The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 339: what you’re looking at

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

ec a A THE MYSTERIES, vulated as unrestrainedly as the wine. The Prince pressed his lips, hot with the breath of lust, to the rich red mouths that were moistened with the generous juice of the grape; and on his fevered brow and burning cheeks those courtezans of the Opera imprinted their harlot kisses. Presently the musician, obedient to a signal which he gave her, retarned .40 the piano: and while the glorious instrumemt-wee made to desecrate itself by pouring forth its eieh atreing in. alibidiaous measure, the dancinggigis united their voices ta the obscene air to which belonged. The orgie was thus at-Sts height-and the Prince of Wales was joining ip@he-ribaldeeng,—when the door was suddenly theewa gpen, aud a page an- nounced—* The Kings?” Heavens! what a geeng af confusion instanta- neously followed—ang what @ spectacle was this to greet the eyes of a menareh.gnd a father ! The musician sprang with a shriek from fhe piano—the two girls startegueish responsive sorgggns from the knees of the Paines—the rest fluttessld ing the floor wopld open ang swallow them ap: here a champegne-glase wgs. dropped and broken— there a bottle was overtorned with a clattering dio —and a fruit-dish, being upset in the hurry and bewilderment of the scene, scattered its contents upon the door. King George III stood aghast! The consterna- tion of mingled horrer and amazement was ex- pressed upon his naturally stolid countenance— his hands were spread om fan-like from his wriats —his eye-balls glared wil@y—and his whole atti- tude was so absurd fg ite indignation, that, were he not the British Sovereign, he wonld have been ea- lated with peals of laughter inatead of reonizvell with looks of dismay. The Prince of Wales was .fer 5 dfepreeements a0 astounded by this sudden apaagities ef itis -apgust father that he remained trasafiged to his seat, staring vacantly upon him : but suddenly recover- ing some portion of his presence of mind, he started up and waved his hand imperiously to the ballet- girls to withdraw. This tacit but ynmistakable command recalled them also from their hewilder- ment and confusion: and, as if seized with a panic terror, they rushed towards the door communicat- ing with an inner room,—their gauze drapery fiat- tering airily—their supple and exquisitely formed limbs moving glaacingly, and the nymph-like light- ness of their forms acquiring a soaring appearanee, as they fled—or rather flew—like a bevy of af- frighted fairies froma the presence of some uncouth mortal who had intruded upon their sacred retreat. The apartunent wae thus cleared of the conrtegans of the Opera—and the Prince of Wales found him- eclf alone with the King: for the page who escorted his Majesty thither, had prudently retired the mo- ment he caught a glimpse of the aspect of affairs. Covered with ehame—half tipsy with the generoys juice of Epemay which be had imbibed—and not knowing whether to assume an air of contrition er defiance, the Prince of Wales stood balancing him- self by holding on tothe back of the chair whence he tad risen, and gasing vacantly on the eountenance of the King who was looking fully as stupitly at | him. “ Dreadful—-horrilie—dreadful!” at-length ejacu- lated the monarch. “1 couldn't have believed i, round the table, not knowing ‘bow to act and wish: George—I couldn’t have believed it. Knew you | were wild—bnt didn’t think you were so bad as this = , no—didn’t think it for a moment. Wouldn’t have | believed it if any one had told meso. But I can’e stop in this room—no, not in this room. [t€mells of wine and orgies—and drunken dissipation—and all that kind of thing. Come, sir—lead me else- where, that I may speak a few words without having my nose offended = nase offended,” reiterated his Majesty, applging hie fexefinger end thumb to his nasal gaemontory and helding the fap with an ex- gressiqn of deep disgust. ; “ Repleased to walk thiasuay dbus,” said the Prince @f Wales, endeavouring .with all:his might to steady hath his legs and his jnas: bat feeling that he was ecategig able to keep spen the Jormer and that the latter -aeere whirling in.chagfie confusion, he mut-~ tered tp:himecif, as he-thenw-apen the door by which the King bad originaBy.engagal the room, “It's no use—«lim-es drunk | aK as 4e* “Eb !-qphat? what!” qiannisted his Majesty, imeping sharply and suddesily ceund just as he was ameaeing the threshold: “ vebgt was tis~ah t"’ _ “T ventured to observe, sire,” anawered the Prince, that you said, e endeavouring to look as sober as he could,—“ that our little revel deserves some extenuation.”’ “ Ah!—ah!_-yes—I caught the ation,” cried the King, looking his son very hard in the face ; “ but I thought that it formed part of some other word Well—and what excuse have you—eh ?—what excuse-———” = eee “Simply, most revered sing,” returned the Prince | assuming all the vacant gravity of aemi-intoxication, -— “simply that those young ladies bed come to sing ‘God save the Bing.’ ahiah we more indeed practising at the nemenstuthes yaw Majesty broke ‘iy upon us: and theaneniisel the national anthem— hic—had filled us a9 48 af loyalty, that we were obliged to drink geass Majesty’s health in bam “Hem! well-it may be so—it may be so,” said the King, surveyieg the Prince suspiciously: “and I hope it is far your sake. But when [ think of it, how was it that two.af the girls were seated on your kupes, six—aeated on your knees—eh !” ‘*Oh! may it please your Majesty, that was te show me how to beat time accurately,” replied the Prince of Wales. “ Beat fiddlestick!” exclaimed the King: but not choosing to prolong this portion of the discourse, be hurried from the apartment where the orgie bad taken place and accompanied his scape-grace sop to another roqgm in the splendid mansion. Gazing around him as he took the seat which the Prince officiously placed for bis accommodation, the ‘King’s eye was speedily offended by certain pictures aod statues which ornamented the apartment, and which, without being absolutely indelicate, might certainly have been more decent. .“ Hey-dey® exclaimed his Majesty: “am I in = — Se oe. ogee eee oe — » Carltan House--or in a luxurious brothel? "Pou — my word, George, your taste is very vicious— very vicious indeed. What means that naked woman there ° in the great picture between the windowa—eh, sit Come—speak !” “Tt is Venus rising from the ocean, my deer father,” answered the Prince of Wales; ‘and it is considered a perfect master-piece.” ““Msster-picce, indeed !—master fiddlestick!" exe ene ee EE oe a al CORNICE OOO ‘SS COM