The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 152: what you’re looking at

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

a, CHAPTER XIV THE PRINCE OF WALES AND THE ORPHAN Ir was about four o’clock in the afternoon of the day fol- lowing the incidents just related that Rose Foster was seated in the bedchamber where she was still a prisoner, at Mrs. Brace’s house. The poor girl was pale and care-worn, and her whole aspect showed that she was devoured by an intense grief, alternating only with intervals of blank despair. Three days had passed since those memorable incidents which saw her at one moment at the mercy of the prince, then delivered by the sudden irruption of Meagles and Mel- moth into the room, and then snatched away from their pro- tection to be held a miserable captive once more, and re- served perhaps for that dishonour from which she could not now see a single avenue of escape, unless it were by the appal- ling path of suicide. We shall not on this occasion undertake to describe at length the condition of mind to which bitter persecution and agonizing suspense had once more reduced this poor, inno- cent, harmless orphan girl. Suffice it to say that at the moment when we now again introduce our readers to her presence she was seated in the bedchamber of her captivity, alone with the crushing companionship of her own tremen- dous affliction. , Suddenly she was startled by hearing the key turn in the lock, and as she sprang from her seat the door opened. A crimson flush came and went upon her whole countenance as rapidly as the shadow of a flitting cloud passes over a field; and then, with cheeks once more colourless, but with a nervous agitation convulsing her from head to foot, she beheld the Prince of Wales enter the room. Not a cry 180 Eo AG 6)(0)(0) (C(O)