Beautiful Rienzi; or, The Secret Vendetta — page 201: what you’re looking at

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

194 BEAUTIFUL RIENZI have much pleasure in writing them down, and keeping the notes, if so required.” The ceremonious little man here displayed before my shrinking eyes, the proofs of Mrs. Ringwood’s foul attempt. «‘Tt will soon be over;” said my friend, encouragingly. «‘ Just detail all that took place during the woman’s pres- ence, so that Doctor Whitney’s report, being by an uninter- ested party, may have some weight.” - I told the circumstances as minutely as possible; the gentlemen both agreed that she had dropped the poison into the two wine glasses at the moment when her vail fell forward, and that the third glass which she had indicated, was unpoisoned, and intended for Isolina. . Why this divi- slon was made was an impenetrable mystery; it defied us all apparently. My friend Doctor Pemberton hazarded no solution. Doctor Whitney related all that he knew of the lady dur- ing her stay at Silverlea; she had been from some time in December until April an inmate of the very house which an inscrutable Providence had led us to take refuge in; and for some time a young gentleman had been with her, who was rarely seen, and whose retirement it was whispered was in consequence of some State crime, which had driven him out of society. Who he was no one could rightly ascertain. The housekeeper suspected him to be Mrs. Ringwood’s son, and a Southern spy, but she was never encouraged by the widow lady to ask any questions. At this point of the village doctor’s story, I cried hastily: «© Did you ever see the young man?” ‘IT did, but only once, and under rather peculiar cir- cumstances,” he replied. ‘‘ About six weeks after the ar- rival of Mrs. Ringwood I was passing the gate, when the man Morecombe intercepted me and asked me if I could see a patient without alarming the village. I asked him what he meant, and he said: ' *<«'lhere is some one up there badly in want of a doctor who knows how to hold his tongue and use his brains,’ ‘« «Tf there is any one illat Silverlea, I shall be happy to be of use,’ I answered, turning my horse’s head; ‘and as I am not in the habit of violating the confidence of my _ patients, you have nothing to fear.’ ““T was not prepared, I confess, for the kind of patient to which I was introduced. The room was darkened, and comicbooks:co