The Mysteries of the Court of London Vol. 7 — page 338: what you’re looking at

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

stripped all British intelligence of events passing {returned to England; and my firet care was to at the time I left my own native country: s0 | search the files of newspapers to gather « complete shat I still continued in the completest ignorance | knowledge of all that had taken place after my of the horrible tragedy whioh had occurred at/ precipitate flight from Osklanda. My hideous Oaklands. I must here observe that it hap- | suspicions were confirmed: I comprehended but pened, when I was engaged in a diplomatic | too well that my wretched brother must have been capacity at Washington—prior to that fatel visit | the murderer of his ubcle, and that to save himself of mine to England which had led me to Oak- | he had eo combined all ciroumetances as to fix the lands--I had obtained certain intelligence in re- | guilé upon me. I need now say no more. Ina spect to the policy of the United States’ Govern- | short time, and in auother place, E shall be called ment towards Japan and China. [ learnt on my | upon to continue s narrative which is eo replete arrival at Caloutta that there were flying rumours | with sad and memorable details, But I have seid of this gontemplated policy: but no one seemed | sufficient to prove the complete innocence of the to understand the precise bearings thereof. I | Duchess “Elisa, and to sbow likewise how it was waited upon the Governor-General, and gave him | that so many long, long years elapesd ere I re- auch explanations that not only astonished him, | turned to gbis country to meke inquiries into the but likewise proved to be of the highest import- | past and to adopt the requisite measures for yindi- ance; so that he was enabled to send off efficient | cating my own maligned reputation.” instructions to the naval commanders in the{ Lord on osised; and there were strong Chinese seas, as well as to the Brifish political | demonstrations of interest and sympathy through agente in Various quarters. My intrqduction to | the court. The Judge addressed him in a sompii- the Governor-General was thus most favouradle | mentary manner--winding up a moet appropriate to my views; and when I informed hjm that I had | speech with the intimation that he wes now at been attached tothe British Embassy at Washing: | freedom. Lord Clandon bowed, and left the court ton he asked me no more questions: it never | in company with hié friends. struck him that I might have borne another name; and he at once offerdd me employment in the civil = ° service of India. Tis I accepted; and in a very faw days set off on a special mission to the Nisam. OHAPIER OXLIX. At that Sovereign’s Court I remained for upwards of a year, deeply engaged in diplomatic negotiations. THE COMMITTEE OF PRIVILEGE. No English newspaper ever reached me; aud [ thus continued in total ignorance of the events | ALTHOUGE the right aud title of the young Duke whioh so intimately regarded my character and good | of Marchmont appeared to have been universally name in my native land. Having succeeded in | admitted—although he entered at once upon pos- all the objects for which I had been accredited to | session of the mansions, revenaes, and yast do- the Nisam’s Court, I was directed by a special | mains—~and although not the slightest opposition courier bearing despatches from the Governor- | was from any quarter displayed, and no pettifogging General to repair on a similar mission to the King | attorney endeavoured to rake up a case with the of Indprabad. From various causes the small | view of being bough? off so as not to throw trouble retinue with which I travelled, dwindled away; |in the way-yet was it absolutely necessary, for and I arrived alone at the chief city of Inderabad. | the sake alike’of form and law,that our young There I found myself a prisoner. Years elapsed; shero should prove bie claims before a Committee no inquiry was made after me—for the King of | of Privileges of the House of Lords. For this Inderabad, in order to accomplish bis own aims, | purpose the expiration of two or three months had caused the rumour to bo spread that I was no/|to be awaited for the assembling of Parliament. more. At length, in the year 1645, an English | Queen Indora therefore remained in England— traveller was assassinated, by miscreants of the | becauséfLord Clandon wes himeelf forced to tarry Thuggee caste, in a forest at no greats distance or the} comonttee, and it was arranged that her from the city of Inderabad. Amonget his effects | Majesty and his lordship were to return to Indias an English newspaper was digysovered. Though | together. , sixteen years had then elapsed since the events at| We will not now pause to describe how passed Ouklands, there was nevertheless a paragraph in | the time during this interval: but we will at once that journal which alluded thereto. I¢ was one | proceed to stute thit on the assembling of Parlia- of those paragraphs which frequently refer to any | ment the Lords appointed s committees to con- memorable occurrences connected with eminent | duct the investigation. Mr. Coleman, aesiated by families: and then, for the first time, I learnt that | able Doctors of Civil Law, managed the entire my uncle had been murdered—that I was branded | case; and it was naturally bis study to present the as his aseassin-that neither myself nor the | evidence in its most consecutive form to the noble Duchess Elisa had ever since been heard of—and | committee. it was supposed that we as a guilty pair hed fled| The young Duke of Marchmont himself was the together to some remote part of the world, to | first witness in his own cdse. He stated that him- elude the consequences of our crities. I will not | self and his sister Dhristina hed been broaght up pause to depict the feelings with which I perused ; from their carliest infancy by a gentleman of the this statement: but I implored my freedom—and | name of Ashtun, who resided at a village in Weet- it was still refused. A short while afterwards I | moreland, at a distance of about twenty-five wiles succeeded in effecting my escape, —bringing with, from Woodbridge. Christian and Christina bad me the immense wealth which the King of Indefa- | always been led to suppose that Mr. Ashton was had had laviehed in acknowledgwent of various! their uncle, and that their own ‘parents had died important services that I had rendered him. I/| when they were babes. Nuthing had ever om 6 COMIC OOO© SS (CO)