The Bronze Statue, or, The Virgin's Kiss — page 153: what you’re looking at

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

THE BRONZE STATUE. L51 that, brave as the young pages were, | brows, or impart a sinister light to more their reflections were not of the most pleasurable description. Although they ; / villanous-looking countenances. Mhe meal was concluded, the party had never seen the Bronze Statue in | remounted their steeds, and the youths Altendorf Castle—although they knew not even its existence. and had never befcre heard any allusion made to such an object--yet now it dwelt uppermost in their minds as something terrible in the extreme: for the Carthusian’s words had proclaimed that they were to become its victims. The victims of what? Of a thing which, though only understood so tar as its own name explained its nature, now loomed upon them like a hideous and portentous shape from amidst the darkness of their own mental uncertain- ty; an undefined yet dreadful form whose kiss perchance was death: The aspect of that unknown terror which the imagination, when only slight- ly prompted, tortures itself to depict, is invariably more appalling than when the fears of the captive youths enhanc- | were somewhat cheered to find that they ‘were not to be again muffled in the sowns and cowls. For although the night—or rather morning, it being now two hours past midnight—was fearfully tempestuous, as described in that chap- ter which narrates how Sir Ernest de Colmar went forth to do battle as the champion of Satanais, it was neverthe- less more agreeable to Lionel and Kon- ‘rad to be able to breathe the air with- EV out hindrance, and to behold as much of the surrounding objects as the obsenu- 'rity would permit, than to be hurried on ‘headlong in the total darkness and the SS semi-suffocation of the cowl. The horses, refreshed by the halt and its accompanying bait, cantered bravely along the broad and even road which ‘intersected verdant plains and emerald the baleful object of alarm is fully ex-| woods, now immersed in almost utter plained, or when the impending danger darkness; and in silence was the jour- is viewed face to face; and thus were | ney continued. Two hours and upwards passed ; and ed, not only by the tremendous suspense | then a faint glimmering began to appear caused by their ignorance of the doom | in the eastern horizon. The direction which awaited them, but likewise by | where the glimpses of dawn were thus the excruciating strainings made by | struggling through the darkly-curtained their goaded fancy, to bring into vivid| sky, enabled the youths to judge that outlines their perplexed and bewildered | they were pursuing.a southerly direc- notions of that menaced fate ! At the expiration of ' ' tion. But so gloomily and tardily did an hour, the | daybreak advance, that it was some party stopped at a way-side hostel, or | time before any objects save those which inn, into which Konrad and Lionel were conducted; and, the priests’ gowns being now taken off them, they were desired to partake of some re- freshment which was served up in a private room. Of this invitation they gladly availed themselves, so far as a cup of wine went; but they were in no humor to indulge in substantial food. Their vision being now relieved of | ; : : were quite near became visible, as the equestrian party careered along the road; and it was now through a mist of white unwholesome vapor that more distant things began to stand out as it were from the receding darkness. ‘Then did it strike Konrad and Lionel that certain features of the country through which they were passing -were hot al- together unfamiliar to them ; and, in a . BP ie " AS hye - *e * : ° aa “ : — dee a. “ - —— * - #. \ 2 oe 2 a* and > ft We — 4 2 . ~ - —— a ss a 6 x —~ ow Cases, > 4 - ica wt Sek cet a> ee -¢ a yy | —_ 4 oe e we Tm St. hee 2 ee 04) et SP, se tine < a a te ee ; . > ~e" a MA, * «<* - ar - tt the muffling cowl, they observed that | short space, they recognised and re- there were four armed men, together | called to mind a few particular objects with Father Cyprian, in company with ‘which they had observed on a previous them. The former removed their black | occasion, and which convinced them masks while they partook of the meal | that they were travelling.on the same to which they sate down; while the ‘road that they had pursued, though in priest, placing himself alittle way apart, the contrary direction, when journeying ate a piece of bread and drank a draught ‘to Prague with their master, Sir Ernest of water. He never once glanced to- | de Colmar. wards the two pages during the time; And now, as the day advanced, the they were thus all together at the inn: | mist, which had at one period threaten- but his myrmidons surveyed them with ‘ed to turn into drizzling rain, cleared some attention from time to time; and/|away from the presence of the reful- assuredly, never did more menacing | gent sun; the sky became a bright eyes gleam forth from beneath the half- | azure, with a few fleecy clouds passing shaggy ~ 7 " —_— oe - = ——_—eae . oa —_ AS SE 3 =x conceulment of overhanging | Janguidly over, like the white sails of comicbooks.com