The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 147: what you’re looking at

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

126 THE COURT OF LONDON her cheeks even under the artificial bloom which a cosmetic shed thereon, she continued to observe, ‘‘ The advice which I seek at your hands especially regards my own happi- ness.”’ “And yet you seem afraid of speaking outright,” re- marked the prince, somewhat impatiently. ‘““Yes,’’ said the Princess Sophia, her eyes filling with tears, ‘‘ because it is a painful thing for a sister to speak to a brother of her frailty and her shame.” “For Heaven’s sake explain yourself!’’ exclaimed the prince, starting uneasily, and then fixing a penetrating look upon his sister. ‘‘ Would you have me understand that you have again formed some connection which is likely to threaten you with disgrace and dishonour? ”’ “No, no!’’ returned the princess, hastily and almost indignantly. ‘“‘ It is concerning the secret of my early years that I would speak to you, — a secret that has so long been known to you — ”’ ‘Yes, the affair in the Edgeware Road,” interrupted the prince. “ But what danger threatens to transpire there- from? Lady Florimel surely has not betrayed you? ”’ ‘Lady Florimel is the most admirable of women,”’ ex- claimed the princess, ‘‘ and I believe that she would die to serve me. It is not my secret that is menaced, but my happiness that is deeply, deeply compromised, — that is to say, such little happiness as circumstances have permitted me to retain from the wreck of all the generous feelings, fervid affections, and buoyant hopes of youth.” ‘And so long as your secret is safe,’’ observed the prince, somewhat disgusted with the sentimentalism now exhibited by his sister, ‘‘ why the devil should you be unhappy? ”’ “Unhappy!” she echoed, with a bitter laugh. ‘“ Should I not be something less or something more than woman, were I really and truly happy? Or think you, George, that I can possibly blind myself to the fact that our family, the royal family of England, is rapidly becoming an object of loathing, hatred, and scorn to the great masses of the community? Is it not said openly, that our unhappy sire has gone mad through remorse at his own crimes and anguish at the misdeeds of his children? Has it not been even more than hinted that our brother Ernest was the murderer of Sellis? And you will excuse me for reminding you, my Gomicbdooks (E(0)