The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 211: what you’re looking at

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

198 “ Pray be civil to Lady Lade,” hastily murmured Mrs. Fitzberbert, in a tone of earnest entreaty, to the the magnificent Duchess and the brilliant Coun- tess: “she possesses an excellent heart——" At that instant the door was opened harriedly ; and Wasp rushed in, exclaiming, “ The Prince is coming! He has just entered the office down stairs and is asking the bailiff some questions ™ “The Prince!” shrieked Mrs. Fitzherbert in a dying voice, as she turned towards Miss Planta- genet. , “T shall not remain,to meet his Royal High- ness,” said the Countess of Desborough, her coun- "tenance flushing with a sudden indignation as she thought of the outrage which the Prince had sought to perpetrate towards her on the memo- rable night of the grand ball at Carlton House. “Then do you take my cousin away with you, Eleanor,” said the Duchess of Devonshire, Pushing both the Countess and Miss Plantagenet into bed-room, the door of which Mrs. .Fitsherbert had just shown presence of.mind enough to open. And as the door of the bed-chamber closed bé- hind the Countess of and Miss Plan- t.zenet, George Prince of Wales entered the bi. uung-fOOM. Wasp, the nimble page, shut the door behind him and withdrew down stairs again ;—and his Royal Highness, taking off the hat which was slouched over his face, and turning down the far collar of his cloak which had been drawn up so as to conceal ali the lower part of his countenance, threw a rapid giaace around to ascertain who were present. Not deigning to take any notice of the Amazon, and only bowing with stately politeness to Mrs. Fitzherbert, the Prince extended his hand to the Duchess of Devonshire, observing in a careless sort of manner, “I did not expect to meet your - Grace here.” “But I did expect to have heard that your Royal Highness had been here long ere this,” said _ Georgiana, the natural generosity of her dispoal- tion prompting this remonstrance against his un- feeling conduct towards her friend Mrs. Fitz- herbert. “There are circumstances which do not always transpire in particular cases,” said the Prince, with a cold look at ker who was his wife in the sight of | at heaven,—“ but which, if known, would alter the aspect of affairs ” Mrs. Fitzherbert started—grew red with indig- nation—and was about to speak: but suddenly re- colecting that the Prince was aware of her amour with the Marquis de Belloia, and with the image of Miss Plan*agenet likewise springing up into her mind, she felt herself suddenly grow pale as death, while her limbs beeame cold as marble and an icy tremor shook her entire form. “¥ cannot conceive the existetice of any circum- stances which could induce your Royal Highness to leave our dear Fitzherbert for even as many hours aa she has been days in this horrible place,” said the Duchess of Devonshire, bravely and ge- nerously following ep her first remonstrance by this second “Perhaps your dear friend, in whom you are so deeply interested and whose part you take so warmly, will bestow her fall comfidence upon your Grace,” observed his Royal Highness, with a scorch a ae TY THE MISTERIM. ing sarcasm in his tone and manner, as he threw another look pregnant with meaning upon the un- happy lady who was the object of his cowardly bratality. “Ah! have I not loved you enough and made sacrifices enough for you, to induce you to be merciful?” she said, in a tone of deepest pathos and with such an appealing look from her fine blue eyes thet, howe great her frailties might have been, the earnestness of that remon- strance was enough to have moved a heart of stone. “ As I am here to treat matters in purely a busi- ness-like point of view,” returned the Prince, totally inaccessible to any generous feeling on hee behalf, “it would perhaps be as well to avoid any extraneous comment. At all events, any revela- tions that may be made, will have been wilfally provoked—and not idly volunteered : even,” he added the | with a malicious smile, “should the name of Miss Plantagenet be brought upon the éapis.” The Duchess of Devonshire started and bit her lip: for she now saw that the Prince, by some unaccountable means, had become aware of that secret—and she therefore comprehended a portion of the allusions which he had just been making and which poor Mrs. Fitzherbert had under- stood only too well. As for this unhappy lady herself, she was crushed—overwhelmed—annihi- lated by the last observation which had fallen from the Prince's lips, and which proved that even the mystery ot of the spongiog-house, as we may deno- minate the Plantagenet affair, was known to him. Pale as a corpee—her eyes fixed, yet staring wildiy—-with fire in the brain and ice at the heart, Mrs. Fitzherbert back against the wall: otherwise she would have sunk down upon the foor. “Has your iioyal Highness any compliments to bestuw upon 7 in my turn?” demanded the Amazon, who had hitherto been leaning agai the bars of the window, with folded arms, and paying only a dim and misty kind of attention to all that was going on in her presence—her thoughts being chiefly occupied with the intelligence of her husband’s death and the feelings the event had excited in her bosom. “I presume you are aware of what has occurred at your own abode?” said the Prince, turning in a half-disdainful, half-indifferent menner towards her, as if he had his doubts whether he oaght to notice her at all. “Tam aware that a couple of ruffians sent by you. Royat Highness not only frightened an old man to death by their brutality,” said the Amazon, with dauntless tone and mananer,—“ bet likewme ravaged the whole house for the object of their predatory visit.” ‘“‘The persons whom your slenderous tongue lbele as ruffians, were armed with legal suthority,” observed the Prince, with the haughty confidence and triumphant arrogance of a man who feels that he has got the best of his enemies. “They performed the duty that was assigned te them-—and they retook possession of certain documents whieh had bees scandalously and infamously plundered from ma, Highness, with mingled bitternese and fereeious joy, “are placed beyond your reach for ever ! stratagem nor vielence can obtam them fram se : GOH GOO SS (COLUM