Ellen Percy; or, The Memoirs of an Actress — page 87: what you’re looking at

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74 ELLEN PERCY; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF AN ACTRESS. your kind offer, my dear Ellen; and perhaps I may intrude upon you for a few days until I pro- vide myself with a suitable lodging.” “Tf you thus leave Lady Kelvedon,” I said, “it shall be to remain with me altogether: for where can you find yourself more happy than with your fellow-pupil Mary, and with myself who am your preceptress P” Aline pressed my hand: her heart was too full of emotions, arising from various sources, to allow her to give utterance to a word; and [J said, «TI will now go and send a message to Lady Kelve- don.” “T had already written her this note,” said Aline, producing one; “and confident beforehand that you would afford me an asylum, I have in- formed her ladyship whither I am going.” | I took the billet; and issuing forth, gaye it fo some underling to take round to Lady Kelvedon’s box. My carriage was in readiness; and we all prepared to quit the theatre. On our way to the equipage, we found Mr. Richards waiting for us ; and having expressed his congratulations to Aline and Mary, he said, “ Ladies, I beg to offer you an engagement on whatever terms Miss Trafford may suggest. For my part I leave the settlement of those terms entirely to Miss Trafford; and I am confident that you, ladies, will be equally willing that she should thus kindly decide between us.” Both my friends expressed in a suitable manner their acknowledgments of this generous conduct on the lessee’s part: he escorted us to the car- riage—and we repaired to Great Ormond Street. When we sat down to supper, Mary Glentworth was in tolerably good spirits: but Aline was only enabled to affect a gaiety, beneath which I could discern the under-current of sadness. Miss Glentworth however, haying no reason for sus- picion, took that assumed cheerfulness to be genuine. When the hour for retiring came, I conducted Aline to the chamber which she was to occupy; and she begged me to remain with her fora few minutes. We sat down together; and she now gave vent to the tears which she had hitherto kept back, and the restraining of which must have proved so painful. “Was it not hard, dear Ellen,” she said, in a broken voice, “that at the very moment of my success, something should have transpired to plunge a dagger in my heart? Yet, alas! it was so! Throughout those five Acts—or at least whenever I was upon the stage—I looked in every direction with the dread of meeting the eyes of one whom [ wished not to behold there! Suddenly, just as the curtain was about to fall upon us three, as we stood hand in hand bebind the footlights—the bouquets showering around us, and the shouts of applause resounding through the vast building—I saw the door of a box open —some one entered it was he! As plainly, Ellen, as I behold you at this moment—for the box was only the second on the left-hand side of the stage,—as plainly, I say, as I now behold your countenance, did I catch the expression of won- derment and consternation which seized upon his features. Then, as if suddenly stricken a death- blow, I lost all consciousness !” “But you thought yourself prepared, Aline— you fancied yourself nerved,” I said, in the kindest and gentlest tone, “ for such an eventuality ?—but it was more, my poor friend, than you could en- dure! My only wonder is, that labouring under that apprehension, you could have acquitted your- self as brilliantly as you did! Indeed, your per- formance was admirable—your triumph was im- mense! Oh, I hope that you do not fear lest on future occasions But perhaps—who knows P— he whom you still love, Aline, may seek you out id Here I suddenly checked myself; for I felt that I was wrong to encourage a hope which peradyen- tura never could be realized. * T know what you would have said, Ellen,” she answered; “and I can comprehend likewise what has suddenly flashed to your mind. No! I dare not entertain such a hope. As I have before told you, everything is irrevocably at an end betwixt him and me, It was a momentary weakness on my part this evening if was a paroxysm that under certain circumstances was almost ivevitable: but it cannot occur again! Do you not under- stand what ideas swept through my mind? It was that the step had been taken which opened the impassable abyss betwixt him and me !—it was the conviction that the death-knell had rung for any faint lingering hope that might possibly have hovered in my mind! But now, Ellen, all is over! —that one last feeling has found its vent—and henceforth you shall ses that my calmness and for- titude will be fully equal to those of our friend I remained a little longer in Aline’s chamber until E was convinced that she was in a perfectly settled frame of mind; and then I bade her good night. On returning to my own room, I ee ea dened by the reflection,—which indeed I had often this world without its alloy—no moment of fF umph without its inevitably associated feeling of bier ness! On the night of my own brilliant debut two years back, I had felt that I was taking a step un- known to my aunt and cousin: now, on this night, when I had so much reason to rejoice in the success of my two beautiful pupils, I was compelled to mourn that complete bliss was not in their hearts. For Aline had been suddenly afflicted in the manner described ; and I knew enough of Mary Glent- worth to be certain that she still retained a sense of the cruel blow which had been stricken her a short time back. I awoke in the morning at an earlier hour than usual; and on descending to the breakfast-parlour, I found that neither Mary nor Aline had as yet made their appearance. The newspapers had just arrived : I hastened to open them, and I was re- joiced at the flattering notices that were given of the performance of the two fair debutantes on the preceding evening. The morning journals were unanimous in their verdict of approval : they spoke highly of the talents and the personal beauty of Mary and Aline; and they enthusiastically com- plimented me for having introduced two such pro- mising young ladies to the public. I sped up- stairs to their chambers, and in a very short time communicated to each the nature of the reviews that were given of their performance. lary Glentworth, desisting from her toiiet, sat down greedily to devour the critiques in the journals which I left with her; but I found that Aline was made belore,—that there is no hap iness in er i er ee ee SSS SSS eee EORNIELOOOLS (E(o)