The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 291: what you’re looking at

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

“True, true—'tis true, Eleanor—my own dear Eleanor ?” exclaimed the Earl, catching with the enthusiasm of delicious joy at that evidence of his wife's fidelity in the adventure of the evening. “And you were struggling in the arms of the Prince——yes—I remember it all now! But I was bewildered —excited—confused——" “Qh! you can form no idea of the extent to which my feelings have been this day wrung!” in- terrupted Eleanor, clasping her hands together in anguish at the bare recollection of all she had endured. “But tell me that you have confidence in me—that you forgive me for having kept my sorrows and their cause a secret from you—-—" “Forgive you, my poor Eleanor!” exclaimed the Earl, pressing her fervidly in his arms: “I was wrong to suspect you even for a moment, after the perusal of that letter! "Tis for you to pardon me —yes, me—for I have been the true source of all your afflictions-—” “Hush! not a word relative to the past,” mur- mured Eleanor, placing her hand upon her hus- band’s lips and concealing her blushing, burning countenance upon his breast. “Oh! but it requires so little to lay bare again the wound in my heart that nothing can ever heal entirely!” exclaimed the Earl, in atone of bitter, bitter anguish. “Had I not made you a victim to my insane love—had I not wooed you, young and impassioned as you are, to bind yourself to my side, miserable wretch that I am—you would have be- come the happy wife of some man who would not nave blushed to look you in the face! Then the one tremendous incident of your life would never have occurred—your whole destiny would have flowed in another and happier channel—and the accursed wretch whom the very grave seemed to have yielded up to tempt you, would have remained unknown to you save by name !” “ My God! let us not revive the past,” exclaimed Eleanor, the tears streaming down her cheeks. “Oh! do not reproach yourself thus !—do not accuse yourself of evils which you never could have foreseen !—do not lift all the blame from my shoulders, in order to take the burthen so gene- rously upon your own !” But the Earl—the unhappy Earl—continued to deplore his sad fate in the most piteous terms, until the big tears began to roll down his cheeks also: and then Eleanor redoubled her conselations, and lavished upon him such tender caresses that he felt the genial balm of a holy comfort gradually stealing into his wounded soul. “And now tell me, my dear Francis,” said the Countess, “how Mr. Meagles became your com- panion in this night’s adventure—for that gentle- man is known to me by sight, and I instantaneously recognised him when you both burst so oppor- tunely into the chamber !” “When you retired from the dinner-table, Eleanor,” returned the nobleman, “I repaired to the library ; and soon after nine o’qock one of the servants came to inform me that a gentleman wished to see me immediately upon the most press. ing business. I ordered him to be shown into my presence: *twas Mr. Meagles. Iga few hurried words he stated that accident had brought to his kuow- ledge a diabolical conspiracy having for its object the surrender of yourself into the arms of the Prince of Wales. You may conceive the mingled Ld 2 a rage, excitement, and alarm into which this an- nounvement plonged me;—and I demanded far- ther explanations. These were instantaneously given, but necessarily in a rapid and imperfect manner, so as to afford me little more than a par- tial glimpse into the plot. Nor did he at once in- form me where and when the base attempt was to be made: but, previously to becoming explicit upon that head, he imposed a certain condi- tion—-—” “And that condition?” said the Countess, in- quiringly. “ Was to the effect that provided he enabled me to rescue you from the toils and snares laid to entrap you, I should leave the Prince to be dealt with according to his will and pleasure, and that I should consent to become a witness to any docu- ment which he might think fit to compel his Royal Highness to sign. I swore to fulfil those condi- tions,” added the Earl: “indeed, such was the excitement under which I laboured at the moment, and so great was my indignation against the Prince, that I should not have hesitated to pledge my soul to Satan, in order to accomplish your deliverance and appease the cravings of my own vengeance.” The Countess was on the pointof making some remark with respect to the explanation just given by her husband, when a knock at the chamber door was heard. Lord Desborough answered the sum- mons ; and a servant informed him that Mr. Meagles requested a few moments’ interview with his lord- ship. The nobleman accordingly hastened to the library where Meagles was anxiously awaiting his presence. “Now, my lord,” said Tim, “you will have the goodness to fulfil your portion of the compact. I have performed mine — and her ladyship was rescued from the power of that villanous Prince.” “I am ready to act as you require, Mr. Meagles,? returned the nobleman; “and I thank you most sincerely—most heartily, for your conduct on this occasion. Where is the Prince?” “In the suite of apartments that was to have proved the scene of his triumph,” responded Meagles. “Let us hasten thither.” Lord Desborough accordingly led the way to the room in which his Royal Highness was held captive and when the nobleman entered, followed by Tim Meagles, the royal voluptuary cast a rapid bat searching look upon the Earl's countenance to ascertain, if possible, whether there were any hope in that quarter. But the nobleman’s features wore a stern and implacable look;—and the Prince, with hastily-averted eyes, muttered to himself, “ This wretched impotent will back Meagies in his extortion!” While this galling reflection was traversing the brain of the heir-apparent, the Earl had caught at a glance the broken dagger and the useless pistol —those evidences of the truth of that narrative which he had received from the lips of his wife. A emile of satisfaction beamed for a moment upon his countenance: but repressing any display of feelings apart from the business now in hand, he flung a look of haughty defiance upon the Prince. “Does your lordship intend to support this fellow Meagles in his vile endeavour at extortion 7” de- manded his Royal Highness, assuming a tone and dewieanonr of lofty ce. “Silence!” cried Meagles, suddenly presenting ElOOO® SS