Beautiful Rienzi; or, The secret vendetta — page 236: what you’re looking at

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

BEAUTIFUL RIENZIL. 231 gether. We stopped at station after station, and More- combe was always peering watchfully about, “put did not move. At last the guard shouted Greely’s Mills.” Morecombe rose. We were ten miles from the city, at the very spot where Mrs. Beaumont had lived; where Cecil had tried to destroy himself, where young Rosecraft was buried. Was this Isolina’s retreat? I followed my companion out; he led me away from the crowd on the platform, to the wide dusty place, near the mills, where I could speak to no one without being seen. Then he went and got his horse and carriage out of the van; reharnessed the animal and drove up to where I was stand- ing. | me Get in,” he said, holding the step. I silently mounted, and we proceeded as before. I knew nothing of the locality; ; | was only conscious of ever increas- ing wildness of scenery, and that we seemed to be cutting across the country. Soon all signs of civilization were left behind us; woods and rocks succeeded to cultivated fields and homesteads; the sun rose high in the heavens, and the busy air which was alive with the buzzing of insects be- came close and stifling, and brooded thick under the move- less branches. | | All at once my nostrils hailed the welcome odor of wood smoke. I looked eagerly over the wastes of fir forest for the chimney of a house. I saw a light vapor rising blue at a distance; we soon reached the clearing and I beheld three small conical huts formed of bark. | We were in a gipsy camp. ‘‘Madam is white as a swamp-lily,” sald Ralph More- combe, looking at me; ‘‘ we shall stop here.” I allowed myself to be assisted to the ground; I was faint with hunger and heat, but I would willingly have traveled twenty miles farther rather than stop here. A crowd of tawny-faced children surrounded us; some men and women, with long, black hair, and flashing eyes, rushed out from the tents, and reconnoitered us. More- combe coolly beckoned to one, and ordered him to unharness the horse, and give him oats and water. ‘*Oome here,” he shouted to the gr oup. of women, “ this lacy is your guest. Where is the queen: A tall young woman came forward; she had aquiline features, melting black eyes, olive skin, and a dazzling CORNUCG OOO S (©)