Agnes, or, Beauty and Pleasure — page 131: what you’re looking at

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

RN a a ERR RN RE Sse essen AGNES; OR, BEAUTY AND PLEASURE. 123 lated Carlotta. ‘ We should then talk over every- | darkened nook forming one-half of the confes- thing which is now occurring!—Ah, and _ we | sional, while the priest was seated in the other. abould laugh too at the incident of the huge! basket!” ** Oh, yes! depend upon it we will yet seo happy days together—and we will laugh and rejoice as we think of the perplexities and embarrassments of the present moment! But tell me, my dear Carlotta—did everything take place as you had foreseen ?”’ “Everything was even more propitious than I could have anticipated,’ responded the young damsel; “for the moment 1 entered the room where my parents were seated, my father said that he could not accompany me for the promised ride, because he must draw up a report of everything that had occurred in reference to the escape of the young prisoner last night. This report he will have to send off to the Minister of Police in Florence.” ‘And thus,” said Ciprina, “everything pro- ceeded to your utmost satisfaction P” ‘Yes: your messsage in reference to the chapel was duly delivered to my father—and then my mother bagan to read me a long lecture on the necessity of being regular in my devotions and attending the confessional often; for you must know that she has become very devout of late—she thinks Father Falconara the best preacher she ever heard fy “Ts it not time for us to proceed to the chapel ?” asked Ciprina. “Yes. Come!” replied Carlotta, after consult- ing her watch. “Have you a veil? If not, I must run and fetch you one. [I really quite forgot it Pp’ “T have one,” returned Ciprina,—“ a thick black one. And here it is?” ‘You must put it on, in order to visit the chapel,” said Carlotta; “because as a matter of course, the priest is not supposed to know who it is that enters the confessional.” Thus speaking, she drew the hood of her own mantel over her countenance: Ciprina put on her bonnet, and folded the thick black veil over her face. cell: they crossed the court-yard—they reached the door of the chapel, which was standing ajar. “TI suppose it is you, signora?” said the old sextoness to Carlotta Belluno, whom she recognised by her mantle. “Tt is I,” answered the damsel: “and this is a prisoner—Number Thirty—who comes with me by my father’s permission.” The sextoness stood aside; Carlotta and Ciprina passedon. Ina few minutes they beheld a door open at the other extremity of the chapel—and Father Falconara made his appearance: but he almost instantaneously vanished again, for he passed into the vestiary to put on his surplice. He soon iesued thence again, and proceeded towards the confessional. Carlotta and Ciprina were now kneeling on hassocks at a little altar near the con- fessional ; and the priest could not as a matter of course distinguish who they were, their counte- nances being concealed. So soon as they beard the door of the confessional close bebind him, Car- lotta hastily pressed Ciprina’s hand as an indica- tion that the important moment was now ap: proaching; and she at once passed into the The two young ladies then issued from the | , How hurried and anxious was now the glance which Ciprina flung towards the dial of the clock in front of the centre gallery! It wanted only five minutes to two: Father Falconara had been a few minutes later than usual. Cuiprina next looked towards the door: the old sextoness was still stationed there. Ciprina swept her glances around: not another soul was to be seen in the chapel, besides those whom the reader already knows to be there. Ab! if that sextoness would but move away from the vicinage of the door, there would be no one to watch Ciprina’s actions or to suspect them! But the old harridan scemed to stick fast at that door: and the young lady thought to herself, “ It is only too clear that as I entered in the company of the Governor’s daughter, I shall not be permitted to go forth alone,” But scarcely had she made this reflection, when a gentle knocking was heard at the door by which Father Falconara had entered the chapel. This door opened from the male compartment of the prison; and some of the inmates of that compart- ment were now coming, in the custody of a turn- key, to attend the priest’s ministrations. The old sextoness hastened across the chapel to open the door to which we have just alluded. With what exultation leapt Ciprina’s heart! She glided away from the front of the little altar in the immediate vicinity of the confessional: she dived down a narrow passage betwixt the amphi- theatrically arranged rows of seats; and unper- ceived by a soul, she gained the door opening into the yard belonging to the female compartment. A glance towards the further extremity of that yard, showed her that the bakers were there; and one of them was lounging, as if with a necligent air, against the large basket, so that Ciprina felt convinced it had been already emptied of its con- tents, Ob! bow her heart palpitated as she at once and unhesitatingly bent her steps towards the basket, her countenance completeiy concealed by the veil which she held in double or treble folds over her features. When she was within a dozen paces of the basket, the baker who was leaning against it, gave a short cough; and his companion immedi- ately came forth from the store-room, where he had been having a few minutes’ chat with the warder whose duty it was to receive the bread and take an account of it. What followed was the work of a moment, Both the bakers swept their looks round with lightning rapidity; and then being convinced that they were unobserved, one of them tilted up the basket in such a manner that Ciprina was enabled at once to step into it. The green baize cloth was thrown over her—the two bakers took the ex- tremities of the pole upon their shoulders—and away they went, one humming a tune and the other whistling in an equally off-hand nonchalant manner, dust at the very moment that the gates of the other extremity of the yard wore thrown open, the clock of ths castle proclaimed the hour of two, Nothing would have surprised Ciprina less than to have beard a shriek pealing through the air—a scream from thelips of Carlotta Belluno—or else the rushing forward of the young damsel to doe | Elooolk (©) 5}