Beautiful Rienzi; or, The secret vendetta — page 92: what you’re looking at

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

BEAUTIFUL RIENZI, 87 awaited any gentleman’s pleasure who had a use for the grated windows. Dr. Oaks and his compeer with their prey and their myrmidons had doubtless withdrawn into discreet retire- ment for a time, or flourished in some distant city safe from the pursuit of inquisitive relatives and meddlesome detec- tives. So, until my sister could tell us her story, all extraneous knowledge seemed unattainable ; and we gathered in our interests and centered them on her. Oh! it was sad to mark the changes which these four months had wrought in her. Lovely she ever had been, and ever would be, even should ears creep one by one upon her and dull youth’s freshness, but now in her weakness, and gentle, uncomplaining. melancholy, there was almost a light and sweetness too holy to be borne by eyes of love. So engrossed was I with my poor sister, that I suffered a week to pass before [resumed my visits to the soldiers’ families which had been so abruptly broken off. Having carried the letter and photograph which had been intrusted to me, to our superintendent, and held a con- sultation with my comrades on the matter, it was resolved to send an agent to the Potomac, where the company in which young Rosecraft had been, still was stationed, and having gathered all available information from that point, to trace him as faithfully as possible to his present quarters. Having set in train the arrangements for carrying out Harrison’s wishes, I next directed my steps to the ferry, to finish my visiting in Miss Cranstown’s district. I found abundant work awaiting me, and many objects of interest; but none so sad as that which encountered my eyes, on run- ning up at last to tell poor Charlie Harrison what I had done. There he lay dead, in his poor coffin of painted deal, his kind face smoothed at last from lines of pain and white, since the fever flush was gone forever. There he lay, calm and moveless, though the girl for whom his last hours had been so heavy, was weeping and moaning beside him; there he lay with the fixed smile on his violet lips, with the fixed eyelid sealed to the hollow cheek. The young soldier had gone to join a host whose victories have crowned them each CORNUCG OOO S (©)