The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 195: what you’re looking at

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

178 REYNOLDS’ WORKS The Princess Indora rose from her seat and advanced toward the window, from which she gazed forth in silence for two or three minutes. At length again turning toward Christina, she said, ‘‘ Our conversation has flowed into a channel which has interested me. I have a complete file of a London newspaper in the boudoir. You are far more expert than I am in everything which relates to the concerns of your own country. Will you endeavour to find for me the accounts of the particular tragedy of which you have been speaking? ” “With pleasure,’ answered our heroine, and away she tripped to the boudoir, the princess shortly afterward fol- lowing. Christina referred to the volume which contained the set of newspapers for the year 1829, and she had little difficulty in discovering the accounts of the appalling tragedy at Oaklands. They ran through several numbers, and even for weeks and months after it occurred, there were occasional paragraphs referring to it, and chronicling the various sur- mises that were abroad at the time in respect to what had become of the Duchess Eliza and of Bertram Vivian. All these did Christina mark with ink, so as to be more easy of reference for the Princess Indora, and having finished her task, she was about to retire, when Sagoonah entered, bearing a letter addressed to the young maiden. The volume of the ~ Times which she had been searching lay open upon the table; the ayah’s dark eyes glanced for an instant toward it, as if in wonder at the colossal subject of her royal mistress’s and her youthful companion’s studies. She presented the letter with that graceful inclination of the form which - showed all its willowy and bayadere-like elasticity to such advantage, and then withdrew. Christina instantaneously recognized the handwriting of Lady Octavian Meredith, and she passed into the drawing- room to peruse the letter. Therein Zoe informed her that though her health had improved since Christina left, it was not yet sufficiently reéstablished to enable her to fulfil her promise of calling upon her at the Princess Indora’s residence; but she begged our heroine to come and pass a few hours with her on the following day, adding that she should be otherwise altogether alone, as Lord Octavian had promised to spend the whole of that day with his father the Marquis of Penshurst. Christina could not help thinking that there was a certain significancy in this latter notification, and that CONNIE KS m