The Bronze Statue, or, The Virgin's Kiss — page 315: what you’re looking at

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

THE BRONZE STATUE. 313 daughter were still living and were re-|Sir Ernest de Colmar’s mind had al- tained in captivity by Manfredo; but | ready become a prey to strange suspi- the Court official cut short my re-|cions, and the thoughts which arose in marks, by observing that Ildegardo and | his brain relative to Satanais had caus- Georgey estates were male fiefs, and | ed a vague and unknown terror to creep that therefore, apart from the warrant| over him. He had shuddered likewise of confiscation, they legally lapsed to | with a presentiment that he was on the the Crown in default of proper heirs to | point of listening to strange revelations ; claim them. | and to his soul there came the wild im- ‘ About a year after these occurrences | pression, dread as a warning from the a report reached my ears to the effect | tomb, that the history he was about to that a dispute had taken place between | hear would exercise an influence over the Baron of Altendorf and Baron Man-| his own destiny. But, even with these fredo; but upon what ground [ did not | premonitions, he was as far from sus- learn. I could not, however, help | pecting the tremendous truths that wers thinking that it was in some way con- | so soon to burst upon his startled mind, nected with the claims of the tribunal | as the individual who goes forth to con- of the Bronze Statue upon the Lady | template the awful grandeur of the Emilia’s daughter Gloria, though whe- | storm forsees that he himself is doom. ther this conjecture of mine were well led to be struck down by the crashing founded, I have never been able to as- | thunderbolt. certain. Suffice it to say, that the Ba-| But Bernard had not advanced far ron of Altendorf marched at the head | with his narrative before Sir Ernest de of all his retainers against Manfredo | Colmar was struck with the remarkable Castle, which was defended against the | similitude which it bore to the history besiegers with the utmost gallantry for related to him by Satanais in the gar- twenty days. At the expiration of that | dens of the royal palace at Prague,— period the Baron of Altendorf carried | and this idea instantaneously furnished it by storm during the night; and, Man- him as it were with a key to the far- fredo being slain in the conflict, his vas- | ther reading of the mystery. ‘The title sals set fire to the building and perished | of Ildegardo, surnamed * The Thunder- in the ruins. er,’ brought vividly to his mind that of ‘Here my narrative ends! For never | IIdirim, * The Lightning ;’? then cam6é since that day have I received the slight- | the appellation of Korali, answering to est intelligence of the Baroness Emilia | that of Kura Ali in the narrative of Sa- and her charming Gloria; and there is, | tanais; and surely Manfredo was Man- alas! too much reason to believe that|sour; and the Baron Georgey of the they both perished in the conflagration. | one tale was the King of Georgia of the It was well known in these districts | other: / that they were still retained captive in| ‘This discovery, striking De Colmar’s the castle at the time when the Lord of | mind as it were blow upon blow, filled Altendorf marched against it,—well | him with an awful consternation, for he known likewise that the Lady Emilia | instantaneously saw that Satanais had had resisted all the overtures of Baron | deceived him! but mastering his emo- Manfredo to become his wife. The | tions with a superhuman eflort, he con- melancholy presumption, therefore, is | tinued to drink in with a breathless at- that the ill-fated widow and helpless | tention the words which flowed from child of my master ended their lives in | Bernards lips ; and asincident after in- the midst of the tremendous funeral | cident developed itself in the old man’s pyre which the maddened desperation | narrative, the terrible conviction was of its defenders made of Manfredo|carried to the warrior’s mind, beyond Castle.’ all possibility of doubt or misapprehen- |sion, that Satanais had artfully but in- | geniously paraphrased the true history ‘to suit some hidden purposes of her CHAPTER LXXVII. ‘own. Transplanting the scene of that ‘history from the southern province of PERPLEXITY, SUSPICION, AND UNCER- | Bohemia to a far-off oriental clime— TAINTY. ‘altering the European names of her | heroes and heroines into an eastern Tue reader will remember that ere | nomenclature elevating those person- the venerable Bernard began his long | ages to the rank of kings and princess- but profoundly interesting narrative, |es—converting stewards and intendants Ler +? 7+ & , - 77 = a7 See Ste at : So ; ™ af oo \d oe er re an ee ee a 2° a dl a Oe — & 7 ro 4 ~ > P- - - - - oo pam — ¢ = sal - ° > te s — . e . Fae » e- Pte © ~ a ° - e ‘2 - , “lw ousnd Tre § i ee _— — pie woth , “7 arte ~ h ove ® Pi s ~ * z=" - . Po Set 2 al lt a . vy a o . -* t “ee : rn a . ~ ot te >.<’ oor > = Pn , <*> be, ad * ws x + . * re a go “el ° ogo ak = o~ rt See - 2 :* e “* comicbooks.com