The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 111: what you’re looking at

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

CHAPTER XII THE EAVESDROPPER ‘‘ How changed is this woman — how fearfully altered! ” sald the black page to himself, the instant that he was alone. ‘* And how nervously she started when the tinkling of the bell reached her ears. Ah! crime — crime has done all this! Yes, it is clear as daylight; guilt has changed her thus, and suilt inspires her with sudden terrors. Care alone would be incapable of producing these effects upon the person and the mind of such a woman. Oh, if I could but penetrate into her secrets also and wreak a revenge as terrible as that which will soon overtake him — ’”’ Then suddenly stopping short in his musings, Rao rose from his seat, glided noiselessly to the parlour door, and listened with a breathless attention. For it had struck him that he not only heard the footsteps of several persons traversing the passage outside, but like- wise that the hissing of the word “‘ Hush!” had mingled with the other sounds. And therefore was it that he had suddenly become an eavesdropper; and he now distinctly heard Mrs. Brace say in a whispered tone of entreaty, ‘““Come into this room, and for Heaven’s sake speak not until — ’’ The remainder of the sentence was lost to Rao’s ear. ‘‘ Until you are all alone together and the door is carefully shut, I suppose? ”’ he however said to himself, thus finishing in imagination the earnest appeal which the milliner had addressed to the persons whom she had just admitted into the house. But Rao suddenly returned to his seat, for his ear had caught the rustle of a silk gown and the tread of footsteps approaching the parlour door. Nor was he mistaken, for 88 CONNIE NOOLKS (E(0)