The Mysteries of the Court of London, Vol. 7 — page 122: what you’re looking at

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

ie i THE MYSTERIES OF THR COURT. than, with an ill-subdudd digh, she continued her wey dowh the ataits, « : n the évoning, after suppir—das Christian was | ledge that in the library, looking amusiti¢ the til at some of | ness, the elegantly bound books, ahd making notes of} first the of those which he thought he should like | with La gS ey How lozig he slept, he could not iepmedineily © tefl: But He gradually wakoned up to the: ie ? e aud that voices wera sponking thers: ’ eee the piace was involved in pitohy 4 i ie : sensation was one of physical cold, bfetdedt is mental slatm. Lamp and fire had both sone: 1 4 to peruse at his leisure—hé happened fo take dows | out—henco the chill which he naturally oxportoneed | a volunte ffoin between the leaves of which a piece of,papet fétt upon the catpet. He picked it up, and found that it was a coldmn out dut of aw old newspaper. It avas dingy with age, though the ptint was ectly legible; and the date at the top showed him that the journal of which i¢ hed once fornied 4 part, belonged to a period of mote thdh éigtiteen years back. Christian was about to eétutn thé diipsto the book ftom which it hed falien, wheh his eye caught tho name of Match- riont; atid a closer scrutiny showed him that it Was s réport of a Coroner's inquest upon the body of a murdered Dake bearing thut title. Natur- ally interested in the circumstance, from being in the servida of the present Duke, Christian sat down to read the account; and thus for the firet time did he become acquainted with some of those fatts which have been related in the earlier chap- ters of our natrative. Ho thereby disvovered that the present Duke of Mafehniont had succeeded to the title of his murdered uncle—that the murder itsclf had boeh brought home by unqitestionable evidence to the existing Duke's brother, thé Hon. Mr. Bertram Vivian—and that there was an equal amount of evidence to prove a crimina intercourse between Bertram Vivian and tho wile of the murdered Duke. The young lad shuddered as he read the catalogue of iniquities thus cir- cumstantially narrated. in his limbs; atid bis alarm was occasioned by tha fact that he could not immediately recollest whatd he was. This Aiimhess and bowilderment of the: recognised the voice of the Duke himself. “What tonsonse! Are you afraid to be in the datk¥ Y¥ téli you thers fs no one hore. It is impossible, all the household ere in bad, except the hall-porter wlio let us in, dnd my valet, whom, as you heard, T ordered to retire at onte. Wo have but a few words to say, and may as well sny them here as anywhere also.” ¥ Why, man, if is past midnight, and “ Afraid, my lord?” said the other voice, and which was totaly unfamiliar to Christian's oars. “What cath £ be afraid off But your Grace will confess that it is a somewhat strange proceeding to drag a tide almost by forco into a dark rooim— shut the door—-dnd then tell him that it is ona niosat impdrtaht business-——~” The Dake of Marchaont intorrupted tho apoaker with a loud laugh, oxelaiming, “Why, my dear Stanhope, a man who was brave eneugh to po out and fight a duel, cannot care foF befng a little while in the dark !” se “And FT tell your Grace that t do not,” replied | the individual, who, it appoared, tas Me. Stdahope. Replacing the newspaper-fragment betweon the | “ But still —~” leaves of the book, and returning the book to the shelf, Christian sat down to ponder over all he had jast read. He thought to himself what a kind-hearted man the present Duke must be to have endeavoured to shield his brother from the dreadful imputation which rested against him at the tinie: for that Hugh had made such endeavour, was duly recorded in the proceedings of tho in- quest. While Christian was thus giving way to his reflections—wondering too what had ultimatoly become uf Bertram and Elizd—an itnperceptible drowsiness stole over him,—a drowsiness which Blended as it were with his reverie, imparting a dgeaminess to the tenour of his thoughts. If he had boen reading at the timo, he would no doubt have endeavourdd to shake it off: but as he was Yeclining, batk iff a cushioned armi-chdir, with no decupation for his eyes—but on the conttary, his outward vision being turned inwardly, so to speak, in the contemplation of the incidents of the past— kp made no attenipt to struggle against that in- sidiously stealing drowsiness. It deepened—and in & few minutes the youth was wrapped in pro- found slumber. That sleep should thas have dome over him, was scaréely to be wondered ats for off thé previous day as well 46 on that of whtich we ate writing, he had undergone considerable ex- citement of the mind on account of the chargé which had taken plac#? in the condition of his sitter and himssif. However, be the catise what- soever if ihiglit, Christian dlumbered in that ldtge Pernt and this occurred a little after ten “But still—but atill—you do not much relish it P” continued the Duke, laighing: agd yet there was something curiously unnatural and forced ia that laugh of his. “You opened another door,” aaid Mr. Stanhope, “ere you brought mio in hither? Pray spoak scricusly ——~”’ “Weli, C will,” rojoined the Duke. “ Now the faci is, my Joar fellow, the door éhat I oponod, first of all, was that of a little cabinet whero the ser- vinta are accustomed to leave a light, together with wittc, and spirits, and sd forth, when I come in vory late at night: but as you yourself aw, there wads no light there. Sometimes thé light and the refreshments are plidced herd, in the library; and that was the reason I led you from one décor to another. But howodver, there is no light here any more than thero is in the cabinet ; snd as we are hero, wo nray ad woll tafk. Can- didly speaking, I have sotnot hing important to sty, and don’t want to go up inte tho drawing- room, because that valet of mine may not have retired to bed as yet; and I would not have him overhear our discourse,” “ But may it uot be alao possible, my lord,” in- quired Stanhope, “that we shall be overheard hore ?”” “No: for the inter green-baige door hermati- cally seala the etitrance against eaved-droppers. Now, Stanhope, ave yoti prepared to haa? mie 7” 6 I am, my ; Go on.” ; “You have this night lost twéive thoussed Pounds to rie tt the gaming-table,” sontintiéd thd mind’s perseption was however transient; and ad | the very inetfané that he renembered how tho hel | ifien asleep in the Duke of Marehmont’s library, NOG COMM (C SS CO