The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 231: what you’re looking at

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

206 REYNOLDS’ WORKS ought to be made acquainted with all the secrets and mys- teries attending their birth. A third document, also written by the deceased Mr. Ashton, contained a full narrative of those secrets and mysteries, in precise accordance with the evidence given by Jonathan Carnabie. The remaining document was Joseph Preston’s letter to the twins, which the Smedleys had intercepted. It told them that, smitten with remorse for his conduct toward those who had been entrusted to his guardianship, he implored their forgiveness; that he was already steeped in pecuniary difficulties when he became their guardian at Mr. Ashton’s death; that he had made away with the six thousand pounds bequeathed them by that gentleman; that the only atonement, slight though it were, which he could now offer, was to place them in possession of certain documents which he had found in Mr. Ashton’s writing-desk, and which he had not intended to give up to them until they attained their majority; that these documents would be discovered in a peculiar recess at his house in Cambridge Terrace, for that in the precipi- tation of his flight from that residence he had forgotten to take them with him. The reading of these documents terminated the evidence on behalf of our young hero as a claimant for the Marchmont peerage. The lords forming the committee of privileges in- quired if there were any opposition, and being answered in the negative, they deliberated together for a few minutes. The result of their conference was an intimation to the counsel appearing on Christian’s behalf that it was entirely unnecessary for those learned gentlemen to address their lordships upon the evidence, as the mind of the committee was already made up. A decision was then solemnly pro- nounced in Christian’s favour; he was recognized as the just claimant and the rightful possessor of the Marchmont peerage, and he thereupon received the congratulations of all who were so deeply interested in our young hero’s welfare. CORNIELIOOLKKS (E(©)