The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 145: what you’re looking at

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

-_ THE YOUNG DUCHESS; OR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY. 181 tible with honour, for the sake of that beloved little one... - “ Phank—thank you!” and Lady Langport spoke with a fervour that was even fearfully ener- getic. ‘‘ You are now about to see me unmasked! ——to behold the living lie that I am!—to mark in me a monstrous moving, breathing falsehood! —a cheat as gross as it is stupendous! Conceive the skeleton divested of its flesh ! picture to your- self the loathsome mummy unwrapped from its bandages !—and that abhorrent, revolting thing ami! You think me young? Iam old! You fancy me possessed of fine proportions ?—but I am of a leanness that is appalling! Instead of the luxuriant fullness of health, it is an almost fleshless skeleton, wasted by some urfknown and terrific disease, that you will see before you! It is atrophy personified! Shut your eyes, if you dread to took upon the loathsome mummy—the revolting atomy !” Ethel’s brain was reeling whilé this appdlling speech was being addressed to her;. but by the time it was concluded, she had regained her self- possession—for she once more thought of her child; and back to her memory came the assur- ance of Martha Crediton, that apart from the one hideous circumstance which she would have to encounter, she might reckon upon enjoying the most perfect happiness at Hendon Court. ‘“* Now I understand your ladyship,” she said, im that soft tone of compassion which was so con- sistent with her amiable nature ; ‘and I see that you are to be commiserated ! Oh, you have pro- mised me all your kindness !—and shall I not be kind to you in return? Yes! yes!” . An expression. of mingled gratitude and joy appeared upon the countenance of Lady Lang- port; and then sinking on a chair, she was for several minutes so overcome by her emotions that she could not give utterance to a word. Ethel accosted her, and spoke in the kindest, most endearing terms. Nothing could exceed the gén- tleness—the affectionate ministration of that most amiable lady. Her patroness was soothed, com- forted, and encouraged; and pressing her hand she murmured, “ Now I know you, Ethel, as well as if we had been years together !—and rest assured that there is nothing on earth I will not do for you! Others have been good to me before you—and I have enriched them. I should have behaved with an equal liberality to Martha Credi- ton—only that she did not require it—an accident gave her wealth. But I need say no more: for if I comprehend your goodness of heart, you need be at no loss to understand the extent of my gratitude !” Then commenced the night-toilet of Lady Lang- port. It was indeed the unrolling of the mummy from its wrappers! Oh, it was a hideous disap- parelling ! Garment after garment, corset after corset falling off—heavens! everything was false —artificial—and succedaneous about her! Her teeth were false : her complexion was the result of cosmetics artistically laid on ; and if the dark dye had not penetrated into the very tubes of her hair, that would have appeared in all the white- ness of age. At length the horrible process was complete; and there stood the wretched woman, a living skeleton—a withered, toothless hag, loathsome to contemplate—every bone visible be- neath the skin, which just covered it without the intervention of any flesh to yield to the pressure! And she who had looked so fresh and blooming— so young that Ethel had even at one time carried back ,her age to thirty years—was veritably and actually an old woman of nearly sixty ! We will not dwell upon the scene. Suffice it to say that Ethel endured the shock with as much delicate consideration for the unfortunate being herself, as she could possibly command; and when she had performed such duties as the hor- rible condition of her patroness required, and had seen her to her couch, she retired to her own bed, where with the cold shudderings of horror she pressed her child to her bosom, wondering whether even for his sake she could night after night and morning after morning endure the repetition of that loathsome spectacle for a very long period ! CHAPTER XXVIIL THE USURER. THE clocks of the metropolis were striking the hour of ten at night, when Mr. Casey senior en- tered upon Waterloo Bridge ; and arriving at the seat over ‘the central arch, he stopped and looked around him. He evidently expected some one: but as he was not immediately accosted by any person, he gazed: upon the river and the countless lights which bordered it on either side. But whether the aspect of the mighty city, beheld from that pomt of view and at that hour, with the moonlight shining upon the water, and with all the domes and pinnacles and spires of the huge Babylon standing out in dim relief against the dark-hued sky, produced any particular effect upon the usurer—or whether his thoughts were travélling to other scenes or fixed upon other subjects—we cannot say. Five minutes elapsed: then Mr. Casey heard footsteps approaching : he looked round—and Tim Gaffney was almost im-~ mediately by his side. In order te prevent any mistakes, let us at once inform the reader that Tim Gaffney did not know Gasey by his name—did not even know for certain that, he was the Rupert Pringle of other times—and, in short, was utterly ignorant of all material icireumstances i in reference to the person whom he was now meeting. He had heard from an acquaintance in. the first instance that a cer- tain individual was looking out for an active and trustworthy fellow or two to. perform a par- ticular piece of business. Tim Gaftney had prof- ferred his services—an appointment was at once made—and the meeting had promptly taken place on Waterloo Bridge, on the very same spot where Casey and Gaffney now again met. That first interview took place on the dth of May: it was arranged that precisely that day week there should be another appointment ; and it was now there- fore, inthe évening of the 12th, that the employer and the employed were at the rendezvous. We mInay add that as Casey only knew Tim Gaffneyin the business, the latter had not deemed it neces- sary to bring his friend Mr. Peppercorn with Casey was in reality full of anxiety in reference to the results of the mission which had been en- trusted ‘to Tim Gaffney : but nothing on his hard COMO oO ee Colin