The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 146: what you’re looking at

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

128 THE COURT OF LONDON book of destiny that I am to ruin myself, body and soul, here and hereafter, for that girl. Well, and she is worth a crime. Ah! no, not to dare death, not to dare the scaffold, for a few brief minutes of frenzied enjoyment. But if it were possible to clasp her, naked and glowing, in these arms, and to know that for hours, throughout a whole night, it were mine to revel in her beauties, that were a paradise worth any risk. Fool that I am thus to allow my passions to obtain such mastery over me. What, shall I peril everything, station, fortune, even my very life, for this girl? No, no; it were a madness, utter, utter folly.” And, as if to escape from his thoughts, he quickened his pace and hurried along the avenue; but still the image of Louisa was uppermost in his mind, and his heated imagina- tion pictured to itself all that she must be when denuded of her vesture. Thus did he in fancy gloat over her charms, and plunging deeper and deeper down into the fevered dream, he felt as if he were revelling in those beauties which he thus delineated to his conception. “Oh, I shall go mad, I shall go mad!” he exclaimed aloud, suddenty stopping short. ‘‘ Yes, unless, indeed, I can either tear the image of Louisa Stanley forth from my soul or else procure the gratification of my desires.”’ At this moment he was startled by a sudden rustling amongst the evergreens close by, but looking hastily around, he saw no one. Indeed, at that particular time there did not appear to be any person in the avenue save himself. ‘It was nothing,” he said, still speaking aloud, but being unconscious as it were, that he thus gave audible vent to his musings. Then, as he slowly walked onward, he exclaimed in the excitement of a desperate resolve, ‘‘ By Heaven! I will possess her, happen what may.”’ With these words he suddenly turned back, and retracing his way along the avenue, proceeded at a quick rate in the direction of the cottage where Louisa Stanley dwelt with her bedridden aunt and Mary Owen. Not that he had any settled purpose in view, but he was impelled by the mastery of his passions to hasten toward the cottage, and watch from some convenient hiding-place to see whether Louisa Stanley should issue forth again this day, in which case he had made up his mind to address her. But what did he propose to say? What did he purpose to do? Was the bold, bad man so COmMicooo S (CO mn