The Mysteries of the Court of London, Vol. 7 — page 376: what you’re looking at

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

ie Sienna cman ‘ise eRe Quang: (pl ie 6.Ue =" ee eee eee = Oe ee He eee ee ee SU ee =—=— ~~ <= « = tom — SHS MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. trary, death might be close at hand: the agent of deatrustion might be noiselessly insinuating itecif towards beradlf or her much-loved benefactress. “Do .not be alarmed, my dear friend,” said tle Princess, penctrating what was thue passing in the mind of our beroine: “you may reat assured that the instinct of the snake-charmer cannot fail him —especially one who in his time was eo famous as this Hindoo emissary. You would be astonished to behold those snake-charmers in my own native land. They not merely play with the deadly cobra: they irritate and enrege the reptile—but all the while being careful that the peculiar music 16 sustained ; for if the flow of the melody which constitutes the charm fur tho serpent and the talisman of the charmer’s safety, were to cease, that instant were death! There ere European travellers and writers who have endeavoured to prove that the poisonous fangs have been torn from the mouth of the cobra before the anake-charmer will venture to pley with it; and that therefore ~ the feat resolves itself into a mere piece of juggiery which could be as weil perfurmed with the most innocuous of reptiles. But those writers ere: for cases have come within mine own expe. appease = ani rienee—or rather within my uwn knowledge — where men have been bitten by the reptiles with which they were playing « little time before; and they have died of those bites. For inatanco, a fow years ago, in my father’s sovercign city of In- derabad, an itinerant snake-charmer earned the applause of crowds in every street by the iatro- duction of some noveltics into the wonted routine of the performance adopted by men of hia class. He retired to rest at night in a hut on the out- akirt of the city,—hbis purse being well filled with coin ; and his basket of reptiles— the source of his gaine—eafely secured, aa he thought. In the morning the man was found dead; and a slight puncture on the cheek—or rather two small punc- tures, close together, and not larger than if they had been formed by the point of a lancet—indi- eated the cause of his death. One of the cobras had contrived to escape from the basket; and as there was no charming music at the time to fasci- nate ite ear, it plunged ite fangs into the fesh of ite master. Jt was found ooiled up in a corner of the hut, gorged with some small animal that it had swallowed; and being inert after its meal, was easily destroyed.” ' While the Princess was yct epeaking, the eounds of the two emussaries’ foutsteps were beard over- bead: they were evidently passing along the pas- sage ia which the principal bed-chambere were, situated. The musio had never ceased playing frum the inatant they quitted the drawing-room : and though Christina was somewhat encoursged by the assurance which the Princess had ere now given, her, sue notwithstanding still experienced the cold creeping sensation as if a prolonged shud- der were continuously creeping over ber. “Now they are in my chamber,” said the Prin- eess, aa the footsteps were beard io the apartment precisely over the drawing-room. “ Hark! the qusic plays louder— it gruwe more rapid! I know its meaning well! Yes, Christina —that man’s inatinct did not deceive him !—there is assuredly a deadly reptile in the house——Ab ! end it is in my Cwn room !” RES Ee Oe OR EERE wey QerwOre f= We = “pes & aww: aa she threw herself into the arma of the Princess, —weeping and sobbing upon that lady's boeom, and mucuring to a broken wice, “Just heaven ! if it should prove so, Oh! what would have become of your ladyship, had not theses m rived! I¢ is providence that bas sent them I” Indors strained her young friend to her breast, and imprinted a kise upon her pure poljahed fore- head: then a sudden ejaculation burst from Indora, “ the music suddenly ceared in the chamber over- “ What is it P” asked Christina: and ber breath was suepended with a suspense moat poigoantly painful. “Te is all ower!” responded the Princesa: “ the reptile is discovered and is destroyed. Hark to the jyyous tones of those men’s voices! But hither they come.” And it was eo. The two ewissaries wese de- ecending the stairs with much more rapid steps than when they hademounte) them a few minutes back. The music was nol renewed: it was there- fore evident that all danger was past and gone, The door opened; and the senior messenger bas- tened into the room— where falling upun one knoe at Indora’s feot, be opencd a towel which he care ried in his hands, and displayed a cobra cut inte three pieces. Those fragmunts of the reptile were yet writhing oonvulaively: bat all real lifo wae out of them - it was mere spasmadic action which the sections thae displayed— aud thy snake was inca: pable of mischief. But Christina everted her louks with ineffable loathing, as well as with a ould shuddering terror. The Princess herself flung but one glanee on the remains of the deadly rep- tile; and in obediency to « sign from her, the mnes- senger covered them up again with the towel. He spoke in answer to some question which the Pria- cess put; and then she bade the junior emissary likewise approach. He alay knelt; and the Lrin- cess, drawing from her fingers two rings ol im- mense value, bestowed them respectively upon the two individuals who had thus saved her from de. struction. “ Yea, my dear Christina,” ahe ssid, again ad- dressing herself in English to our heroine, and speaking im s voice.eof profound pulemnity,~- “ Henven has indeed interposed most signally in my favour. ‘lranquillise your feelinge—exercise @ command over yoursclf—while I tell you what { have just learot from the lips uf these men. It appears that the moment they entered my chamber, the instinct of the younger one convinced him in a Ysoment that the reptile was there. Again | say compose yourself, Christina although { cone fese that the bare idea makes even myself shudder. Yes—for forth from my bed—from beneath the clothes from the very place where in another hour I should bave lain myself down— glided the hideous reptile. Then was it that the music played more loudly and more rapidly, as we beard it; and the evubra began to dance upon the bedding according to the wont of its species when thus fascinated bys peculiar medody. But ite very moments were numbered : for the keen weapon of the senior messenger, glancing like a hghtning- fiash, sysute the reptile with unerring sim; and at lay severed, as you have just sen it, upon the bed which might under other circumstances have Our heroine gave a half-stided shriek of affright | proved a bed of death to me |” UD muige-< —aheiy= a nS eu is a et ey =a 3e ww =e wx = - wes “405 SS