Belle Rose: A Romance of the Cloak and Sword — page 317: what you’re looking at

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

th # THE CHEVALIER D’ARRAINES. 299 ‘‘Gabrielle de Mesle, a poor girl who died in the con- vent.’’ ‘‘Gabrielle is dead?’’ exclaimed Monsieur de Pomereux, trembling. ‘*Ves,’’ replied Suzanne, ‘‘her last sigh has been the name written upon that box.’’ ‘The Chevalier d’Arraines! she still loved him, then!’’ ‘‘Do you know him?”’ exclaimed Suzanne. ‘‘T am he, my God!”’ As he said this, the count fell upon a chair and concealed his face between his hands. CHAPTER XLV. THE CHEVALIER D’ARRAINES. Grief in a man so frivolous in appearance as Monsieur de Pomereux had something strange and sincere about it which profoundly touched the spectators. All were silent. Suzanne opened the little box and drew from it the letter and tress of hair which she handed to the count. ‘This, ’’ said she, ‘‘is all that is left of Gabrielle.’’ Monsieur de Pomereux took the letter and pressed it to his lips at the place where was to be seen the handwriting of the dead girl. As to reading what she had written, he could not, so dimmed were his eyes by tears. Presently he arose, and taking one of Suzanne’s hands and extending the other to Belle-Rose, he said to them: ‘‘T am accustomed to jest and I weep like a child; but before you it seems to me that I can do so.”’ “These tears make us esteem you more,’’ Suzanne said tohim. ‘‘Kind hearts are the only ones that suffer.’’ Monsieur de Pomereux had Suzanne relate the details which she had received from the mouth of Gabrielle. The death of this poor girl agitated him profoundly. ‘She was so young and so good! What was I doing, great God! while she was dying?”’ said he. And he again burst into sobs. ‘“Wretch that I am! Howcomes it that I have not _ divined her presence at the convent? I would have snatched her from it.”’ “She would not have permitted it,’’ said Suzanne. . It is a terrible story! Was I worthy of that pure heart? Ihave lived in a strange fashion, and nevertheless I have 3 ees eee cComicboo