The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 172: what you’re looking at

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

FRESH ADVENTURES 155 But while he thus paused opposite Evergreen Villa, he suddenly observed through the somewhat thick screen of trees in the front garden a light glimmering from one of the windows on the ground floor. To the best of his calculations (for he had no watch to refer to) it was now nearly two o’clock in the morning. “ Monday night,’ he said to himself, thus musingly re- freshing his memory, ‘“‘ and Angela Vivaldi was not adver- tised to dance, so they cannot be sitting up for her to return from the opera. Besides, she would be home before this. And yet why should she not have been out at some party? ”’ and as these reflections swept through his brain he suddenly experienced some little revival of his passion for the fair danseuse. As he still lingered hesitatingly in front of the villa, he heard a door open, and then a much stronger light suddenly shone from behind the screen of trees. He advanced up to the gate opening from the foot-path, and perceived a female descending the steps of the front door, which stood wide open and whence the light of the hall-lamp was stream- ing forth. The female had the appearance of being a lady’s- maid, or domestic of a similarly superior grade, and as she came slowly along the gravel walk leading toward the gate, Saxondale had an opportunity of observing that she was young, rather good-looking, dressed with a coquettish gaiety, and having the arch mischievous look of a confidential soubrette. Here suddenly seemed to be an opportunity of doing for himself all that the old woman had undertaken to per- form, but in which she had so grossly and unaccountably deceived him; and feeling his spirits somewhat revive by the hopefulness of the occurrence which was thus transpiring, he waited in the shade of the trees near the gate until the lady’s-maid, as he presumed her to be, came near enough for him to address her. Then she stopped, and seemed to listen as if in expectation of some one’s approach. “Well, my pretty maid,” said Lord Saxondale, suddenly showing himself, ‘‘ you are taking a late walk in the garden here.”’ ~ Oh, dear! how you have startled me,’’ exclaimed the abigail, with a half-suppressed shriek, but as she immediately perceived that the cause of her more than half-affected alarm ) CONnNIEDOOKS (S(O)