The Bronze Statue, or, The Virgin's Kiss — page 202: what you’re looking at

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

ab 90 “= , - > f .* o - —< x Five te ‘ ~woa, ae 2 x ain aert - AP i.e ie ES _ - - 2 wv ° - ~~ Le ee at 4 > > _ ~ e hd 7 ») 200 THE BRONZE STATUE. ‘Is this possible ?’ once more cried | the great southern road will take me to De Colmar, turning towards Angela. the immediate vicinity of my destina- ‘Who art thou, brave youth? and/| tion. wherefore thus retain the vizoroverthy| ‘A three days’ journey !’ ejaculated countenance ?’ Sir Ernest de Colmar, ‘ then must your ‘It were indeed churlish in me to|home be in the neighborhood of Alten- ? compel your excellency to ask those dorf Castle uestions again,’ said our heroine. ‘It is so,’ responded Angela. ‘But if it give thee annoyance to an-| ‘ And wherefore should you not ac- swer them,’ instantaneously observed | company me thus far 2? demanded the De Colmar, who perceived a certain| knight. * flow was it that anything hesitation and tremulousness in her which I said induced you to alter your voice—‘ I would endure all the tortures | plan ?’ of the most poignant curiosity and sus- ‘Because your excellency has pro- pense, rather than cause you the slight- | mised to afford an escort to some lady est vexation.’ and her attendants, answered our he- ‘ Let me, then, as & boon, beseech | roine, speaking rapidly and with an @xX- your excellency to postpone for three | citement arising from the very attempt days those explanations which you have | which she made to avoid any manifes- demanded at my hands!’ exclaimed our | tation of feeling—‘ and, therefore,’ she haroine. continued, *I perceived at once that it ‘For three days!’ repeated De Col- | would be inconvenient in the extreme mar. ‘I know not how this can be ar- | for me to force my humble companion- ranged, inasmuch as at sunrise I am/ship upon your excellency. For this bound to take horse on my journey much may I now reveal concerning my- homeward. Ina word,’ he added, his self, that [ am but a poor page, bearing voice suddenly becoming mournful, and | a humble name : his countenance sombre in the pure ‘And that name, whatever it may be, moonlight, as his infernal compact rose deserves to become the proudest in up in all its details in his memory—‘ in | Christendom !’ exclaimed De Colmar, a word, I am under the necessity of de- | seizing our heroine’s gauntletted hand parting from Prague within a few hours with all the fervor of the most gener- —and I am likewise pledged to escort a | ous friendship. ‘My dear brother-in- lady and her attendants to Vienna.’ ‘arms, for such indeed hast thou proved ‘A lady—and her attendants?’ cried | thyself this night,’ proceeded Sir Er- Angela, giving involuntary utterance to | nest, still retaining that hand in his own an ejaculation which a sudden senti- —‘]I do not seek to penetrate into the ment of annoyance prompted; for the | mystery in which thou hast enshrouded noblest nature is accessible to the influ- | thyself. That thy motives are honor- ence of jealousy—but instantaneously | able and just, I do not for an instant perceiving the folly to which she had | doubt; that thou art all that is good and yielded, she hastened to repair it as estimable in disposition as well as daunt- well as she could, by observing, ‘Par-|less and generous in soul, [| would don the remark which I made, Sir|stake my existence! Listen, then, Knight, but I experienced a sudden dis- while I pledge myself to serve thee appointment from the latter portion of with all my influence, surround thee the statement which you made.’ /with my fraternal love, and make thee ‘How so, my young friend?’ de-|my bosom friend henceforth until the manded our hero, every moment be- | cold grave shall close over me! Who- coming more and more interested in | ever thou art, [ am from this moment his unknown deliverer, around whom | forth thy sworn brother; and be thy the cloud of mystery appeared to in- | name never so humble, I will find the crease rather than diminish. /}means to exalt it. Thou shalt, there- ‘J meant to say,’ returned Angela, | fore, become the companion of my ‘that when your excellency first de- journey ; and, instead of stopping mid- clared that you were about to com | way to seek thine own home, thou shalt mence your journey homeward in a/remain with me until we reach Vien- few hours, it struck me that I would|na; and there, O brave unknown | beg as a boon to be permitted to avail| pledge myself that thou shalt receive myself of your escort. Your excel- | the honor of knighthood from the hand lency is about to return to Vienna, and ‘of his Sovereign Highness the Duke of my road is in the same direction; that | Austria.’ is to say, a three days’ journey avi ‘Oh! how generous, how noble, how — —— -_— ee comicbooks.com