The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 318: what you’re looking at

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

298 REYNOLDS’ WORKS and passionately, ‘‘ if you do not accompany her ladyship you will be guilty of a cruelty so abhorrent —”’ “That it will even make you hate me?” he said, in a voice which was hoarse with the excitement of his harrowed feelings. ‘“‘ By Heaven, it will only require that to impel me to suicide at once.”’ “My lord!” half-shrieked Christina. “ Oh, yes, I tell you that I am well-nigh mad,” ejaculated the young nobleman, and he passionately tossed the rich clusters of his hair away from his throbbing brows. ‘‘ You know not how much I have suffered since you were here last, — three mortal weeks of one long agony. en can attest that I have striven, oh, I have striven to do my duty toward Zoe, and to banish you from my memory —”’. ““ My lord,” cried Christina, ‘‘ your language as a married man is an offence and an insult to my ears. You know that I dare not leave the room for fear that your angel wife should suspect how you are treating me, and therefore your con- duct is cruel, most ungenerous. It amounts to a persecution, and I entreat — no, I command you to be silent.” ‘““Oh, give me your hatred, Christina, if you will,” ex- claimed the young nobleman, who did indeed appear as if he were going mad, “‘ rather than your cold indifference. Am I to blame because I have no control over my own feelings? No, no, it were monstrous to judge me thus harshly. Chris- tina,” he continued, in a milder manner, “I tell you again and again that I have striven to do my duty toward Zoe. I have forced myself to dwell upon all her goodness, her amiability, and, what is more, upon the sublime gener- osity of her disposition; I have endeavoured to catch the transfusion of that love which she cherishes for me — but in all these have I failed. Now, am I to be blamed for this? No, no, I am to be pitied, and you see before you the most miserable wretch upon the face of the earth.”’ It were impossible to describe the feelings which agitated the young maiden as she listened to Octavian’s speech. It affected her almost to tears, and yet her virgin modesty was offended that he should suffer her, however distantly, to un- derstand that it was his love for her which prevented him from performing his duty to his wife. She could not help pitying him from the very bottom of her soul, at the same time that she felt she ought not to listen to the language he CoOMnmicloookS.eE@