The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 310: what you’re looking at

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

CHRISTINA AND LORD OCTAVIAN 279 ‘‘T am more than ever glad to form Miss Ashton’s ac- quaintance,”’ said the duke, with another courteous bow, ‘“‘ for I have taken a very great fancy to young Mr. Ashton, and I am sure that he and I shall be excellent friends. We have not had above a dozen words of conversation this morning, — indeed he has only been a few hours at March- mont House, —and therefore I had no opportunity of learning from his lips that his sister was here. The pleasure of meeting Miss Ashton is therefore all the greater, on account of being so completely unexpected.”’ The Duke of Marchmont had been telling a great false- hood. He had learned from Christian where his sister was now located, and in his anxiety to behold that being who he felt persuaded was Octavian’s “ fair unknown ’’ of some little time past, he had paid the present visit. He did not remain above a quarter of an hour, and neither by look nor word did he suffer Octavian to perceive that he had fath- omed the secret, and that in Christina he felt convinced he did behold that fair unknown. As for Miss Ashton herself, she was about to leave the room at the expiration of a few minutes, but both Meredith and Marchmont assured her that they had no private business to converse upon, and for courtesy’s sake she was compelled to remain. When how- ever the duke had taken his leave, she at once ascended to her own chamber, where she tarried until Lady Octavian returned from her father’s house. Then she reappeared in the drawing-room, and to her great relief found that Mere- dith was not there. He did not reénter the dwelling until a quarter of an hour before dinner-time, when Zoe was in her own chamber, preparing her evening toilet. Christina had therefore ample leisure to throw off any embarrassment which Lord Octavian’s presence occasioned her before Zoe joined them in the drawing-room, and her ladyship saw nothing in the countenance of either to lead her to suspect that they had met before this day. LOOKS com () (E(O)