The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 280: what you’re looking at

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

THE MYSTERIES. 265 | Mh ‘li i i i) in i i i Hh Mai i HH iN Ht i Wl i ti HA Hi ii iH Hin Hi H Ha Wit Athi iy Hy! hil | il | aapl And Eleanor, gasping for breath, supported herself by clinging to the mantel. “* Ah! then my surmise was not wrong?” cried the Prince, in a triumphant tone. “Oh! I am well acquainted with the world, Eleanor—well ex- perienced in the female heart. The moment I learnt ere now that you had yielded to the device set to ensnare you, I felt assured that it was a conscious guilt which had made you coward enough to seek to know more. Were you an innocent wo- man, against whom scandal could not even raise its breath, you would have treated Mrs. Brace and her intrigues with disdain. Nay—those intrigues would have appeared so transparent that you must have seen through them in a moment.” “You are adding the grossest insult to the most wanton injury,” murmured the unhappy Eleanor, her courage and presence of mind failing her rapidly. “ Had you not treated me with insult on that night when you promised to admit me to your chamber,” SOS eee EEE Eee ee eee he) a —— eS _— _ = 4 iO iv ~ = = res AS said the Prince, “there never would have been a word or a look of anger or disagreement between us. But, because a certain incident took place—as un- foreseen as it was unfortunate—you barred your door against me. Think you, haughty lady, that I had no feelings to wound—no bitter disappointment to endure? Assuredly I had: and it was in consequence of the cruel—heartless—capricious treatment which I then experienced at your hands, that I resolved to make you mine sooner or later. And now, Lady Desborough—since it appears to be my turn to speak at, length,” he continued in a tone of enhanced triumph,—* I crave your attention.” “My God! suffer me to depart!” exclaimed the unhappy lady, glancing in wild terror around the room. “Listen, I say!” cried the Prince emphatically. “Upon my absence from the ball-rooms no one will dare to comment: upon your absence, on the con- trary, strange whispers and remarks will speedily 6)(0)©) (C(O) nn) (@ So (C(O) =