Joseph Wilmot, or, The Memoirs of a Man-Servant — page 161: what you’re looking at

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

148 eee JOSEPH WILMOT; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF A MAN-SERVANT. Southampton. They got into conversation with her: they spoke to her of the pleasures of the life they led—the variety of scenes which they beheld —the applause which greeted them at the theatres where they performed—and the constant novelty and excitement which belonged to their roving state of existence. Violet, with a headstrong dis- position, was thoroughly inexperienced in the ways of the world: she was of a lofty spirit and of im- petuous character, but knew nothing of the perils into which such attributes might lead her. She received as gospel every word which the two actresses uttered; and she was at once smitten with the charms of that free, independent, roving life which was depicted to her in such fascinating colours. Nevertheless, she thought of home—or rather of two beings there,—her mother and An- nabel: and the recollection of their beloved images held her back. On that occasion she gave no de- cisive answer to the two actresses; but merely pro- mised to find an opportunity of seeing them again on the morrow. On the following day she stole forth again from the precincts of the seminary; and was speedily joined by the two women. This time they were accompanied by a flashily-dressed man, who was introduced to Violet as the manager of the com- pany. He no doubt came to see whether the re- presentations which had been made to him by his two actresses, were perfectly correct, and that the young maiden was indeed the rare specimen of seraphic loveliness, aerial lightness, and sylphid grace she had no doubt been described to him. That he must have at once coincided with the views of the two women in foreseeing that Violet would prove an immense acquisition to his dramatic corps, may of course be surmised. Violet fancied him to be an elegantly-dressed and most agreeable man: the theatrical trinkets with which he was bedizened, she took for real solid jewellery; and she conceived his bowings and scrapings, his bland smiles and his inflated speeches, to be the evidences of polished gentility. She had been taught danc- ing at school, and was already a proficient in the art: for where the mind is passionately attached to a particular accomplishment, and there is a taste for it, a degree of perfection is scon attained. The manager and the actresses gleaned from her that she was thus skilled; and the knowledge of that fact no doubt made them resolve to obtain at any risk the services of so lovely a creature, whose sylph-like appearance alone was sufficient to pro- duce a startling effect upon the stage. To be brief, Violet yielded to their representations — fell into their views—and accepted their proposals. Thoughts of home were so far banished from her mind, that while she endeavoured to throw into the background those two loved images which should have prompted a negative to the cajolery of the beguilers,—she prominently brought forward that other dreaded and almost hated image, the bare recollection of which was sufficient to lead to an affirmative. On the following day she met the two actresses again, and this time they were not accompanied by the manager. The present interview was to settle the arrangements for her flight; and these were made, On re-entering the seminary after this in- terview, she was accused of having been out and of having spoken to strangers; and she was ordered to ber own room as a punishment. But little recked Violet for the upbraidings she thus re- ceived, and the penalty which her fault had ens tailed: for she felt that she stood upon the threshold of freedom. Indeed, if anything had been required to strengthen her resolve in what she considered the accomplishment of her self- emancipation, it would have been those upbraidings and that chastisement. At midnight she stole forth from the seminary—that young creature of little more than fifteen—and joined the two women who were waiting for her at the place of appoint- ment. A sort of covered spring cart was ready at a little distance; and in this vehicle did Violet and her companions journey to some town fifteen or sixteen miles distant, whither the remainder of the company had repaired on the day previous. And now commenced Violet’s theatrical career. She retained her Christian name, the manager as- suring her it was a most captivating one; but she altered the surname for that of Mortimer. She did not make her first appearance until the company was at least a hundred miles away from South- ampton; and thus all trace of her was lost, when her father journeyed to that town to make inquiries concerning his fugitive daughter. The manager was a married man; and his wife was considered to be a respectable woman. They took Violet to live entirely with them,—keeping her as much apart as possible from the rest of the company. They foresaw that she would prove a star of im- mense attraction ; and they wished to retain her as much as they could under their own influence, and prevent her from forming any connexion which, at the caprice of another individual, might sever her from their troop and take her over to some rival itinerant company. Perhaps, too, there might have been a certain amount of proper feeling on the part of the manager’s wife—if not on that of the manager himself—in respect to the care which ought to be taken of a young, inexperienced, and unsuspicious creature who had been beguiled away from a seminary. But whatever the motives, cer- tain it is that Violet was guarded with as much jealous vigilance as could possibly be exercised under the circumstances; and as she lived alto- gether with the manager and his wife, it was not immediately that she became exposed to the cor- rupting influences of the career on which she had entered, or that she had to experience any of its struggles and ups and downs. Having for two or three weeks gone through a proper course of training for theatrical dancing— and having applied herself to the study with the unwearying zeal of an absolute passion — she quickly became proficient; or at all events suffi- ciently so to make her appearance upon the boards of a provincial theatre. Her success was great; and the local press spoke rapturously of her. The exquisite beauty of her person—the radiant love- liness of her countenance—the sylphid symmetry of her shape—the statue-like modelling of her limbs—together with the elegance and grace of her movements, more natural than acquired,—all combined to render her a star of great attraction and ensure her triumph. The manager’s treasury quickly experienced the advantage ; and as his profits were thus considerable, he was enabled to provide his heroine with such comforts and even luxuries at the inns where they stopped in the proe EONNICOOOKS (©) im