The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 165: what you’re looking at

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

150 THE MYSTERIES Dr. Ferney, with a glow of pleasure upon his counte- _ mance. “T have preserved them—I have amused myself on several occasions with the experiments themselves —andI can assure you,” added the lady, with a sweet smile, “ that I have fulfilled the instructions with a success that you yourself, as my preceptor in the science, would have viewed with satisfaction. Do you remember that one of those receipts was for @ peculiar compound ‘fluid which yourself had just succeeded in discovering ?” “ Yes—and the discovery of which Liebig has just claimed as his own,” added Dr. Ferney. “ But no matter—the credit was mine, if any there were. You mean chloroform P” “The same,” answered the lady. ‘‘ Well, I now come to the object of my present visit. A bottle of | this subtle fluid has been stolen from me: it has OF THE COURT. it, you will pass the matter over in silence—yow will take no step that shall lead to farther inves- tigations? Will you promise me this, doctor?” asked the lady. “T will—most faithfully and most readily,” re- plied the physician. “Is this all that you require? is this all that I can dor” “T have nothing more to ask,” rejoined the lady. “ And now, Dr. Ferney,” she said, rising from her seat, “I must take my leave. But one word!” she exclaimed, as a sudden thought struck her. “ If perchance,” she continued, in that winning way which women know so well how to adopt towards those over whose hearts their charms have power, “should we ever meet in the great world, it must be as simple acquaintances—almost as strangers , and not a word from your lips will suffer others to know under what circumstances we met long years fallen into the hands of persons whose desperate ago—much less for what purpose!” characters I have too much reason to know; and I | “ Have I not already told you,” asked the doctor, dread lest the most fearful uses should be made of | ina mildly and mournfully reproachful voice, “ that it. Therefore have I lost no time in coming to make , 1 would sooner die than do you an injury. Relative you acquainted with this circumstance. For to tell to that purpose of which you speak, I have so far you the truth, I feared that if such evil uses as I buried it in oblivion that it remains entombed at anticipate should be made of the fluid, and that you the bottom of my soul. Did the Inquisition exist heard of any such case, you might at once, ontheim- now, and rear its hydra-head armed with all its pulse of the moment, declare that some years back | terrors in the very heart of England, not even all you had communicated the secret to a lady, and the tortures of the rack should drag forth that that from her only could the dangerous elimination — have been procured. Under such circumstances I | inight become seriously compromised—tor careless- ness, at the least for from what you told me at the time I thought it very improbable you would | ever communicate the secret to another _ “Ah! I recollect,” exclaimed Dr. Ferney, “I said that inasmuch as you had taken so deep an interest in that discovery, it should remain sacred on your account; so that I might have the satis- | faction of thinking to myself that. there was at least | one being in the world whose smile of approval had gladdened me in my scientific pursuits.” “It was because you spoke thus,” rejoimed the lady, “and because I read at the time the generosity and sincerity of your character, that I felt assured they were not idle words you had uttered. There- fore, when the phial of fluid was purloimed from me last night, I said to nyself, ‘If it should really be the case that to me only in the world has Dr. Ferney entrusted his secret, I now stand a twofold risk. In the first place, should an evil use be made of the fluid by the hands into which it has fallen, and if | he comes to hear of it, he may proclaim to the world that from a certain lady could the subtle essence alone have been obtained. Or else, in the second place, he will perhaps ascribe direct to me whatsoever crime may be perpetrated ; and it would be terrible to suffer thus in the estimation of any | one.’—These were the terms in which I reasoned to myself; and therefore, in anticipation of whatsoever may ensue from the loss of my phial of chloroform, I resolved upon paying you this visit.” “Tam glad—I am rejoiced,” replied the doctor, “that the incident has occurred, since it has pro- | cured me the happiness vf your presence. But what would you have me do? in what way can I assist youP Speak—you can command me in all things.” 1 | | “Should you hear of any case in which the vil- : lains who have stolen the fluid make an evil use of | a _ - — oe secret fromme. It is your’s—not mine.” ‘Generous man that you are! accept my warmest, sincerest, most heartfelt thanks! And think not that though nineteen years have elapsed since last we met, I have been unmindful of your welfare. I have watched you from adistance—I have seen you rise to eminence—and I have been rejoiced. If 1 did not send you my congratulations, it was be- cause——But no matter! 1 congratulate you now —and with a fervid sincerity.” “ But you will not leave me thus abruptly ?” said the physician. “ You, who were interested in my little laboratory at Islington, will surely condescend to cast a look within the walls of the larger one which I possess in Conduit Street? And you re- member too, that nucleus of a museum which I had formed, also in Islington—a small closet con- taining a few curiosities, with difficulty purchased by the hard savings of those times? Well, the little nucleus in the small closet has grown and expanded into a large collection, filling a suite of four chambers within these walls.” “ Yes—I will with pleasure visit your laboratory and your museum,” returned the lady, who was evidently anxious to render herself agreeable to the physician, as an additional inducement for him to keep inviolable the several secrets with which he appeared to be entrusted. ‘Come then,” said Ferney: and taking a lamp | off his reading-desk, he led the way from the study. Crossing a landing-place, the physician guided | the lady along a passage to a door which he threw open; and she soon found herself in the laboratory. We need not pause to describe in detail the appear- ance of this place: the imagination of our readers can easily depict the shelves covered with jars and bottles duly labelled with the chemical hieroglyphies -—the furnace in one corner—the alembics, retorts, and other implements which lay seattered about— the book-case containing several curious volumes— — e ou -_—- ——- -——~ — | | | COA HOOKS (E()