Agnes, or, Beauty and Pleasure — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

a eres EE AGNES: OR, BEAUTY AND PLEASURE, tied round with red tape, said, “ All these regard you, my dear Morton. I do not know whether you have the patience or inclination to look them over at present ” “Perhaps,” interrupted Evelyn, “it would an- ewer all purposes if you were to explain to me precisely how it is that I am the lineal descendant of Lord Ormsby.” “ His lordship was a widower and childless,” re- plied Waldron, “at the time he was raised to the peerage. He had risen from comparatively no- thing; and the family to which he belonged— your family, Morton — was & very poor one. Whether it were through pride or from any other motives, it is impossible at this distance of time to discover; but certdin it is, from some tradi- tionary facts which have some to my knowledge, that your ancestor Lord Ormsby had long ben estranged from all his relatives. Indeed, so com- plete was this estrangement, that there is every reason to believe those ‘relatives themselves were ignorant that the great man who after twenty years’ absence in the Hast, returned to England laden with honours and to receive fresh ones, was identical with their poor kinsmen of former times, Certain it is, also, that at Lord Ormsby’s death there was no claimant for either the title or the property—although his lordship left a nephew be- bind him, This nephew was in such destitute circumstances that he was the inmate of a work- house. He was a depraved and dissipated man; and his reason was impaired by a long course of intemperance. Therefore, all things considered, it really is not surprising that the peerage and the property should have remained without a claimant. That nephew of whom I have been speaking, was the father of the Andrew Evelyn to whose name your recollections went back, and whose lineage it was so requisite for us to trace. You now per- ceive, my dear Morton, what intricacies I have had to fathom—what a tangled skeic to unravel ; and if on the one hand you have to blush that there should have been a worthless pauper in your family, yet on the other hand you have to rejoice in a lineage tracing itself back to a proud peer,” “And neither my father nor my grandfather suspected their noble descent ?” said Morton, who had listened with the deepest interest to Mr. Wal- dron’s statement. “ Assuredly not,” +replied the lawyer; “for if either of them had entertained the slightest scin- tillation of an idea of such a descent, the task which has been so difficult for us, must have proved a comparatively easy one for them to accomplish. I have succeeded in ascertaining that your progenitor Andrew Evelyn was only a small tradesman at Birmingham, in a very poor way of business, at the time when he removed to Liver- pool, at the age of about thirty, and began laying the foundation of that mercantile establishment which your father subsequently raised to so flourishing a condition. In short, all the parti- eulars at which I have been thus rapidly glancing, together with many corroborative evidences, are contained in these papers:’—and Mr. Waldron again pointed to the huge pile which was on the desk befure him. “Shall I be personally examined before the Lords’ Committee of Privileges?’ inquired Morton, , ? a a ee es ens ee —— 15 “Most certainly,” answered Mr. Waldron. * Indeed you must make yourself thorougily ae- quainted with every particular.” “In that ease,” said Evelyn, “I had better take the papers with me, and lose no time in ad- dressing myself to the study of them,” “ By all means,” rejoined the lawyer. ‘“ But be sure and take great care of them; for in a few days they will have to be submitted to those autho- rities at whose hands we are claiming the money and the estates.” Morton promised that he would take the utmost care of the precious documents; and he bore them away with him. On returning home, he found Honoria reading the Morning Post; and with a flush of pride upon her handsome countenance, she directed her husband’s attention to a particular paragraph. It was to the effect that “ the Ormsby Peerage, which had so long remained in abeyance —together with the accompanying wealth—was about to be claimed by Morton Evelyn, Esq., a lineal descendant of the long deceased peer.” It was no wonder that this piece of intelligence should have thus been caught up by some penny-a- lining caterer for the public press, inasmuch as Morton himself had published it so widely on the preceding day. His joy was extreme; and his pride was immensely flattered when he perused that paragraph. He and Honoria sat down to read the docu- ments: but the task was for Morton a dull one— and his brain was not yet sufficiently composed to enable him to catch the sense of the involved, tor- tuous, and obscure legal verbiage. He therefore soon abandoned it, declaring that on the morrow he should be in a more congenial mood for such a study. Three or four days passed; and Morton Evelyn found that all the friends and acquaintances whom he now met, addressed him as “ my lord,” and treated him with the utmost distinction. He fell in with his fashionable friend, who informed him that he had been elected a member of the Club under the title of Lord Ormsby. “Hor we all saw the paragraph in the news- papers,” added the gentleman; “and as it will be merely a matter of form to obtain the recognition of the Peers, you are already Lord Ormsby to all intents and purposes. Allow me therefore the pleasure of introducing your lordship to the Club.” Morton was introduced accordingly; and he was greeted as Lord Ormsby by several noblemen and gentlemen whom he met there. A Duke, a Marquis, a couple of Earls, and three or four Barons, had thus sanctioned his immediate as- sumption of the title: why therefore should he not assume it? Had he not for years past been entitled to that proud rank, if he had but known it? And besides, it was so sweet to be addressed as “my lord;” and he should feel so proud in hearing his Honoria styled “ your ladyship.” Yes: assuredly, he would at once take up his title —at least with Mr. Waldron’s permission. _ Away, then, to the lawyer's office to consult him on the subject. Mr. Waldron heard what he had to say—reflected for a few moments—and then gave his assent. The delighted Morton hurried home to tell Honoria that she was theneeforth to be called Lady Ormsby: @ hint to the same effect CO [NOO LN CEN ee ere S a i i i rr ee ee rw | eee re ee eS ee CO