The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 112: what you’re looking at

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

\ THE FEMALE GARB 95 tarry in the passage any longer and had sought his way back to the private door. But as Jessica had locked that door and kept the key in her possession when she gave him ad- mittance ere now, she at once felt the necessity of hastening thither to afford him egress. But on arriving at the private door she saw no one, and again pausing for a few moments, she reflected what was to be done now. Had he lost his way somewhere in the palace? ‘This appeared most probable, and Jessica went wandering through every passage and corridor, to satisfy herself on the point. Thus did she lose nearly twenty minutes, during which the scene between the eclonel and Captain Tash was taking place. Let us now return to Venetia. When left alone in the boudoir by Jessica, she sat down again upon the sofa to reflect on the singular behaviour of Mrs. Malpas. When Venetia parted from that lady it was with the hope, as cordial as it seemed mutual, that the issue of the adventure would be satisfactory, and indeed all Lady Sackville’s pre- vious tutorings had been received with the best possible srace by Mrs. Malpas. How, then, could she have so sud- denly changed her mind? Was she a woman as vacillating as she was frivolous, as variable as she was weak-minded? To no other conclusion could Venetia come. But the key which had been placed under the mat, how had it disap- peared? Even supposing that Mrs. Malpas had thought better of the matter and had resolved at the last moment not to play the part which she had undertaken, still she could not have possessed herself of the key to secure the door against the possibility of intrusion. She had been locked inside the room, and the key had been placed under the mat outside. It was therefore physically impossible she could have possessed herself of it. Then what had become of that key? Venetia was utterly bewildered. She knew not what to think, and yet a vague and feebly glimmering suspicion was dawning in her mind that something had taken place beyond the scope of her present conjecture. Indeed, she could not help thinking that if anybody of the male sex had found the key, had penetrated into the chamber, and had made himself agreeable to Mrs. Malpas, the mystery would be cleared up at once. The reader is already aware that Lady Sackville was quick-witted, sharp, and intelligent beyond CORNICLOOKS (C(O) im