The Argosy — page 124: what you’re looking at

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

The Perplexities of Captain Fieramosca. 109 when the first outburst of conversation languished, Captain Fiera- mosca should not have taken his leave. And avery observant person, noticing how often his eyes wandered towards a particular door, might have found in that fact the explanation of his staying. For at that door, on the young officer’s entrance he had caught _a brief vision of a pale little face with huge black eyes, and a cloud of golden hair. An untidy little head, but a very pretty one as Fieramosca had not been slow to discover. And interpreting sundry movements behind the door to the effort to present a favourable appearance generally, he sat twirling his beloved moustache and erowing every moment more monosyllabic and more determined not to move. And presently his patience was rewarded. For a black veil on its head, a prayer book in its hand and its eyes demurely cast down, in tripped the vision. Captain Fieramosca sprang to his feet, staring with all his might of admiration and rapture. ‘“My daughter, Clelia,” said the widow, adding in a quick, sub-acid undertone. ‘‘ Why, may I ask, have you dressed yourself up like that ?” ‘‘Why? Don’t we always go to mass 2” inquired Clelia, with an air of the most innocent surprise. “To-day we are too late, child. And you know it ”’—-the last words again in sotto voce. The “child” probably had known it. But to that she was not going to confess. And at any rate her object in so attiring herself was accomplished, for Captain Fieramosca was already fathoms deep in love. Since the days of Romeo in neighbouring Verona, no passion had probably ever been born so quickly at first sight. But the truth was our officer had heard of Clelia already. Her portrait had been shown him by her brother, his bosom friend Enrico, and something regarding her had been related to him, which had stirred his chivalrous instincts. If Fieramosca grew visibly more lively after Clelia came in, Clelia’s mother lapsed into a silence which even bordered on sulks. And Clelia herself, though she locked bewitching, perhaps felt the chill of her parent’s manner, for she also was mute. At least, her tongue was, but her eyes were very eloquent as the visitor suddenly launched into patriotic descriptions of the recent campaign. It was rather uphill work for Captain Fieramosca, this one-sided conversation with two old maids who had not very much to answer beyond ‘‘Good gracious !” and ‘‘ Think of that !” On his rising at last to go, Aunt ‘Teresa—the youngest, but also the meekest and most depressed of the sisters—Aunt Teresa, who never did anything as a rule but say a few prayers and take care of her health ; absolutely ventured on the initiative, and asked him if “he would not come again ? ” ‘With the utmost pleasure,” said the young man, eagerly. ‘* And GOnlGaooks (CO)