The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 31: what you’re looking at

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

»~— QUE eee, . eee ( t \ | ene=aG tm e- 48 THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. “Proceed, my lord,” she answered, with a cold courtesy. “I will hear you on the terms you “A thousand thanks!” eried the Karl, with en- thusiasm. “Imagine not, Miss Trelawney, that this is the first occasion on which I have ever seen you. Since your arrival in the metropolis——" “My arrival in the metropolis!” she exclaimed. “Why, my ford, I have lived in London all my life—from my very birth !” “Indeed!” he ejaculated, in astonishment. “And yet the world knew you not until within tho last few weeks———” “ What world does your lordship speak of?” in- quired Venetia, with a look of most bewitching ingenuousness. “The fashionable world, Miss Trelawney—the only world in which one can possibly exist, without being confounded amongst the ordinary. race of mortals.” “Ah! then, this is a world of your own creating?” she said, with a tinge of irony in her voice, and with that coldly contemptuous look which she had also practised in her mirror. “Not of my special creating, Miss Trelawney,” returned the nobleman: “but a world—in fine, the sphere of fashion—the—the——” « A singalar world which is so difficult to be de- fined!” ejaculated Venetia. “But am I to sup- pose that because I have removed from the secla- sion in which I was brought up from my infancy— and because, being left my own mistress by the death of my parents, I have chosen to fix my habitation in the vicinage of a park,—am I to un- derstand, I ask, that because of all this, my position in life is changed and that I am launched as it were into what you would have me believe to be a new world ?” “What I wished you to srderstand, Miss Tre- awney, was that your beauty, your accomplish- ments, your manners, and your fortune render you one of us—the akte of society—the aristocracy of the community,” explained the Earl: “and I was going to observe that it was only since you came into your proper sphere a few weeke ago, that the fashionable world knew of your existence. But ' from the first moment that you thus condescended to appear amongst us, I have never ceased to think of you. Your image has remained impressed upon my mind: it has become the objuct of my con- templation by day, and of my dreams by night, J have ridden for hours round and round the park to await your appearance and catch a glimpse of your countenance as you dashed by in your charming equipage: and I have applied to every friend or acquaintance I could think of, in the hope of procuring an introduction to you. But I did not succeed: no one that I knew was more fortunate than myself in this respect. Every one was admiring you—worsbippiog you from a dis- ‘ tance—talking of you—-and eulogising your charms: but no one had the honour of being acquainted with you. Iwas almost driven to madness—and | began to wander about on foot, like one demented. Ta this mood was J passing through the park ere now, when I beheld you at the window. - I re- mained to gaze upon you—to contemplate you with that idolatry which is the natural homage of a ioving heart. Whether you observed me, I tnow not: but you stayed at the window——* “Had I noticed your lordship,” said Venetia, is & cold tone, and with haughty manner, “I should have retired from the casement. But you have already proceeded far enough—too far—with your | explanations: and as no earthly good can possibly result from them, either to your lordship or to me, I may be pardoned for observing that our inter- | view need last no longer.” And once more rising from her seat, Miss Tre- lawney advanced towards the bell-pull. “No—do not order me from your presence {” exclaimed the Earl of Curzon. “Spare me that indignity at least.” “Or rather, let your lordship spare me the ne- | oessity of submitting you to it,” said Venetia, in a tone of dignified calmness, “ Will you not hear me for one minute leager ?” cried the Karl, -evidéntly labouring wader the strengest excitement: then, without waiting for a response, he manner, “I¢ is not in the power of mortal to sub- due his feelings at all times—and you should rather pity than blame me! The generous warrior when triumphing over a vangnished foe, uses his victory with his conquest with merey. Behold me, then, sub- dued—defeated — overcome by the brilliancy of your beanty: and surely, surely you will not spurn | me from you?” Thus speaking, the Earl of Curzon sank upon his knees in the presence of that lady of dazzling loveliness. The flush of triumph swept across her magnifi- cent countenance —the gratification of woman's loftiest vanity wreathed her lips into a smile for a single moment—and for a moment also did the same feeling flash from beneath her darkly fringed eye-lids. But this display of emotion was so | transitory that the next instant, when it had passed away, the Earl was still left in a gort of pl painful doubt as to whether Venetia had thus been | really moved at all by that sentimest which con- atituted the weakness of her sex, or whether it were a mere illusion on his part. “Behold me at your feet, angelic woman? he | exclaimed, his upturned countenance expressing the fond ardour of his rapturous devotion and ear- nest hope even more eloquently than the impas- | sioned accents of his voice. “Rise, my lord—let us resume our seats—and | we will diacuss the question more rationally and more dehberately,” said Miss Trelawney, with such perfect self-possession of manner and calmness of tone that the Earl gazed upon her in mute wonder and bewilderment as he rose from his 3up- plicating posture. A thousand ideas swept through his imagination all ina moment. Was she really moved by his proceedings ?—had his looks, his words, and his conduct touched her heart ?—and had she all along intended to yield, after a due amount of charming coquetry, feigned indignation, and artful prudery? Did she consider that the sentimental portion of the drama had gono far enough ?—and was she about to bargain methodically relative to the terms on which she would consent to become his mistress? Or had she merely adopted a stratagem in order to induce him to abandon that guppliant position in which she feared that he might perhaps be surprised by some oge entering at we CONNEC MOO to observe in a harried | on and tempers the pride of | SS COMM