Agnes, or, Beauty and Pleasure — page 222: what you’re looking at

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

es ae. have given to another?” ejaculated Winifred. | a lease. “No! no!—you would not accept it !” “T would accept it, Winifred, as the most ines- timable of treasures,” rejoined Dalham; “ and though your heart has been given to another, yet I should not despair of winning it for myself—I mean in the course of time: for I should surround you with all kindnesses—your happiness should be my constant study fe “Proceed, Mr. Dalham,” said Winifred, in a tremulous voice,—‘‘ proceed with the case which you were about to put.” ** Let us suppose that you gave me your hand,” continued Roderick Dalham: “neither my father nor your grandfather need learn the secret. The suit must now speedily be decided. If it result in my father’s favour, you will in due time become enriched through me, your husband: if it result in your grandfather’s favour, I shall continue rich through you, as my wife, For rest assured that in this latter case the old man will leave you the bulk if not the whole of bis fortune; because vour cousin will have espoused a West Indian heiress, and will become rich from that source.” “Give me a day or an hour,” said Winifred, “to reflect upon everything you havo told me >> “Take a day or a week, Winifred,” iatetrupted Dalham; “for heaven knows that I would not have you do anything rashly !” “ To-morrow at this same time,” ssid the young maidens, in a low but firm voice, “ my decision shail be made known. Meet me here.” She gave him her hand for a moment, and then hastened onward to her lodgings, which she reached without once looking bebind her. Shortly after her return home, Mr. Wardour arrived, ac- companied by a bullion-merchant, who was pro- vided with the requisite tests to ascertain the guality of the gold as well as scales to weigh it. The bargain was completed; and that same day the sum of fourteen thousand five hundred pounds was invested by Mr. Wardour, in the name of Winifred Barrington, in the Bank of England. CHAPTER XXXVI. NAPLES. Tre scene now shifts to the city of Naples. There, at about the time of which we arte writing —namely, in the second week of December, a littie more than a month after Winifred’s trial ard acquittal—Charles De Vere arrived to as- sume his post as one of the paid attachdés to the British Embassy at the Neapolitan Court. He had come out with the Ambassador him- self, who had been for some few weeks in Eng- land; and Mrs. De Vere was to follow him in a short time. This lady bad been suffer- ing more than usual of late; and at the time when Charles was called upon to leave Hagland his mother was too enfeebled to accompany him. She however strove to hide the extent to which she suffered; and she pleaded as an excuse for remaining behind the necessity of making ar- rangements for disposing of her furniture and letting Belmont Cottage, of which she had taken | a ah Sls LS a eels he hs AGNES; OR, BEAUTY AND PLEASURE. — - A’ ; ve NDP Re : a ¥ * - = ~~ is Thus it was agreed that Mrs. De Ve . should follow her son to Naples so soon as these arrangements were carried into effect. . Charles had been well educated: he spoke the | French language fluently—he had a very decent knowledge of the Italian tongue; and ever since his appointment to the post of attaché, he had been studying it diligently. He could thus con- verse with tolerable ease in Italian, while he could perfectly comprehend it when it was spoken. We are not about to enter into a long and tedious description of the component parts of the British Embassy at Naples—nor of the diplo- mecies in which young De Vere was now to bear a certain part—nor of bis appearance at the Neapolitan Court—nor of the Unsettled’ state of the Kingdom of Naples itself at tie close of that memorable year of revolutionary movements — 1848. Neither are we about to inflict upon our readers an elaborate description of the city of Waples, which looks beautiful even in the midst ot winter, with its magnificent bay in front end the heights of Vesuvius behind: nor is it our pur- pose to usurp the fuactions of tlie tourist by de- picting the appearance, the manners, habits, or customs of the Neapolitan people. We have an important episode to enter upon; and we shail commence the recital with the feast possible delay. It was one evening in the second week of De- cember—a few days after the arrival of Charies De Vere at Naples—that he wandered forth alone into the streets to view their aspect at that hour, and likewise to make some little purchases which he required. The weather had been remarkably mild throughout the day; and though the breeze from the sea had freshened towards sunset, yet it was far from cold, and there was no bitterness tn the atmosphere. Our young hero’s purchases were soon made; and es it was now only eight e’clock, he continued to roam through the streets, occasionally admiring the fronts of the brilliantly lighted cafés, but for the most part occupied with his own thoughts. He reflected upon the farewell scene with the beauteous Agnes, whom he loved so devotedly: he remembered how she had besought him to tell her candidly whether the disgrace which had overtaken her cousin Floribel, and which was pretty generally known, had effected any change in his sentiments towards herself ?— and he silently repeated the fervid words which he had ejaculated at the time, when straining Agnes to bis breast in a farewell embrace, he had cried, “ No, my beloved! how is it possible that I could think the worse of you on account of your poor erring cousin !” ‘Charles De Vere likewiso thought of the bril- liant prospects that were now open before him, bis footsteps having entered upon a diplomatic careor in which the natural fervour of his youthful imagination depicted his future course as leading on to the highest honours end dignities. And he thought to himself how happy should he be when the day should eome on which he would by his position bo justified in condueting Agnes to the altar. .He thought also of that memorable trial in which he had been compelled by circumstances to appear as a witness: he was glad that a favour- able verdict had been pronounced in respect to Winifred—but he was bewildered when he asked ae Gomichbooks rs F . —s ff a ‘ ft ° » ee a a i: