Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 108 — page 12: what you’re looking at

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

— od a MR Ae A A ———* —— ee A A ES — <--s—- = ee . grown-up son as his grace.” ‘as became his position, saw the princess start << . self all the time. The Duke oe ee lis of Diamonds. favorable, for the princess took Helen’s face in | ‘Please be quiet. The lady needs rest. She her hands and kissed her kindly. | is nervous.” Then the duke seemed for the first time tore- | He felt the duke, who was beside him, press member the presence of the Hon. Lorelia, who | his arm as a signal for silence, and presently was waiting a little awkwardly, leaning on | the lady looked up at him and said in English: Clarence Hart’s arm, behind them. ‘* Who is this, my son?” ‘Pardon, madame. The Honorable Miss Law- “This is Dr. Hart, my friend and secretary, ton, sister of Sir Lumley,” he said rapidly. | who is hunting all over the world for his uncle, “The princess, my motner.” Gilbert Carver,” was the rather singular reply The Hon. Lorelia prided herself on her ease | of Diamantina. in high society, and yet she felt a trifle embar- | The introduction seemed, however, to have a rassed before this lady, who must be as old | marked effect on the princess; for, to Clarence’s as herself, but looked at least twenty years | intense amazement and confusion, she parted younger. - | the hair on his forebead with both her soft The Princess Melapetros was of a very rare | white hands, as if he had been a boy, and gazed order of beauty, a blonde with large black eyes. | at him steadily with her dark, magnetic eyes Her complexion was pale, but wonderfully fair, | for nearly a minute, ere she said: and her figure was perfection in its rounded | “He is worthy of his uncle. God bless them curves, like those of the Venus de Medici. Her , both, Diamantina!” tawny gold hair was coiled up with jewels in a §_And she deliberately kissed the young man picturesque Oriental head-dress, and she wore | on the forehead. the robes of a Greek lady of rank, perhaps the Clarence was so much confused that he turned most picturesque in the world. ere was a as red as fire, while the Hon. Lorelia gave Helen soft and high bred languor about her whole | one silent but eloquent look, and then walked manner and appearance, as different from the away to the window, where good taste had al- acquired insolence of the Anglo-Indian lady as_ ready sent her niece. could be imagined. While they were looking out, up to the door She did not offer to salute Lorelia, but bowed dashed a carriage, and out jumped a tall, stern- with perfect courtesy as she said to her, in Eng- faced man, with clear, sharp features and lish: long mutton-chop whiskers. Helen clapped her ‘You have had a wonderful escape, Miss hands. Lawton, my son’s steward tells me.” | “Papa, papa! Here he is!” ““Oh, dear me, yes, your highness. We owe They saw Bir Lumley run up the steps and everything to the dear duke, /’m sure. Hehas pull the bell, and then the Duke of Diamantina been most kind to bring us all this way to meet | said, in a low voice to Hart: our poor dear Lumley. Has your highnessever' ‘‘ Take my mother away; she is too ill to meet met my brother?’ _ this man to-day.” The princess smiled slightly. ' But, to the surprise of all, the lady seemed to “*T have seen him, but I doubtif he will recog- | recover her strength at the sharp sound of the nize me. The ladies in Egypt go abroad vailed, | belland the tone of Sir Lumley’s voice in the you know, and I follow the customs of the | passage, asking for his daughter. country.” She sat up and waved aside both her son and ““A very nonsensical custom, I must say,” , Clarence Hart, watching eagerly the doorway. protested Lorelia. ‘‘I’m sure it must be very | Presently in came Sir Lumiey, tall, heavy, unpleasant, * _ sarcastic, gray, the image of his son Owen, and Not when women grow as old as [I am, , the model of what Owen will be if he reaches madame,” was the placid answer. ‘ We find § fifty-five. it to advantage not to expose our faces to the Every line of his hard, haughty face, with its public view.” large, loose-lipped mouth, had the domineering The Hon. Lorelia flushed deeply for the first | temper of its owner written plainly therein. time in many years, Here was a beautiful wo- | The precision of his attire, Anglo-Indian all man, who did not look over thirty, calmly call- , over; the whiteness of his puggaree hat with its ing herself the mother of the man at whom the , green lining; the smoothness of his chin and honorable virgin had been ‘‘setting her cap,” | lips, all told of the desk-man, the bureaucrat. _and Lorelia felt bitterly that if the princess was | Sur Lumley Lawton, yellow and dogmatic, was an old woman, she herself must be still more | a favorable specimen of the Indian civil service ancient. _ ofticial, absolute wielder of almost irresponsible “Ob, Pm sure no one would think that of you, power over thousands of people. princess,” she simpered, ‘‘ You musthave been — In the present case he looked at his best un- married very young indeed to have such a | der the softening influence of paternal love, for | Sir Lumley was an affectionate father. The duke led Helen to a seat without paying |, There were tearsin hiseyesas Helen flew to any more attention to the Hon. virgin; but the | meet him, and he even embraced Lorelia with princess seemed to find something painful inthe | considerable affection. allusion to her marriage, for she sighed deeply Meantime the Duke of Diamantina, the Greek as she answered: | princess and Clarence Hart became, unawares, ‘* Madame, I was a widow at sixteen.” spectators of this family meeting: and Clar- Then, without recurring further to the sub- ence, for one, felt much interest in it. ject, she looked at her watch and remarked: As he had expected, he hated Sir Lumley ‘Eleven o’clock. Have you sent to Sir Lum- | from the first view, partly from natural antag- ley, my son?” | onism to his cold, haughty face, partly from As we know, to see any one take out a watch pure jealousy of the kisses Helen was lavishing was a sure bait for the Hon. Lorelia to exhibit | on him. her own, and in this case the temptation was But his eves did not rest long on the family great, for the watch of the princess was a close | group. They were attracted, imstead, to the match for that of the ancient virgin in beauty | two spectators like himself, who were watching and costliness. Sir Lumley from the darkened room. Before the duke could answer his mother, The Duke of Diamantina gazed at the Eng- Miss Lawton was cryivg out with kittenish ani- | lishman with a slight lifting of the upper lip, a mation: spreading of the wide nostril, a dilatation of the “Oh, princess, how singular! I do think that | eye, thatirresistibly reminded Hart of the ap your watch is the very mate for mine! My bro- ther always told me there never was but ove | such other made in Paris.” | Clarence Hart, who had been standing, re- | oe ee eee eee ee scents prey for the first time after a fast and sleep. There was no ferocity there yet, but there en ee nantdaeed tt te A A A — —E ———7Ee _— Ee ees ee oe ne — = 4 “4 a oa ‘Faith, duke, and this Cairo in May’s nigh as bad as Lucknow or Delhi,” cried the jollv soldier, who had quite domesticated himself in the Diamantina household, with the ‘‘ cheek” of a full-blooded Irishman. “I thought I’d just look ye up in your new quarters and —EH! Is it? Holy Mother of God!” The stout office: had passed on into the dark- ened room out of the glare outside, without no- ticing the Lawton tableau, and was suddenly confronted by the white face and gleaming eyes of the Princess Melapetros, who came close to him before he saw her. The effect on O’Shea was astonishing. Stout and jolly as he was, he turned a dead white, staggered and nearly fell. Then, passing his hand over his brow, as if he felt giddy and eon- fused, he stammered: ‘I beg pardon, ma’am, my lady—I thought his grace was alone—I—” “ This is Captain O’Shea, of the English army, mother,” said the soft, low voice of the duke at this juncture. ‘‘ Captain, this is my mother, Princess Melapetros. Six Lumley Lawton is in the room. Be composed,” He spoke the last words very low and rapidly, and O’Shea nodded his comprehension aud com- pliance. A moment later Sir Lumley was bowing, with the most finished courtesy, before the duke and the princess, whom he could hardly see in the darkened room, and expressing his thanks and gratitude for the inestimable service Dia- mantina had rendered him. ‘““My dear sir,” rejoined the other, with his usual lazy grace, ‘‘it is nothing. I have long wished to see Sir Lumley Lawton outside of In- dia, and [am happy in the accident that has brought it about.’ ‘‘Has your grace, then, never been in India?” asked Sir Lumley, in some surprise. ‘*My dear sir, | have teen in Goa; but you must reflect that it is not pleasant for a Portu- uese to look on the country which Albuquerque t made known to civilization, and see anoth- er people in possession there,” ** Indeed!” said Sir Lumley, with an tneas laugh; ‘‘is if possible your people are so sensi- tive as that?’ ‘‘They are sensitive, senhor, and they never forget injuries till after vengeance—my people.” “Why, why, duke; I thought that Brazi ians were rather a quiet and commercial set,” “My dear sir, I am not all Brazilian. My mother, whois now a Greek by adoption, is of another race. Permit me to present you to the Princess Euphrosyne Melapetros, my mother.” As the duke spoke, he made a silent signal with his hand to Dom Gil, who had softly glided into the room, and instantly a flood of light poured in at the rear windows, as the curtains drew apart at a single pull of a hidden cord. It was like a cunningly contrived coup de theatre for more than one member of the com- pany. Sir Lumley Lawton saw before him the bean- tiful Lig gers a calm smile on her lips, and gave a violent start, turning as pale as if she had been a ghost, while the single word,,“* Effie!” escaped his lips. The princess, all her former emotion replaced by Peis calmness, bowed and smiled, as she said: id: ‘‘Tam glad to meet Sir Lumley Lawton, at last. Ihave looked for that pleasure in vgin for some time.” The pallor began to fade out of the English- man’s face, and it was with a faint attempzé at | asmnile, that he stammered out: ‘‘Pardon me, princess; but you are so—so like—a lady I once knew—that I—I was start. pearance of some carnivorous animal that | led—” and he stopped, still staring at her. Then the duke interposed, with his usual qui- et smile: . ‘These resemblances are very singular, some- tired from the group ata respectful distance, , was a revelation of depths of ferocity tht | times, senhor. Perhaps I also resemble some the scent come stronger. Then his eyes turned on the princess, and the beautiful and languid lady was transformed. Her lips were parted over her white teeth, her nostrils tense with some secret emotion, and her bosom rose and fellin those short quick gasps that show how mnuch & woman is wrought up, while her black eyes fairly blazed at the uncon- scious Sir Lumley, as he kissed his child again and again Something, he could hardly tell what, made Hart stir and go a little forward, so as to at- tract the princess’s attention. He thought she must be ill, and Jaid his hand on her wrist with the quiet authority of a physician. As much to his surprise as when she had. kiss- ed him before, the lady clutched his hand and whispered to him: ‘Tt is he, indeed !” The whisper, sott as it was, attracted the duke’s attention, and he started round to his mother, saying something in Greek which caused her to calm her face instantly. The first meeting of parent and: child was now over, and Helen was just beginning to think of the nce of her host, when the loud rollicking voice of O’Shea was heard in the hall, and the gallant captain stalked into the room, resplendent in snowy linen, violently, and then stagger backward as Lorelia | OKe, Rapid and noiseless, with the skill of a trained | physician, he caught her in his arms as she was about to fall, and spoke to the duke: ‘*Madame is ill, your grace. Let me lay her on the couch yonder.” — ~—e——e es - CHAPTER XVI. SIR LUMLEY LAWTON, In a moment the duke was by his mother’s side, speaking rapidly to her in some tongue unknown to the American, but the lady became so faint that they were obliged to lay her down on a couch, while Clarence batbed her temples with ice-water, thinking strange things to him- a Presently the princess revived and began to sob and talk wildly to her son in the same un- known language, while the two English women, much alarmed, could only stand by and pity her. ‘What sent her off so, Helen?’ asked Lorelia, in a whisper. ‘‘I wonder if she has heart dis- ease?’ “* Perhaps it’s the heat,” suggested Helen, and t Clarence Hart looked up, with alla doc- tor’s authority in his eye as be said, sternly ; might come to light ina moment more, should | one you knew.’ Sir Lumley turned and stared at him, and his strong lower jaw fell in an expression of fresh amazement, and something very like fear. Diamantina called to Clarence. ‘Doctor, here is another patient for you, This vile hot weather! I fear Sare Lomlée is not well.” And indeed the Englishman looked as if he had a stroke of paralysis, CHAPTER XVIT. THE KHEDIVE CLUR. AmonG the other modern institutions of re- constructed Egypt none are more remarkable than the club-houses. Alexandria rts one of them, under the name of the ‘*Mehemet Ali Club,” founded by Prince Mehemet Tewfik, son of the first Khedive Ismail Pasha; while Cairo rh ge in the still larger and more flourishing ‘*Khedive Club,” built by the British Duke of Sutherland, and patronized by the fashion of Cairo, native and imported. The Khedive Club boasts the names of half the aristocracy of Eurcpe as honorary or visit. ing members, and a rost of pashas, beys, bank- ers, merchants and otber pvotables, as constant members. The Duke of Diamantina had be- longed go it from its foundation, and his face was ag well Known there as that of any digni- JOO! EGomie co