The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 35: what you’re looking at

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

16 REYNOLDS’ WORKS which separated the kitchen garden from the back part of the premises. They were in deep and earnest discourse together. The old baronet was clad in precisely the same way as on the previous evening, in his dressing-gown, his cap, and slippers. Mrs. Oxenden wore a white muslin wrapper, fastened up to the throat, and which displayed the fine symmetry of her shape to its fullest advantage. Her raven hair hung in heavy tresses, with a sort of studied negligence, upon her admirably sloping shoulders, and there was some- thing majestic and stately in the carriage of her fine tall form, as well as resolute and determined in the gestures with which she gave impressiveness to her discourse. Christian was too far off to catch a syllable that was said, or even to hear the tones of their voices, but he had a keen power of vision, and this enabled him to discern that their conversa- tion was of an earnest character. That it related to Laura he had no doubt, and that it boded nought favourable to her happiness he was equally certain. For upwards of half an hour did the old baronet and Mrs. Oxenden walk to and fro upon the lawn, thus discoursing. At the expiration of that interval the lady left the old man, and reéntered the dwelling. Sir John remained in the garden, and every now and then he rubbed his hands together, as if with a gloating satisfaction at some idea that was upper- most in his mind. In about twenty minutes two females issued from the mansion; one was immediately recognized by Christian to be the beautiful Laura, the other was a horrible-looking negress with great thick lips and a most repulsive aspect. The young lady was apparelled in a morn- ing dress, but she had on her bonnet, as if she were going for a walk. This, however, might merely be on account of the heat of the sun, for it was now past noon, and its beams poured down with sultry strength. The instant she caught a glimpse of Sir John Steward she shrank back, but the horrible-looking negress seized her roughly by the arm, and appeared to address her in threatening language. Such was our hero’s indignation that he was about to spring down from the tree, scale the garden wall, and bound forward to her assistance, when he was suddenly struck by the rashness and folly of such a proceeding, inasmuch as he would be placing himself in a false position by an illegal trespass upon the baronet’s grounds. It was, however, difficult for him CORMICLIOO KS (E(0)