The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 115: what you’re looking at

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

THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. 101 with a few kind words he encouraged her to pro- ceed. . “Tam the youngest of four sisters, living until yesterday with our widowed mother at Richmond,” she continued; “and my name is Owen.” Loftus started visibly : then instantaneously check- ing his emotion or excitement, whatever the feeling might be, he said calmly, “ I have heard of you be- fore.” “Then perhaps you are aware,” exclaimed Mary —for she it was,—that the Royal Princes and several noblemen who are closely connected with them in the ties of friendship, have been constant visitors at our house—I fear,’’ she added, with down- cast eyes and a blushing countenance, “to the in- jury of our reputation.” “T am aware of the circumstance which you mention, Miss Owen,” observed Loftus: “and I will not disguise the fact that scandal has busied itself with the name of your family. Is not the Marquis of Leveson one of the noblemen to whom you have alluded?” “‘ He is,” replied Mary. “But permit me to give the details of my narrative in continuous order— and you will then understand the fearful secret which is the basis of that intimacy between my mother and the Royal Princes. It appears,” continued the young lady, after a brief pause during which she collected her thoughts, “that from the first moment of the arrival in England of the unfortunate Caroline of Brunswick, to become the wife of the Prince of Wales, she was destined to find a secret though re- morseless and unrelenting enemy in the Queen,* For some years past a terrible conspiracy has been in existence against the unhappy Caroline. You are aware it was in 1795—nineteen years ago—that she became Princess of Wales. At the beginning of 1796 the Princess Charlotte was born: and from that period the Prince and Princess of Wales were completely estranged from each other. The Prince has declared that she shall never be Queen of Eng- * In the First Series of ‘‘THE MysTERIEs oF THE CouRT oF Lonpon,” p. 219, Vol. I, the following passage oc- curred, descriptive of a hurried and whispered conversa- tion between Queen Charlotte (George the Third’s wife) and her son the Prince of Wales :— ‘** Put what construction you please upon my conduct, George,” observed the Queen, after a few moment’s con- sideration: *‘ but let one thing at least be engraven on your memory—and let it serve as the text for all your self-communings at a future day!’”—‘‘ And that one thing ?” demanded the Prince, surveying his royal mother with mingled interest and curiosity. ‘‘ What is it ?”— ‘That in me the Princess Caroline has a bitter and an un- forgiving enemy,” rejoined the Queen, the words hissing snake-like through the lips that were white and quivering, —Bad and unprincipled as was the heir-apparent—heart- less, cruel, and selfish as his disposition might be—he was nevertheless struck with a species of horror at this cold- blooded announcement on the part of his mother. A man may be a murderer himself, and can yet think well of | human nature generally : but if he suddenly finds out that his own mother is a murderess—the being who possesses the prestige of all-excelling goodness in his eyes—his con- fidence in everything human is annihilated in an instant. Thus was it with the Prince of Wales. His own mother had suddenly thrown off the mask and revealed herself to him as a fiend in female shape:—and he gazed upon her in mingled horror, wonderment, and distress.—But she darted upon him a look full of contempt as much as to imply that even yet he did not half comprehend the true meaning of the words to which she had given utterance ; then quitting him abruptly, she retired for the night, land ; and the mother, the present Queen, echoes the sentiment. I will not however extend my narrative unnecessarily. Suffice it to say that the Queen, the Prince Regent, two of his brothers, three or four noblemen, and four or five titied ladies, have all been leagued by solemn compact and in dread eonspiracy for years past, to work the ruin of the Princess Caro- line. Hence the investigation which took place in 1806, and which arose from the vile machinations, plots, and artifices of the conspirators. But her Royal Highness passed triumphantly through the ordeal, as you are doubtless well aware; and the conspirators were for the moment defeated. But they were not discouraged : and ever since have they been working, secretly but actively—pursuing their slimy ways like serpents in the grass—with all the resoluteness of their unpitying dispositions and fiendish purposes. In such an enterprise, however, the utmost delicacy and caution must necessarily be used; and the conspirators have determined to bide their time rather than precipitate matters so as to hazard another defeat. They know that each time a blow is struck, and that the Princess rises up un- hurt from the assault, the effect is only to invest her cause with a larger amount of popularity and in- crease the odium attaching itself to her persecutors. In proportion to the sympathy bestowed upon the Princess by the naturally generous-hearted and noble-minded working-classes of England, so is the indignation excited against her enemies. All these facts have been well weighed by the conspira- tors; and they would consequently rather allow years to elapse while they draw in their snares and meshes closer around the Princess, than risk another failure by imprudent precipitation. They are now therefore working slowly—and they believe surely.” *‘ Heavens! is it possible that such infamy can exist, and, in such high quarters?” exclaimed Jocelyn Loftus, his blood boiling with indignation and his eyes flashing fire. “Oh for the power—the means —the opportunity to warn the unhappy Princess of the tremendous perils by which she is envi- roned——” “You shall have all, Mr. Loftus—yes, all!” cried Mary, her countenance glowing with a kindred feel- ing of anger and disgust. ‘You shall have the power—the means—the opportunity: and God be thanked for having thrown in my way so generous a champion of the persecuted Caroline of Bruns- wick!” ‘Continue your narrative, Miss Owen,” said Jocelyn. “I will subdue my feelings while I listen to your dreadful tale.” ‘‘ Amongst the various measures adopted to ensure the destruction of the Princess of Wales,” resumed Mary, “is the scheme of surrounding her with the spies, creatures, and agents of the conspirators, Three or four years ago it was first suggested to the Prince Regent--I believe by the Marquis of Leve- son—to train up an entire family of sisters to do this dreadful work, It was supposed, I should ima~- gine, that several young ladies, thus closely con- nected by the ties of kinship, would be more certain to conduct their operations harmoniously, syste- matically, aud confidentially, than a number of females having no such bond to unite them. The plan was greedily seized upon by the Prince Re- gent, the Queen, and the other conspirators: and the Marquis of Leveson then introduced the Royal Princes to our house. My mother corresponded conniclsoolks (CO)