The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 242: what you’re looking at

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THE MYSTERIES. 229 Aimself: but he could not—and in this manner was he precipitated as it were, by his own unmanageable condition, upon the bosom of the bride! Caroline was now more seriously alarmed than before. She had too much keennesa of perception to fancy for a single instant that her royal husband had flung himself into her arms in obedience to the rapture of an enthusiastic affection; —and she could no longer believe that he was hurt by his fall over the chair, it being pretty evident that he had no broken limbs. Her ideas and conjectures being thus suddenly diverted into another channel, the thought flashed to her mind that the Prince must be over- come by liquor rather than by his feelings ;—and as at that very instant he raised his head from her bosonma, where it had remained pillowed for half a minute, a whiff of his vinous breath blew upon her face. An inexpressible sensation of loathing seized upon the unfortunate lady—her heart heaved against the disgusting beast who was now endeavouring to sooth her with his caresses—and her very soul revolted against the idea of a closer and more intimate con- tact with her swinish bridegroom. With a natural impulse, therefore, she pushed him away—at the same time that she burst into a flood of tears. The royal voluptuary rolled once more upon the carpet; and the bride, buryiog her head in the pillow of the nuptial couch, gave way to that outpouring of grief which it was impossible for her to control! Merciful God! was this the first gentleman in Europe—the most polished Prince in all the world ? It has been said that no man is a hero to his valet-de- chambre: it has likewise been said that if our fore- fathers were taken off their stilts, they would appear very despicable beings indeed. And most assuredly are these assertions correct ;—and it may be safely added that if Royalty be only seen in its privacy— stripped of the pomp which invests it with a false grandeur and the frippery which supplies it with an adventitious brilliancy—it will in ninety-nine in- stances out of a hundred sink below the level of pity and merit only contempt. Such would have been the case with George Prince of Wales, even in his sober moments: but when we behold him reduced to the filthy condition in which he dared to seek the chamber of his innocent virgin hride, we can only observe that it needed but this one act of cowardly brutality to crown all the infamy of his antecedent career. Hours passed—the lamps had burned out—the morning had dawned some time—but the thick win- dow-curtains excluded the light from the nuptial chamber. The Prince awoke~—and the first sensation which he experienced was that of an icy chill all over. He stretched out his arms: one hand en- countered the bed-post—the other a chair over- turned. Strange and alarming recollections began to dawn in up6n his brain ;—and the racking head- ache which he felt was no insignificant evidence of their truth. A deeper and more searching chill than that which he had previously experienced, pene- trated into his very heart’s core as the damning con- viction settled in his mind that he had been steeped to the very eyes in ebriety on the previous night. And if there were any doubt still remaining upon this point, it was speedily dissipated by the ignomi- nious certainty that his Royal Highness was lying upon the carpet by the side of the nuptial coach ! Ycs—he had fallen asleep where be had last tumbled down ;—and the morning air had im- parted to his whole frame that chill which he ex- perienced upon awaking. Loathing himself—loath- ing his bride — loathing the whole world, the wretched Prince rose as noiselessly as he could from the floor; and, leaning over the couch, he listened in breathless silence. The lowrespiration which met his ear reassured him on one point: the Princess was sleeping there! She had not quitted the chamber in disgust—she had not abandoned him in mingled indignation and loathing: it was therefore yet possible to rescue the adventures of the bridal night from exposure and himself from the consequent ridicule, disgrace, and infamy. Somewhat consoled by this reflection, the Prince groped his way to the window and drew aside the curtains. The golden lustre of day now streamed into the nuptial chamber; and his Royal Highness ventured to look at himself in the mirror standing upon the toilette-table. Ah! well might he shrink back with deeper loathing than ever : for, behold! the frill of his shirt, the white silk waist- coat, and the lappels of the exquisitely-cut dress- coat which he wore, were all stained and incrusted with the contents of his stomach, vomited during his sleep! Hastily tearing off the offensive garments and slipping on an elegant dressing-gown, the Prince approachedthe couch. Caroline was sleeping upon a pillow still wet with the tears of burning anguish which she had shed. Slumber had fallen upon her through the sheer exhaustion of her physical and mental energies ;—and the sobbings, in the midst of which the unhappy Princess had sunk into sleep, continued to break her respiration at short inter- vals, There was an expression of sadness upon her countenance—and it was easy to perceive that the thoughts which now filled her mind in the form of a dream, were of a profoundly infelicitous cha- racter. | While the heir-apparent was yet gazing upon her and wondering what would be the resujt of the outrageous brutality involved in his conduct of the past night, the Princess of Wales awoke with a sudden start—and her eyes instantaneously met those of her husband ! CHAPTER CLXXXI. THE MORNING AFTER THE BRIDAL NIGHT. Hie Rovau Hiauyess the Prince of Wales could not possibly feel otherwise than overwhelmed with confusion. The waking-up had been so sudden that he had no time to slip away from the side of ‘ i the bed ere his looks encountered those of the Princess. , Then to his mind flashed the conviction,—rapid as the glance of lightning athwart the sky, — that whatever might be his sentiments towards his bride —however deeply he loathed andabhorred this mar- riage into which circumstances had forced him,— ‘ he nevertheless had no right to treat that inoffen- ' sive and innocent woman with the most cowardly indignity and the most scandalous outrage. , Moreover, he felt all the littleness and all the degradation of the position in which he had placed 4 \ | | himself. A man does not chose to have his pride | wounded even in the presence of one whom he either COUMIUC DOO SS