The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 276: what you’re looking at

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

1 THES MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. 265 \s " | Wh \\) iil it | Hi hh in Hii " < 1 il ett ri i A iil } Ht AMM y Abt HE i Hy Mie ea il Hil il Athy ig i Rasta MA ARIK TGA \ (Kyi er A Le o And @Zleanor, gasping for breath, supported herself Ly clinging to the mantel. “Ah! then my surmise was not wrong?” cried the Prince, in a triumphant tone, “Oh! I am wel] acquainted with the world, Eleanor—we'l ex- perienced in the female heart. The moment I learnt ere now that you had yielded to the device set to ensnare you, I felt assured that it was a conscious guilt which had made you coward enough to seek to know more. Were you an innocent wo- man, against whom scandal could not even raise its breg:h, you would have treated Mrs. Brace and her intrigues with disdain Nay—those intrigues would have appeared so transparent that you must have seen through them in a moment.” “You are adding the grossest insult to the most wanton injury,” murmured the unhappy Eleanor, ber courage and presence of mind failing her rapidly. “ Had you not treated me with {neult on that night shen you promised to adinit me to your chamber,” a said the Prince, “there never would have been a word or a look of anger or disagreement between us. But, because a certain incident took place—as un- foreseen as it was unfertunate—you barred your door- against me. Think you, haughty lady, that I had no feelings to wound—no bitter disappointment to- endure? Assuredly I had: and it was in consequence of the cruel—heartless —capricious treatinent which I then experienced at your hands, that I resolved to make you mine sooner or later. And now, Lady Desborough - since it appears to be my turo to speak at length,” he continued in a tone of enhanced triumph,—" I crave your attention.” “My God! suffer me to depart!” exclaimed the unhappy lady, glancing in wild terror around the room. "Listen, I say!” cried the Prince emphatically, “Upon my absence from the ball-rooms no one wil] dare to comment: upon your absence, on the con- trary, strange whispers and remarks will speediiy mg ps comicbooks.conn