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.

THE LATHAMS 279 ‘“ Ah, well, ma’am, it’s all very fine,”’ ejaculated Shadbolt, “for your ladyship to make this statement, but there is Madame Angelique’s counter-statement — ”’ “IT repeat, sir,’ interrupted Lady Anastasia, haughtily, ‘‘ there is some mistake. I will however look over my ac- counts, and see whether by any possibility there is one of Madame Angelique’s which has remained unpaid. I am however positive that all the bills are here,’ and she indi- cated the receipted accounts which lay upon the table. _ “ And I am equally positive, my lady,” responded Shad- bolt, ‘‘ that you do owe Madame Angelique this money, no matter whether an account has been sent in to you or not.” Anastasia had already shown more coldness and more hauteur, more indignant impatience and more proud dignity, in the space of a few minutes than she had ever done before, but it was now with the very haughtiest indignation and the very utmost of her indignant pride that, drawing her fine form up to its full height, she bent her beautiful blue eyes upon the intending extortioner, saying, “‘ This is the first time my word was ever doubted, and your conduct is bor- dering upon insolence. You can retire, sir. I will myself communicate with Madame Angelique in the course of a day or two.” “Very good, my lady,” said Shadbolt, who was more than half-inclined to speak with a still greater degree of insolence. ‘““ Mind you don’t forget.”’ He then strolled jauntily out of the room, and Anastasia felt so hurt, her feelings were so wounded, her pride was so insulted, that she could scarcely keep back an outburst of tears. Not for a moment did she suspect the real purpose of the note and the real object of the visitor, namely, that an extortion was intended; she firmly believed it was all a mis- take on Madame Angelique’s part, but that the ex-milliner had entrusted her business to a very rude person, whose coarse, vulgar manners were ill-calculated to qualify him for such a mission. A being of Anastasia’s natural gentle- ness and amiability felt such a scene as this far more than a worldly-minded woman would have done, and the very effort of summoning up her dignity, as well as that unwonted display of indignation, were followed by a reaction which, as we have just said, almost reduced her to the weakness of EGOMIGIOOKS (C(O)