Alquanto malagevole ed aspretta,
Per mezzo im bosco presero la via,
Che, oltra che sassosa fosse e stretta,
Quasi su dritta alla collina gia.
Ma poiche furo ascesi in su la belta
Usciro in spaziosa pratiera--
Dover il piu bel Palazzo e'l piu giocondo,
Vider che mai fosse vecluto al mondo[13].
ORLANDO FURIOSO.
[Footnote 13: No doubt most of my readers will prefer their own
translations of my mottoes to any I could offer them; but for those who
choose to avoid this trouble, I add my imitations, which claim no other
merit than that of giving a general idea of the spirit of the original
passage.
They through the wood their path descried,
Which climb'd the shaggy mountain's side;
Dark, narrow was the winding way,
O'er many a piercing stone it lay.
But when they left the forest's shade,
A spacious platform stood display'd,
On which a palace rose in sight,
The smiling scene of gay delight.
]
In proportion as Mrs. Galton and Augustus approached Eltondale, their
regrets increased from their anticipation of so soon parting with
Selina; whilst, on the contrary, her spirits seemed to rise with the
varying scene. Almost every object was new to her, and, as such, was a
fresh source of enjoyment. It would be impossible to describe Selina's
astonishment when she entered Leeds. She had never before been in any
large town; for though York was within thirty miles of the Hall, it had
been, in point of intercourse, as much beyond Sir Henry's circle as
London itself. The throng of people, the constant bustle of passengers,
the gaiety of the shops, and above all the comfort, and even elegance of
the hotel where they slept--were all to her subjects of agreeable
surprise. Even the rapid motion of the carriage whirled on by the post
horses, whose pace was so different from the sober gait of poor Sir
Henry's antiquated steeds, animated and delighted her. And will the
confession be forgiven?--such was her ignorance, or perhaps her
frivolity, that she not only felt, but was vulgar enough to acknowledge
a childish pleasure in the races the postillions frequently entered into
with the stage coaches. Augustus was enchanted with the _naÔvetÈ_ of her
observations, and gazed with delight on her sparkling eyes and changing
colour, which needed no interpreter to express her varying emotions. But
Mrs. Galton sighed to think how that pliability of disposition, that
now rendered her so bewitching to others, might hereafter become
dangerous to herself. Lady Eltondale, finding Mrs. Galton and Mordaunt
were determined to accompany Selina to the end of her journey, had
written a polite invitation to them to remain at her house some days;
but they had both resolved not to avail themselves of this tardy
civility, even for one night; however, unforeseen delays having
occurred, they did not reach Eltondale till past nine o'clock in the
evening. It was a dark stormy night; the wind, which blew in tremendous
gusts, had extinguished the lamps of the carriage, and they with
difficulty found their way through a thick wood, that climbed the side
of a hill on which the house was situated; but when they emerged from
this Cimmerian darkness, the superb mansion broke upon their view in an
unbroken blaze of light. The exterior rivalled the elegance of an
Italian villa from the lightness of its porticoes, the regularity of
its colonnades, and the symmetry of its whole proportion. Nor was the
interior less elegant. Almost before the carriage reached the steps of
the porch, the ready doors flew open, and a crowd of servants welcomed
their approach: and such was the brilliancy of the scene into which they
were thus suddenly introduced, that it was some minutes before the
travellers could face the dazzling glare of this sudden day. When,
however, they were enabled to look round, the _coup d'oeil_ called
forth involuntary admiration. Three halls, _en suite_, lay open before
them, all illuminated, particularly the centre one, which contained a
light stone stair-case, that wound round a dome to the top of the house,
only interrupted by galleries that corresponded to the different floors.
Out of the hall in which they stood, a conservatory stretched its length
of luxuriant sweetness. The roses, that were trained over its trellised
arches, were in full blow, and formed a beautiful contrast to the
icicles that hung on the outside of the windows, whilst the blooming
garden itself was equally contrasted by the winter clothing of the
adjoining halls. In them large blazing fires gave both light and heat;
whilst thick Turkey carpets, bearskin rugs, and cloth curtains to every
door, bid defiance to the inclemency of the severest season.
Before Selina had time to express half her rapture and surprise, the
Alcina of this enchanted palace approached to welcome them. And such was
the elegance, the fascination of Lady Eltondale's address, particularly
to Mrs. Galton and Augustus, that they for a moment almost doubted
whether they had indeed rightly understood her prohibitory letter. Lord
Eltondale had not yet left the dinner table; but the moment he heard of
the arrival of his guests, he bustled out, napkin in hand, to bellow
forth his boisterous welcome: "Gad, I'm glad to see ye all. How do? how
do? Why, Mrs. Galton, you're thinner than ever; but this is capital
fattening ground. Selina, my girl, what have you done with the rosy
cheeks you had last summer? Come, child, don't cry; you know you could
not expect Sir Henry to live for ever--and you've plenty of cash, eh?"
Lady Eltondale, perceiving her Lord's condolences by no means assuaged
Selina's tears, took hold of her hand and that of Mrs. Galton, and with
a kindness much more effectual, though perhaps not more sincere, led
them away from her unconscious Lord, who, without waiting for reply or
excuse, seized Mordaunt by the arm, and dragged him into the eating
parlour, as he said, "to drink the ladies' health in a bottle of the
best Burgundy he ever tasted."
The drawing-room, to which Lady Eltondale introduced her guests, was
perfectly consistent with its beautiful entrance, for here,
"If a poet
Shone in description, he might show it,--
Palladian walls--Venetian doors--
Grotesco roofs--"
in short, all that taste and extravagance could procure to combine
comfort and elegance.
Before Lady Eltondale drew aside the curtain that screened the door of
the anteroom, a few chords on the harp were distinguished--and on
entering the apartment they perceived two ladies. One was an old woman,
dressed in mourning, with a large black bonnet, which almost entirely
concealed her face, whom Lady Eltondale introduced as Lady Hammersley.
She looked up, for a moment, from a book she appeared to be perusing
intently, and after saluting the strangers with an obsequious
inclination of the head, resumed her studies in silence. The other
lady, who was reclining against the harp, was dressed in the extreme of
French fashion. Her face, though not youthful, appeared, at that
distance, handsome, from the judicious arrangement of white and red,
with which it was covered. But a closer inspection proved the only
charms it could really boast were a pair of large black eyes, that could
assume any requisite expression, and a set of teeth, which, whether
natural or artificial, were certainly beautiful. Her dark hair was
crowned with a wreath of roses _en corbeille_, the colour of her cheeks;
and her tall slim figure was covered, not concealed, by a loose muslin
robe _‡ la Diane_.
At first the Viscountess took no notice of the fair minstrel; but having
placed Mrs. Galton close to the fire in a Roman chair, and ordered
coffee, and an opera basket for her feet, she drew Selina's arm through
her own, and, approaching the stranger, addressed her, saying, "At
last, Mademoiselle Omphalie, here is my niece: have I said too much of
her?" "_Ah! mon Dieu, qu'elle est belle!_" returned the complaisant
foreigner. "_Ma foi, elle est fail ‡ peindre._[14] _Ma chËre_ young
ladi, ve must be ver good friends: I am positive I shall dote a you." So
saying, she held out her hand to Selina, who returned the proffered
courtesy with a glow of gratitude for the unexpected kindness. But the
Viscountess did not give her niece time to profit much by the stranger's
civility. She just happened to recollect, that Selina's furs were
unnecessary in her ladyship's drawing-room, and proposed to the
travellers to have them introduced to their apartments, which they
gladly acceded to. But here a new fashion struck their wondering eyes.
The Viscountess desired her footmen to send "Argant" to show the rooms.
Mrs. Galton and Selina ignorantly imagined they were to be consigned to
the care of a house-maid. What then was their dismay, when a Swiss groom
of the chambers made his appearance, with their wax tapers, and escorted
them, not only to their rooms, which adjoined each other, but familiarly
entered the apartments with them; and having deliberately lighted the
candles on their respective toilets, with a thousand shrugs and grimaces
asked, "_Si mesdames lui permettront l'honneur d'Ùter leurs
pelisses[15]?_" When he had at last retired, Mrs. Galton could no longer
suppress her feelings; the tears trickled down her cheeks as she clasped
Selina to her bosom, with a fearful anticipation of the trials and
temptations, a scene so new and so bewitching was likely to offer to a
girl so totally inexperienced. But unwilling, unnecessarily, to damp
the dear girl's spirits, which were already fluttering between joy and
sorrow, she attributed her depression solely to the idea of so soon
parting with her, as she had fixed to leave Eltondale with Augustus very
early the following morning. When the two ladies returned to the drawing
room, they found the gentlemen had joined the party. Besides Lord
Eltondale and Mordaunt, the circle was enlarged by Sir Robert
Hammersley, an old fat Scotch admiral, and his son, who had thrown
himself, at full length, on a sofa, listening to an Italian _arietta_,
that Mademoiselle Omphalie was warbling forth in "liquid sweetness long
drawn out," whilst he occasionally interrupted her finest cadences with
an audible yawn, or an almost unintelligible "_brava_." Lady Eltondale,
Lady Hammersley, and Mrs. Galton formed a group together, and entered
into general conversation, while Sir Robert and his host were warmly
engaged in continuing a political dispute. Selina remained attentively
listening to the delightful harmony of Mademoiselle Omphalie's melodious
voice, till at length her eye meeting that of Mordaunt, which rested
solely on hers, her expressive countenance told him in a moment all her
admiration and delight. He softly approached her, and, leaning over her
chair, said, in a low tone, "All these new pleasures will soon make you
forget----I mean you will scarcely have time to think of Yorkshire." She
turned her beautiful face towards him, with an expression of melancholy
and surprise, but meeting his speaking glance, she hastily withdrew her
eyes, and coloured, with an ill defined feeling of painful pleasure:
some flowers, that she had inconsiderately taken from a china vase, that
stood on a table near her, suffered from her agitation, as she
unconsciously scattered some of the myrtle leaves on the floor.
Augustus picked up one of the fallen branches, and, looking at Selina,
"_Je ne change qu'en mourant_," said he, with an emphasis that seemed to
apply the motto in more ways than to the leaf he held. Selina's
confusion increased, and a tear stood on her long eye-lashes, but before
she could articulate the half formed sentence that trembled on her lip,
Lady Eltondale advanced to the table, and abruptly asked her to give her
opinion of some drawings that were scattered about it; and so completely
did she monopolize her for the remainder of the evening, that she had
not again an opportunity of speaking to Augustus. When, however, the
company were separating for the night, he advanced to ask if she had any
further commands for him; but, with a trepidation she did not wait to
analyse, she postponed her adieus, entreating him not to say farewell
then, as she meant certainly to be up long before Mrs. Galton and he
would leave Eltondale in the morning.
[Footnote 14: "Ah! how beautiful she is!" "She is divinely formed."]
[Footnote 15: "If the ladies would allow him to take off their
pelisses."]
END OF VOL. I.
* * * * *
Printed by S. Hamilton, Weybridge, Surrey.
* * * * *
[Transcriber's Note: Hyphen variations within volume and between volumes
left as printed.]
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