Joseph Wilmot, or, The Memoirs of a Man-Servant — page 127: what you’re looking at

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

| 114, JOSEPH WILMOT; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF A MAN-SERVANT. eartiage was in readiness to convey us to the ducal | But still, after I had obeyed the ducal invitation, palace. Captain Raymond handed Olivia into the , his Royal Highness continued to survey me for vehicle ; and I observed that her manner towards | some few moments longer, with that same curiosity him was coldly lady-like—distant without rude- | and interest which he had already displayed. ness—reserved without unfeminine hauteur. I as- “I have requested your attendance here,” he cended to the box; and the equipage drove off. | said, still speaking in the French language, and While it was proceeding towards the palace, I was | addressing us all collectively, without suffering his lost in wonder at the proceeding which was now | eyes to settle upon any one in particular, ‘‘ because to develope itself. As a matter of course I fully | I have matters of certain importance to communi- comprehended that it had ‘some reference to the| cate. First of all however, let me put a case to affairs of Angelo Volterra, and perhaps to the cap- | you. If you were told that a man made every tured brigand: but if the period had now come | personal sacrifice—incurred the most terrible risks for Angelo’s promised explanations, I was totally | —for months and months continuously held bis at a loss to conceiye why they were to take place | life in such jeopardy that the faintest breath of at the ducal dwelling, and not under those ciréum- | suspicion would have been enough to snap the stances of privacy which their delicate nature| hair which retained the dagger suspended over would have seemed to render desirable: However, | him,—if you were told that this man, accustomed I had not much time for conjecture: for the equi- | to all the elegances and refinements of society, page speedily turned into the court-yard of the} voluntarily threw himself into the midst of the ducal palace refuse and the outcasts, the vilest and the lowest of An usher immediately came forth—or was in- | that same society,—and if it were told you in ad- deed already in waiting—to receive Lord Ringwold | dition that this man had incurred all those perils and his party; and with many profound bows he } and encountered all those circumstances of loathing prepared to lead the way into the interior of the | and of horror, for the sake of benefiting a relative palace. I hung back somewhat, with a natural | who was most near and dear to him,—what, I ask timidity lest in my position as a menial I should } you, would be your opinion of such a man?” happen to intrude, or press forward at an earlier} Lord and Lady Ringwold looked at each other stage of the proceedings than that at which | as if totally bewildered what response to give, and my presence would be really required. But the | utterly unable to comprehend the Grand Duke’s gentleman-usher, looking round, and observing that | aim and meaning. I perceived, however, that it I hesitated to follow, at once accosted me, saying | was somewhat different with Captain Raymond: in French, “I presume that you are the young for by his looks he evidently had some vague pre- Englishman who bears the name of Joseph Wil- | sentiment or suspicion of to whom the Grand mot ?” Duke’s query related. But Olivia, with love’s I bowed, and replied in the affirmative. keen penetration, did not merely conjecture, but “Then you are to accompany the rest,” the | felt certain who the individual was that the ducal gentleman-usher at once said. words thus pointed at—though she was still com- Having thus spoken, he continued to lead the | pletely at a loss to imagine for what reason those way up a private staircase, into an ante-room,— | great personal sacrifices had been made by the in- where several noblemen with stars upon their | dividual referred to. JI in this same respect was breasts, officers in uniform, and other officials of | equally in the dark. the palace, were conversing together in groups.| “ You do not answer me,” continued the Grand Two pages drew aside a superb curtain of purple | Duke; “and therefore I must go on speaking. velvet—gilded folding doors flew open on their | The individual to whom I have referred, is known noiseless hinges—and we passed on into a spacious | to you all; and the loss of reputation in the eyes and sumptuously furnished apartment, where the | of at least some of you, has not proved the least of Grand Duke was seated at a table on which there | the many painful sacrifices he has had to endure were a great number of papers. Those gilded | in working out his noble aim. But now that this portals closed behind us: the gentleman-usher had | aim is accomplished—now that success has crowned stopped short upon the threshold—he had not ac- | that toil of self-martyrdom—his spirit, as sensitive companied us—and we five (Lord and Lady Ring- | as it is noble, chafes with impatience to clear up wold, the Hon. Miss Olivia Sackville, Captain | his character in the estimation of those who still Raymond, and myself) thus passed on, unattended | continue to believe that he was really that which and unannounced, into the ducal presence. he has only seemed to be. Everything has been The Sovereign of Tuscany rose from his seat, | explained to me; and for many reasons have I and with dignified affability bowed an acknow-|taken it upon myself to become the medium of ledgment of our salutations. He motioned us| these communications unto you. Listen: I must all to be seated on chairs ready arranged along | tell you a tale. Some years ago documents of the the opposite side of the table to that where he | utmost importance were abstracted from the ducal himself was placed; and when I hesitated, he | archives, and carried off by a man who has since looked hard at me, but with a gaze of mingled/| rendered himself so terrible as the captain of kindness and curiosity; and speaking in French, | banditti. This man is Marco Uberti. The docu- said, as his usher before had done, “ You must be | ments which he thus purloined, were of such grave Joseph Wilmot?” importance—no matter wherefore—that in my I bowed: but feeling somewhat confused, gave | anxiety to repossess them, I often and often vowed no verbal answer. |in the hearing of my Ministers and courtiers, that “ Be seated,” said the Grand Duke: and with|to any man who should become the means of the most gracious affability he waved his hand | restoring them to me, I would grant whatscever towards the chair which, mindful of my menial! boon he might think fit to demand, with only, such position, [had been at first hesitating to take. reservations as were proper and becoming to my se a TT i eo i et ee ee et RT OA EORMICOOOKSsE