The Bronze Statue, or, The Virgin's Kiss — page 274: what you’re looking at

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

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For acold and solemn the invaders. The dark houri mur- | stillness seemed to dwell in that place ; mured a reply which did not exactly | and a reverential awe fastened on their reach De Colinar’s ears; and as he fan- | souls as they thus suddenly entered the cied that the bare idea of the bloody | sacred temple which the fire appeared conflict to which he had alluded, was|to have spared more than any other perhaps calculated to excite painful! part of the mighty stronghold. © For an emotions in her bosom, he led her more | instant this circumstance struck our hastily along as they entered the gal-| hero with the superstitious effect of a lery. miracle; but a second glance thrown From that passage opened many dis-| around the chapel convinced him that mantled chambers, which had once been | it was the solidity of the masonry and the abode of luxury and comfort. 'The| the absence of much wood work in the long narrow windows were still perfect | walls and windows that had kept out enough to afford an idea of the archi-| the fiery tongues of the conflagration _tectural elegance which had distin-| from the interior. guished them ere the date of theirruin;} But here had time and neglect al- for, although the glass was all gone, and ready accomplished much of that devas- the frame-work hung like blackened | tation which the flames had left undone. rags in its setting, yet the sculptured |The mildew and damp had coated the arches adorned with lozenges and tre-| fluted pillars with a loathsome green ; foils, failed not to attract the notice of| and the pavement was slippery with the the visitor to that scene of desolation. | moisture that dripped through the roof lhreading this long gallery. De Col-! and became fetid with stagnation. ‘The mar and his beauteous companion pass- pulpit had fallen away from the wall ed into a spacious landing place, whence | against which it once stood; and the branched off two passages, in addition sculptured figures that had supported to that by which they had entered it.—| it, were blackened with cobwebs. At On the floor the remains of several! the altar the ravages of neglect were statues were scattered; and over them equally apparent. ‘The crucifix had waved the dank grass which was grow-| given way, the lamps had fallen from ing in the interstices of the blackened | the chains to which they were origi- beams of the flooring. There were no} nally suspended, and the table had sunk side windows here ; but a large circular| in with the weight of the ornaments opening in the roof showed where a! left upon it, and which even the hand sky-light had formerly been. of the ravager had spared. The can- Entering one of the galleries, the| vass of two large pictures overlookiag knight and the Daughter of Satan push-| this ruined altar, was hanging in black ed their way amidst the increasing im-| tatters in the frames which were so co- pediments which arose from the greater | vered with dust that their rich carved dilapidation of those portions of the edi- | work was completely hidden; and se- fice that they were now visiting ; and in| veral banners, the trophies of military a few minutes they reached a small! exploits in the olden time, were now vestibule, over the entrance to which a/| changed to rotting rags. stone crucifix was suspended. In a reverential silence did Sir Er- Traversing thetvestibule, their pro-| nest de Colmar survey all the objects gress was momentarily barred by a huge | and features of the chapel; while Sa- door which had not been burnt out of|tanais pressed close to his side with a its frame, although its surface present- feeling of deeper awe. At length it ed the blackened and charred appear-| struck him that the desolation of the ance, showing that the lambent flames} scene was producing a painful effect had played upon it for some time.| upoh her mind; and he hastily led her Pushing open this door, the knight led! away by means of a narrow flight of Satanais onward ; and it was now with | steps leading from a doorway in the im- a species of resigned docility that she | mediate vicinage of the altar. accompanied him whithersoever he | Having reached the bottom of this might choose to conduct her. | somewhat precipitate descent, the AEN comicbooks.com