The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 294: what you’re looking at

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

France ;—and the Duke of Villebelle was an en- thusiastic young nobleman, devoted to the lest cause of Royalty in France, and whose immense estates had been confiscated by the Republican Government of that country. The room where these refugee nobles were as- } sembled m company with Mr. Page, formed a por- tion of the lodging rented m the house by the Marquis de Saint Croix ;—and the motive of the evnference was none other than to devise and pro- ject certain schenies for raising once agein the Royalist banner in France. The deliberations were chiefly conducted in English, with which the noblemen happened to be tolerably wall acquainted : Otherwise Mr. Page would.have found himself unable to take part in the proceedings, he being utterly ignorent of the French language. “My lords,” said the Marquis of Saint Croix, addressing his two fellow-countrymen, “I will now repeat in the presence of our Engliah friend every- thing that I have learat from his lips, and which I have already made kaown to your lordships—so that should I have either misunderstood or ex- aggerated any portion of the important communi- cations for which we are indebted to Mr. Page, he can aé anee set w right upon the subject. I be- eve, then, that I am oorrectly informed when I state that Mr. Page is deep in the confidence of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, and that his Royal Highness is most anxious for an attempt to be made in favour of the restoration of Royalty in unhappy, distracted France. Is it not so?” “Your lordship has stated the matter exactly as it stands,” replied Mr. Page, assuming the grave and solemn air that was proper to the delibera- tions. “Not only does his Royal Highness the Prince of Walesa feel the necessity of restoring order in France and rebuilding a .egitimate govern- ment,” he continued, adopting the detestable cant terms and smooth-sounding phrases which are used as a cloak for the most damnable tyrannies and a pretext for all anti-democratic proceedings, —“but the whole Royal Family of England and our blessed Aristocracy partake in the sentiments of the Prince. Under these eircumstances his Royal Highness instructed me a fortnight back to throw myself in the way of the most emincnt French refugees now residing in London, and sound their views and intentions. Accident led me in the first instance to address myself to his lordship the Marquis of Saint Croix, and secondly to my lord the Marquis of Bellois——” “And then we communicated with your lord- ship,” added Saint Croix, glancing towards the Duke of Villebelle ; “and your lerdship, with cha- racteristic patriotism, hastened to reapond to our appeal.” “God speed our aims, my friends,” said the Duke, his pale but handsome countenance flushing with ardent hope. “The interest which his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales takes in the affairs of our unhappy country,” continued the Marquis of Saint Croix, “is not only most grateful to our feelings, but likewise prompts us to behold the character of his Royal Highness in a new and very favourable light. I must confess that until I became ac- quainted with Mr. Page, I had experienced some cayse to mistrust his Royal Highness and doubt 4 his integrity: but after all the explanations which | ( 2 eee oe lee - ee a THE MYSTSRIBS. 283 Mr. Page has given me in his wonted honest and straight-forward manner, and especially after hear- ing how deeply the Prince is interesting himself in the affairs of distracted France, I have learnt to form a better opinion of the Prince.” “Your lordship had been tutored to think ill of him by that infamous and notorious character, Lady Lade,” observed the ex-bagman; “and the statements she made to your lordship appeared to receive confirmation from the fact that his Royal Highness did not immediately restore the money your lordship had placed in his hands. But whea I assure your lordship that the Prinoe will in a few days——” “No more upon that subject, Mr. Page!” ex- claimed the Marquis de Saint Croix. “I deeply regret that I should ever have listened to the insi- dious and malignant representations of that woman to whose faults my late friend Sir John Lade was se unaccountably blind. I am sorry also that I should ever have persecuted his Royal Highsess for the return of money which I did not precisely want, and which I never should want again if the legiti- mate Monarchy were restored in France.” “ His Royal Highness has been enabled to glean much valuable information, I believe, nespeet- ing France, from the English Minister of Foreign Affairs?” said the Duke of Villebelle, addressing | himself to Mr. Page. “Such is the fact, may it please your Grace,” returned the ex-bagman. “The English Govern- ment has for a long time past employed numerous secret agents—or in plainer terms, spies—to travel through some parts of France and fix their abodes in other districts, for the purpese of ascertaining the true feeling of the Frenob people with regard to the existing institutions of the country. The reports that are received at the Foreign Office are uumerous and interesting; and their contents are regularly, though privately, communicated to the Prince of Wales. From those reports his Royal | Highaess has gleaned the most encouraging infor- mation with regard to the cause of Monarchy in France ; and he feels convinced that if the Royaliat banner were raised amidst the fields of La Vendée, hundreds of thousands would enthusiastically flock around it,” “Then hurrah for La Vandée!” exclaimed the Marquis de Bellois, who, being a man of desperate fortunes and as dissipated as he looked, was ready for any enterprise that seemed to promise an smenament of bis circumstances. “ Your lordship,” he added, turning towards the Duke of Villebelle, “has managed to bring over a large sum from France : and that will be enough to commence the undertaking. Money constitutes the sinews of war; and your fifty thousand pounds sterling, now exist- ing in good English Bank notes, if changed intu French five-franc pieces, will raise an army of ten thousand men in a short time. Then the Royalists willrush to our banner : their treasures will be drawn forth from the places where they are concealed or buried ;—and the accursed Republicans will have to rue the day when a Villebelle, a Saint Croix, and a Bellois put themselves at the head of the move- ment.” “But if we were to resolve upon quitting England and passing into La Vendée,” said the Duke de Villebelle, “ we should not be so rash as to take al) the available fonds with us. We must leave them nie DOO SS _ — — —— i sr Ce