The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 352: what you’re looking at

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

Se ee) ee L a 338 THE YOUNG DUCHESS; Ok, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY, should I not carry out some such wild idea as this? You know that I am not the sort of being to pursue any of the ordinary and well- worn ways of life. I must strike out a new path for myself; and after all it would not be com- pletely novel—nor is the idea altogether so ori- ginal as you seem to have fancied.” “TI should think it original enough, Azaline,” said Lady Amesbury, in her ustial. quiet tone, and as she still contemplated the picture which she held in her hand. At that moment Edward Walpole’s curiosity received an irresistible impulse ; ; for he caught a glimpse of the subject of the picture, and ven- turing to peep still further forivatd through the leafy scene, he was enabiad to autyey it in all its details. It represented, 4 beautiful creature in an oriental costume; and lie ace, was by no means unlike that of Azaline herself, except , that the eyes, instead of beitg wide opened in the frank- ness and candour of her disposition, were half- closed as if with a species of voluptuous, languor. We should observe that it was a lithographic print, beautifully coloured ; and the fair heroine of the subject was depicted as reclining upon cushions spread upon the terrace of an oriental harem, and overlooking the sea. Near the foot- stool on which her exquisitely modelled limbs rested, were the two embroidered slippers which she had tossed from her shapely feet: her right arm supported her well-formed head; and she looked as if she were in the midst of a voluptiious languor, or else about to sink off into a soft _Tepose after imbibing the fragrarit coffée which was sup- plied from a tray that stood near her. Such was the subject of the picture — which was about two fect in width, by about one and a-Half in height. “No, the idea is not novel,” pursted Azaline, “Did not Lady Stanhope naturalise herself as it were in the East—dssume the dress of oriental women—and settling her abode in the sacred clime of Palestine; acquire the admiration and respect of the native people, so that they called her the Queen of Tadmor ?” “'Yegs—I remember to have tead ef that eccen- tric person,” said Lady Amesbury. ‘‘ But do you really mean me to understand that you have an ambition to follow in her footsteps ? Do not say so, Azaline! You are only jesting—and I think I can understand it all.” “What is it that you understand, my dear friend ?” asked Miss Osborne, with a smile. “Listen,” said Lady Amesbury. “YT pur- chased this picture because it struck me that the face bore a great resemblance to your own beau- titul countenance——” “Beautiful or not,” said Azaline, carelessly “Tam only as God has thade me. If f ugly, f could not help.it; and if good-looking, theré 18 no merit on my part, and therefore nothing for mo to be vain of. But goon. You purchased that picture because you fancied it to be like me?” “ And then,” continued Lady Amesbury, “in one of those pleasant moods which often cha- racterize you, happy creature that you are, Azaline! you think to amuse and mystify me by pretending that you would like to dress yourself in that very costume, adopt that very self-same mode of life, and convert yourself into a second Lady Stanhope, to be wondered at by one half of the world, and to be laughed at by the other half!” ‘“‘T assuredly should not court a notoriety suffi- cient to inspire wonderment ; neither on the other hand should I feel particularly distressed at find- ing myself the object of ridicule. I tell you, my dear-friend, ‘that I hate the artificial forms of tha society of our Western Enrope—I abominate its selfishness and despise its hollowness. It is bar- barisih in the midst of civilization. But to lead an untrathmelled life in orient climes,—surely that is civilization in the midst of barbarism ? Then, I prefer the latter!” “You would not become a female hermit ?” “Not I!? ejaculated Azaline. “I could not exist without human companionship. To dwell alone would be to shut oneself out from the sound of the human voice, which, when kind in its tones and natural in the ideas which it conveys, is the sweetest of all music! No—I must live amongst my fellow-creatures ; but I would fain seek another society than this, which, as I have before said, is all artificiality and hollowness, egotism; and insincerity !” “ And perhaps, my dear Azaline,” interjected Lady Amesbury, with a certain slyness of look, ‘vou would like to find some very agreeable companion amongst this English society of our’s, who would share, your own sentiments—sympa- thise with your ideas—and abandoning London fot ever, go and fix his abode with you on the banks of the Bosphorus or in one of the isles of the Levant? I mean, Azaline, that if any hand- some, gentéel, and elegant young gentleman, feel- ing a disposition to convert himself into a Greek or Turk, were to throw himself at your feet, you would not prove cruel to his suit ?” uy have never yet loved, my dear friend,” an- swered Azaline ; ‘‘ but rest assured that I believe in the existence of that sentiment in all its strength and its purity—and I am neither so miserably affected nor so presuaptuously self- sufficient as to pretend that I am beyond reach of its influence.” “And will you really tell me, Azaline, that with such ideas as these, you did not feel that Edward Walpole made the slightest impression on your heart ?” “You have joked and banteréd ime enough within the last ten minutes, my dear friend,” re- plied Azaline, good-naturedly; ‘‘ to enable you to grant me a little respite “ But about that young gentleman?” persisted Lady, Amesbury : “ was I altogether wrong “Wrong in introducing him into my pre- sence?” exclaimed Azaline, with some degree of vehemence, while the colour mounted to her cheeks: but instantaneously repressing that rising anger, she went on to say mildly and gently, ‘You cannot have forgotten, my dear friend, what I told you last night after he had taken his de- parture—— “ You were inclined to scold me very severely, Azaline!” “Perhaps I did speak more sharply than I ought to have dohe—because you know you were very foolish——” “T did it for the best—I really thought he had made an impression on your heart. I know what lovers are !”—and then suddenly stopping short, Lady Amesbury heaved a profound sigh. COMO YN Wn) Colin