The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 87: what you’re looking at

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

—™] 74 en But whe was the occupant of this apartment at once 60 simptuous and so elegant? whose form was it tLat sate half-reclined upon the crimson draperies of an ottoman? A female, the reader may be .ssured: for naught save feminine taste could pruside aver the appointments of that charm- ing retreat. She was a lady of about thirty years of age; and though the duskiness of her complexion indicated her oriental origin, yet the warm languid clime to which she belonged, had not in any way marred or impaired the dazzling grandeur of her beauty. Her costume was of extraordinary rich- ness, and well fitted for the plaee in which we find her. It was in some respects a fanciful dress: for those who are bost acquainted with the apparel of different nations, could scarcely ascribe it to any one in particular. The taste of the wearer had evidently studfed to blend all those details of cos- tume which, belonging to different parts of the East, were most elegant and becoming in such combination. And that same taste, too, had s0 exquisitely presided over these arrangements, that _there was nothing incongruous in the general effect. A sort of caftan, of purple velvet, jewelled and embroideted, formed the upper germent—coming up nearly to the throat, and reaching down to the knees,—confined at the waist on a diamond.-clasp of incalculable price, and again fas- tened by a similar though smaller brooch at the throat iteclf. The interval open, would have left the bosom altnost y bare, were it not for an under-garment of embroidered bine silk, which reached up to the middle of the bust, but still lef revealed to the eye no inconsiderable portion of those superb contours. The arms were bare to the shoulder; and they might have been thought somewhat too robust, were it not for their faultless sculptural modelling. They were circled with bracelets studded with gems, and of the most curious workmanship. The hands of this lady were of extraordinary beauty in respect to their chisel- ling: the fingers were long and tapering—the nails exquisitely almond-shaped, and of a pellucid pink. But wo must continue with the costume. She wore satin trousers of « pale pink, covered with the richest lace. They were full, in the oriental style, and were tied just below the swell of the leg,— bulging out so as to conceal the robust proportions of the limbs: but the admirable symmetry thereof might be judged by the faultless modelling of the ankles and the feet. Those ankles were bare—for she wore no stockings; and the feet were thrust into delicate red morocco slippers, braided, and ornamented with pearls. The first glance at this lady, as she lounged half-reclining against the fluculent massiveness of the crimson-coloured cushions, would show the most superficial observer tliat no corset imprisoned her fine form. But then, no observer who had the good fortune to be nimitted into her presence, could possibly be a superficial one: he would survey her until bis eves had embraced every fanciful peculiarity of hor garb and cvery charm of ber person. He would see, therefure, that if she wore no corset—neither did she require apy. No artificial support was needed for thuse contours which remained, in their rich- ness and firmness, where nature had placed them, Like those of a sculpture! cflicy, yct with the rising THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. and sinking which deneted the animation of the | living form. Neither did she need the accessories | of art to set off the rounded and flowing outlines of her figure: its own symmetrical proportions imparted the finest shapeliness to the dress, which in its turn eo well became them and set them off to such advantage. She was not above the middle height of woman ; and yet she taller on account of her remarkably well modelled figure and her apperel, as well as from the statutesque clegance and graceful majesty of her gait and car- riage. Thus far have we described the occupant of that room of oriental luxury. But we must endeavour to render equal justice, hy means of minutest de- tail, to the gorgeous splendour of her personal charms. We have already said that her com- plexion was of eastern duskiness: but yet it had naught of gipsy swarthiness :—it might be better likened to that of the Spaniard er italian when in its darkest shade of bistre—yet with a skin per- fectly transparent, and the warm blood showing through as if mantled with richest carnation tint upon the cheeks. Perhaps the hue of her com- plexion would be even still better understood, if we describe it as a clear pale brown: for it hed in it none of the sallownees which blends the olive akin ;‘ and the skin itself had all the fineness and polish of a youthful freshness still adhering a mature and voluptacus womanhood. The may have expected to learn that she wore oriental tarban upon hér head: but it was not so. A golden network, curiously interwoven with dis- toonds and pearis—the entire ornament iteelf con- stituting’ a fortane—rested lightly upon that head : but the hair was not grees - guertentante work—it was parted in the middle with a careful exactitude, and flowed down in long heavy tresses upon her shoulders and her beck. Dark as night was that hair—black as jet too, with no gloss upon it: yot was it neither harsh nor coarse, but as soft as silk—without wave or curl, save and except to- wards the extremity of the luxuriant tresses, and there the curl was rich and natural. Her forehead was not high—but yet expansive enough to give dignity to the countenance: the nose was per- fectly straight—the nostrils of the tint of the rose- leaf. The upper lip was short: and both lips appeared to have been cut by the sculptor’s chisel into their classical perfection: the shape of the mouth, when the whole face was in a state of repose or of seriousness, was that of Cupid’s bow. The chin was delicately rounded; and the coun- tenance formed s complete oval. The eyes were large and dark—full of a languishing lustre—the orbs set in whites of that bluish tint which seems like mother-of-pearl. The eyebrows were mag- nificently arched—the lashes of exceeding length, and forming the richest fringes that ever shaded those orbs which are at once the mirror and the artillery of woman’s soul. When the mouth, which was 80 exquisitely formed, parted its rich red lips, teoth werd disclosed which were whiter than ivory and faultlesaly even. If the hand of this superb creature disturbed the luxuriant masses of hair on either side of her head, a small well-folded ear would be revealed; and thus in every respect was she a perfect model of oriental splendour and love- linees, combined in that one female form. It was between nine and ten o'clock in the SHE 2 1 Ore. Ov ee - (COLL (C DOO (GO)