truth is that as I myself was too much excited and agi- tated by the whole adventure to experience any appetite, it had failed to occur to me that it might be otherwise with my companion. Therefore at one of the villages where we halted to change horses, I addressed her in a gentle voice,—asking if she required refreshment. She started slightly, as if actually awakened from sleep; and replied in the negative,—at the same time expressing her thanks for my consideration. Our journey was, pursued ; and she asked me how far I thought we were from Rome ?—and I replied that a couple of hours more would according to my estimation bring us thither. She said not another word, but shifted her position somewhat, as if cramped by sitting so long a time in the vehicle—or as if composing her- self to sleep again. I shifted my own quarters to the opposite seat, and asked her if she would like to have some fresh air, as we had been travelling all along with the windows up. She responded in the affirmative; and I lowered one of the windows. In a few minutes she began to breathe in a way which appeared to announce a relapse into slum- ber: and as it was somewhat troubled and uneasy, and as low sobs and moans from time to time es- caped her lips, I became convinced that she did really sleep now : while for the same reason I was inclined to believe that she had only been dis sembling before. Slumber gradually stole over me likewise ; and as after a while I slowly opened my eyes again, the dawn of morning was glimmering into the vehicle. For the first few moments I thought that all which had happened was a dream: but slowly I became aware that I was not alone inside that chaise. My looks gradually settled upon the sleeping form which was half-reclining upon the seat opposite to me. Lither the gentle breeze or else some movement of her own had disturbed the veil which covered her countenance when the light of the street-lamps beamed into the chaise at Magliano; and the folds of the dark mantle that she wore, no longer compietely enwrapped her figure. Still the glimmer of the dawn was too dim, vague, and uncertain to reveal her appear- ance to me all in an instant; and it came upon my vision by degrees and in detail. Tresses of the darkest shade, and with the richest natural gloss upon them, were floating in a dishevelled state beneath the veil which lay across her head ; dark but delicately-pencilled brows over-arched the eyes that were closed in slumber ; and the long jetty fringes rested upon the pale cheeks. The hue of her lips was of brightest scarlet—the chin was softly rounded—the countenance was a perfect classic oval: and then, as I caught the profile, it showed me its faultless outline—the features being delicately chiselled—the forehead high—the nose slightly Grecian. Her complexion was evi- dently pale naturally—but now paler still from recent grief and excitement: the skin was fine- grained and transparent, with that alabaster smoothness which belongs to such complexions when their pallor has a pure animation, and is not the sickly whiteness which characterises ill-health. From her countenance my eyes slowly wandered over her shape; and this was of an exquisite sylph-like symmetry. She was scarcely above the middle height of woman, even if she at all ex- ceeded it; and her attitude—one of innocent un- conscious abandonment—showed all the flowing outlines of her statue-like modelled shape. It was slender, but not to leanness. It had the becoming contours of a female of eighteen or nineteen— for such appeared to be the age of this beautiful unknown. Her apparel was mean and poor ; and by the very way in which it fitted, was evidently never intended to be worn by her. Yet such was the perfection of her symmetry that the ungain- liness of her dress marred it not. There is a beauty which nothing can disfigure ; and such wag the loveliness of her whom an extraordinary acci- EoOMmmcoaoolks (CO)