The Bronze Statue, or, The Virgin's Kiss — page 119: what you’re looking at

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

ar PRAT YRS sate wens st= @ eT = +4 ~ ? TOF . - *- pong. ae 5 2= ee a <->bescd + - <2.3 Fe ‘nl eto, THE BRONZE STATUE. 117 v- == * of my father, animating him with Teso- | clius, the murdered Armenian priest— lution to meet the emergency. , His in-j the good old man——” tention was imparted in afew hurried} ‘ But his passionate vehemence was words to Almeria, and she instanta-| suddenly checked, for a rending shriek neously assented. Veiling her appre-| burst from the lips of Almeria, and sbe hensions as well as she was able, and | sank senseless upon the ground, within feeling herself capable of making any | a few paces of the putrescent remains sacrifice for the sake of her husband and | of the corpse of her best friend ! her children, she took Gloria’s hand ‘It would be impossible to describe while my father took mine; and in this| the scene of confusion, of terror, and of manner we all went forth to meet the| consternation that ensued. ‘The rapi- insurgent multitudes, who had by this| dity of events was commensurate with time forced their way into the outer| that hurry which whirled in our brains. court-yard of the royal dwelling. | The words of my father, though in rea- ‘At the appearance of the king and | lity alluding to the crime of which he , b Sty, a his beauteous queen, leading forward their two innocent children, a faint murmur of mingled applause and sym- pathy rose from the foremost of the crowd; but this expression of feeling was in another moment drowned by a terrific cry for vengeance upon the ha- ted Ministers, as a few daring, despe- had been guilty in making a compact with Satan, were naturally mistaken by the millions, to whom the appalling se- eret was unknown, for a confession of the murder of Heraclius the Armenian priest. I scarcely know what followed. Certain, however, it is that the guards experienced the utmost difficulty in pro- rate men burst forth from the midst of|tecting the king from the rage of the the dense mass of people, and threw down the mangled remains of the corpse at our feet! Oh! well, how well can I recollect the shuddering horror which impelled Gloria and myself to press close to our parents’ sides and avert our eyes from that hideous spectacle ; and, child of little more than three years old as | was at the time, yet so vivid was the impression made upon me by the awful scene that it now appears as if it were only enacted yesterday. Yes; and the expression which my father's countenance suddenly took, as | threw up my gaze towards him, is one of me- mory’s never to be forgotten portraits ; and a fearful cry burst from his lips ;— a cry which came, fraught with inefla- ble anguish, from a heart that was shed- ding forth its unseen tears ot blood !— My mother clung to him with the same feeling which prompted Gloria and my- self to cling to them; and in the first few instants which thus elapsed from the moment that the body was abruptly flung before our eyes; in those few in- stants, | say, were concentrated ages of anguish, of horror, and of dismay ! ‘But this portion of the scene was too terrible to last long ; and, excruciat- ing mental tortures giving their uncon- trollable impulse to my father’s tongue, he spoke forth the fatal truth in the madness which seized upon his brain. ‘+++Q God! this is retribution for.my crime, my dreadful crime !” he exclaim- ed, falling upon his knees, clasping his hands, and extending his arms towards heaven. ‘It is the corpse of Hera- people ; and within an hour he quitted the city as an exile, in disguise, and ac- companied by his wife and children. ‘Accompanied by a small escort and attended by a few faithful adherents, we journeyed rapidly towards the fron- tiers, and in a few days entered the do- minions of King Mansour. ‘The object of my parents was to proceed to the Court of the King of Georgia, Almeria’s father; and for this purpose it was necessary to traverse the territory of Ildirim’s late enemy. Itwas, however, hoped that the deep disguise which he wore would enable him to accomplish this perilous task in safety; but our presence and movements in Mansour’s realms were betrayed, and my father was arrested. Vainly did Almeria im- plore that she might be allowed to share his captivity. The orders of the tyrant were peremptory, and as remorsaly executed. The fugitive monarch was thrown into a strong fortress, while my mother was compelled to pursue her journey without delay. Gloria and my- self, her two innocent children, were now her only consolation ; but even the circumstance that we were left to her, failed to elevate her mind from the depths of despair. Our family seemed a doomed one; our race accursed—the compact with Satan proved an infernal spell exercising its terrible enchant- ment over every incident in our lives— giving a color to our destiny—determin ing our fate! Even upon Gloria, de- voted to heaven though she were, did the same baleful effect seem to fall. comicbooks.com