Angelina: Or, The Mystery of St. Mark's Abbey — page 53: what you’re looking at

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

40 ANGELINA; OR, her, the woman of the ruins, than she pushed the wand she always carried with her up to the casement, and Angeliaa beheld a piece of paper fastened to the end of it, which the more aurprised her when she discovered by the light, chat it was addressed to her. “Take the paper, maiden,” said the woman, “it is from a friend; be silent _—farewell !” And our heroinc had only just. time to comply with her request, when she bounded from the epot, leaped over the low palings that separated the garden from the fields beyond, and was soon out of sight. Angelina was in such a state of surprise and confusion at the singularity of this event, that it was some minates after the woman had made her hasty exit, ere she could com poee herself sufficiently to examine the letter. It was written in a male hand, and in beautiful characters; was addressed to *“‘ Ange- lina. Woedfield.” Witha tsombling hand she broke she seal, and to her aiter astonishment read the following lines :— « Will the beauteous Adgelink grant the individual who was soc happy as to rescue her from the violence of the Baron de Merton, an interview alone, in the sycamore grove, at four in the afternoon of to-morrow, when he will impart ’ something that may be highly important to her happiness and his own? De mot be under any apprehensions, fair lady, at this strange request from mic, whom you know not, and rest assared no harm is intended you.” Angeline was indeed surprised, and read the mote a second time, thinking she had been mistaken. What could he want with her? What could he have to impart, when they were total strangers to each other? and how cowld he thiuk that she could ever act with such impropriety as to comply with his wishes, aad accept of a seeret assignation with a stranger. The bare thought was preposterous; and she was about to fold up the letter again, when an- ether piccé of paper fell from.it on to the fluor, and picking it up, she read in a different hand-writing the following lines :— es Maiden of myst’ry, be warn’d and flee, This is no place for peace and thee ; Danger surrounds thee, guilt is nigh, And views thee with designing eye ;— Then mark the warning, damsel fair, Maiden of myst’ry, beware ! beware !"’ ““ What can be the danger of which I am warned ?” said Angeline to herself, after she had perysed this singular composition, “‘and who are they who take such. an interest in my fate? I cannot solve this mystery; and the more I attempt to do so, the more inexplicable does it appear to me.” One thing, however, she was convinced of, namely, that the stranger, and the woman whom she had seyeral times encountered in the ruins of Saint Mark's Abbey, were in some way connected together ; and thus she was afforded fresh food for rumination. But who were they, and what were the motives of their -conduct? The appearagce of the young man beapoke nobility, while the mystery ef the woman’s behaviour, was sufficient to excita suspicion; and she was, therefore, the more at a loss to imagine what could have caused any associa- tion between two beings so decidedly opposite in appearance. Angelina, however, was not long in coming to the decision that she would - COMIC OOOlKS.€O