The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 305: what you’re looking at

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

288 REYNOLDS’ WORKS the fidelity of his dependents, but that being hable to hostile proceedings, he of course purposed to adopt the precautions he had named. She herself offered to undertake the journey and see the intendant, but he observed that it would look strange in the village if she were thus to absent herself while he remained at home. ‘Then she proposed that his valet should be entrusted with the mission, but the count objected to place so strong a temptation as a considerable sum of money in the man’s hands. ‘Thus all her objections and — her propositions were overruled, and the count himself set off on the expedition. He remained absent for about ten days, during which interval Juliana experienced more or less uneasiness on his behalf. At the expiration of this period he returned home safe, at a late hour one night, bringing with him a certain amount of money, but by no means so large as she had been led to expect. This, however, he readily accounted for, by stating that the intendant had been compelled to lay out considerable sums on the repairs of the mansion when he first received the intelligence that 1t was to be gotten in good order for the reception of a mistress. In respect to his own peculiar position in a political sense, 1t remained unaltered either for the better or the worse, but it was still dangerous for him to think of returning openly to Spain, so long as his enemy continued a member of the ministry. It was about this time that Juliana read in one of the French newspapers that the Marquis of Villebelle had been transferred from the Neapolitan Embassy to that of Madrid, thus receiving a promotion in the diplomatic hierarchy. It further appeared that the marquis and marchioness, accom- panied by their suite, were about to proceed by sea from Naples to Spain, so as to avoid the circuitous route of an overland journey. As the count frequently assured Juliana that the present Spanish ministry could not possibly last long, and that as the next one would most probably consist of personages more friendly disposed toward himself, he might expect to be shortly enabled to return openly to his estates, she began to reflect that as they might possibly visit Madrid, where she would encounter her sister and brother- in-law, it was bad policy on her part to abstain from corre- sponding with them. She therefore wrote to Constance, acquainting her with her marriage, and highly eulogizing her CONNIE OO KS (E(0)