Her Royal Lover: A Novel — page 66: what you’re looking at

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

O89 HER ROYAL LOVER, comprehend perfectly why they desired it so much. But his majesty did not seize the bait. Walpurga knew that her brother had had a little flirtation in Nice with Madame de Mineleko, but she was ignorant, however, that this marriage had been so near taking place. She came this day, sent partially by her brother, for at breakfast, when their parents had left the table, Waldemar had said to her: “Walpurga, thou desirest a title for him whom thou lovest! Dost thou not perceive where is the power which could lead to this elevation?” Walpurga, at first, had not comprehended. “How very short-sighted thou art, then!” ex- claimed her brother. “To whom did the king pay such assiduous attention, yesterday evening?” “To the new ambassadress.” “Ah, well! believe me, make an intimate friend of this young woman. Go and see her to-day, and if thou knowest how to profit by my counsel, I doubt not that thy wishes will be speedily realized.” Waldemar, in persuading thus his sister to this visit, was working as much in his own interest as in that of the young girl. During the night, kept awake by his thoughts, by his desires, he had made his calculations, erected his batteries. It seemed to him that it was absolutely necessary for the suc- cess of his projects, that he should have in the place some one on whom he could rely. Who better than a woman could even unconsciously assist him? Her very quality of a feminine creature would be a guarantee of security for Mineleko, whose jealousy and suspicions could not be awakened by the Bree ence of a friend of his wife. Now, Walpurga appeared to Waldemar the ite (E(0) mm G JOO Ss (E(@)