"I am really glad we have left the house of my uncle," said Rosabella
to Marianne, the morning after her removal to the palace of Lord
Gustavus; "for though there is something revolting to my feelings in
being dependant upon a stranger, yet as it may soon be in my power
to repay any obligations I may receive from him, it is better than
the treachery I was obliged to practise towards the duke. There is
something so mean in treachery!"
"We are always apt to feel most disgusted with those vices most
repugnant to our nature," said Marian smiling, "whilst we are merciful
to those we practise. However, I can't say I think there is much
difference."
"What!" cried Rosabella indignantly; "do you class those vices that
spring from a noble though mistaken spirit, with those that are the
natural offspring of base, grovelling minds?"
"No," returned Marianne, "for I think the latter preferable, as the
mind that produces them is incapable of making nobler efforts; whilst
the others, by degrading their possessors, show forcibly the monstrous
depravity of the human heart."
"I do not understand you," said Rosabella.
"Nor is it necessary you should:" rejoined her confidant.
Rosabella was not quite satisfied with this summary manner of
dismissing the argument, and was proceeding to question her confidant's
maxim, when a tap at the door announced a page from Lord Gustavus, who
came to know if the princess would honour his master with an audience.
"Certainly," said Rosabella; and in a few minutes Lord Gustavus entered
her boudoir.
"I hope your Serene Highness has rested well," said the noble lord with
his usual pomposity; "I feel better this morning."
"I am perfectly well, I thank your lordship!" returned Rosabella; "and
the relief I have experienced, by having the weight that has so long
hung upon my mind relieved by my removal to your hospitable mansion,
has proved an excellent soporific."
"That being the case," said Lord Gustavus, "perhaps your Highness will
have no objection to indulge the noble lords who already have declared
themselves on your behalf, as also some others of their friends who are
anxious to enlist under your banners, with an interview: for thinking
as I think, and as I am convinced every reasonable person in the
kingdom must think, no time ought to be lost in a matter of so much and
of such infinite importance."
Rosabella, thinking _par merveille_ exactly the same as the noble lord,
instantly gave him her hand to lead her to his library, where the
illustrious personages he had spoken of were waiting to receive her.
It has been already said that Rosabella was beautiful, and now that
her recent illness, and the agitation natural to the novelty of her
present situation had softened the usual pride and haughtiness of her
demeanour, she looked perfectly lovely. It has often been allowed, that
a beautiful woman never looks so well, as when in affliction; there
being something in the appearance of a timid helpless female, looking
up to man for protection and support, that rouses every generous and
manly bosom in her behalf; whilst that wretch must indeed be lost to
every sense of feeling and humanity, who could be deaf to the prayer of
beauty in distress. Thus the appearance of Rosabella caused a general
sensation in her behalf, whilst her usual pride and haughtiness, which
were well known, only made her present diffidence and agitation, her
downcast eyes and trembling voice, appear still more interesting from
the strong effect of contrast they produced.
The persons collected in the library of Lord Gustavus were all affected
by her manners; and though perhaps it would have been difficult to find
a group of individuals more various in their usual habits and modes of
thinking, yet upon this one point they were agreed. The personages who
composed this worthy assemblage, were Lord Maysworth, the Lords Noodle
and Doodle, Dr. Hardman, and the young Prince Ferdinand of Germany, who
had been taken prisoner by Lord Edmund, and was now upon his parole
of honour, till the conditions for his ransom could be arranged. He
was at present the guest of Lord Maysworth, who having in his youth
received great obligations from the German Emperor, was now glad of an
opportunity to show his gratitude to his son; and who had now brought
him to Lord Gustavus, to introduce him to the Princess Rosabella.
Prince Ferdinand was ardent and romantic, and he was just at that
happy age when all appears bright and blooming, before reality has
destroyed the flattering dreams of hope; when we are ready to believe
all we wish, and imagine human nature without a blot. Alas! why are the
delightful moments of life so transient; and why can we never partake
of pleasure without having our relish for it destroyed!
Confiding, however, and unsuspicious as Prince Ferdinand was, he was
certainly excessively astonished to hear Lord Maysworth, the advocate
of freedom and equality, eloquently plead in Rosabella's behalf
that her father was the elder brother of the present duke, and that
consequently her claim was strengthened by all the magic powers of
primogeniture, and he was still more surprised by his assertion that
the present duke had rendered himself unpopular by advising the late
Queen to rebuild the late palace at Richmond, by which several hundreds
of workmen were kept in employ during the whole of the preceding
winter, and saved from perishing.
"Good heavens!" cried Prince Ferdinand, "Can you blame that? Was it not
better than suffering them to perish with cold in the streets?"
"No danger of that, your Highness--no danger of that," returned Lord
Maysworth--"nobody can perish of cold in our streets, because, you
know, we have always pipes of hot air in them to make them quite warm.
And as to the palace, it is really quite melancholy to think how many
thousands of the public money were expended upon it. Oh! I assure you,
it is quite impossible to find a man more deservedly unpopular than the
Duke of Cornwall."
"Oh, quite impossible!" said the Lords Noodle and Doodle, shaking their
heads.
"Thinking as I think, however, and as I am confident every one here
must think," said Lord Gustavus, "it will be imprudent to depend
entirely upon the duke's unpopularity: Lord Edmund is beloved by the
army; and, as he is decidedly upon the side of Elvira, we cannot be too
cautious."
"Oh, no, certainly!--we cannot be too cautious," echoed the two
repeaters.
"It is a glorious circumstance, however," said Dr. Hardman, "that the
choice of the Queen rests entirely with the people; their voice alone
will decide the glorious struggle, and their free unbiassed opinions
alone give the Monarchy its future Queen."
"Yes," said Lord Maysworth, "it is true, it rests with them alone to
decide the question; and for this reason do you not think it will
be as well, my lords, for each of us to repair to his country seat,
and endeavour, by his influence in the neighbourhood, to procure the
election of such deputies as may be disposed to vote favourably to our
wishes."
"The plan is excellent!" cried Dr. Hardman.
"Excellent!" exclaimed Lord Gustavus.
"Excellent!" echoed his attendant satellites.
"Then it only remains for us to put it in execution," said Lord
Maysworth.
"If the princess will excuse my absence--" began Lord Gustavus.
"Oh, my Lord!" interrupted Rosabella hastily, for she dreaded his long
speeches beyond the power of description, "think not of me: I must be,
indeed, unreasonable, if I could complain of your absence, when it is
for my service you will be employed."
"The princess speaks like an oracle," said Dr. Hardman; "and I think we
cannot do better than put her wishes in execution."
"Farewell then, my friends," said Rosabella, her voice trembling with
emotion as they parted, "and may success attend you; for the present,
my poverty, in all but gratitude, prevents my wishes; but the time
may come, when you shall find the powerful Queen will not forget the
favours conferred upon the dependant princess."
"Oh!" cried the noble lords and Dr. Hardman, "do not mention reward;
patriotism and the disinterested love of our country alone dictate our
actions--we think of nothing else!"
"'Twould be treason, and worse than blasphemy," said Prince Ferdinand,
"to mingle the thought of self-interest with such purposes. Who indeed
can see the Princess Rosabella, and suffer the paltry thought of self
to interfere with his devotion to her interests?"
Rosabella smiled graciously upon the youthful speaker, though she did
not speak.
"If, however," said Lord Maysworth, "the interests of the state should
require a general more experienced than Lord Edmund, I have served, and
I would willingly forego the transports of domestic peace to devote
myself to the welfare of my country.'"
"Or, if the state should need a minister," observed Lord Gustavus,
"thinking as I think, and as I am sure every one else must think,
she has a right to command the services even of one so devoted to
retirement as myself."
"For my part," said Dr. Hardman, "I wish neither place nor pension; but
if my humble services in a medical capacity--"
"Fear not," returned Rosabella, "but that all your wishes shall be
gratified; for, if I should be Queen, I shall only regard myself as an
agent to dispose my power to the hands of those most worthy of it."
As she said this she withdrew, having the rare happiness to leave all
her auditors perfectly satisfied with her conduct. In fact, such was
their delight, that each stood for some moments after her departure
lost in contemplation, indulging in day-dreams of the delightful
anticipations her words and manner had excited, till, like Farmer
Ashfield and his dame in "Speed the Plough," they were in imminent
danger of running foul of each other in their abstraction: the entrance
of a servant, however, roused them from their reveries; and, feeling
somewhat alarmed of having so far forgotten the dignified sentiments
they had been professing, they retired to their respective homes to
take measures to put the scheme that had been suggested into execution.
"How I hate that Lord Gustavus," exclaimed Rosabella when she reached
her boudoir. "Even if he makes a sensible observation, he adds so many
explanations to it, that the spirit evaporates."
"Yes," returned Marianne, "he has yet to learn, that to tack
explanations to wit, is like adding water to wine; you diminish its
strength and spoil its flavour; but even he is preferable to Lord
Maysworth."
"Oh! I don't think so," cried Rosabella, "for a ridiculous fool is
always better than a prosing one. I can laugh at Lord Maysworth, but
Lord Gustavus sends me to sleep."
"When an important enterprize is undertaken," said Marianne, "it will
not do to be very scrupulous about the tools one employs to accomplish
it. It is the part of a man of talent to discover the weaknesses of the
human beings around him, and make them each subservient to his purpose."
"At any rate, that is not difficult in my case," rejoined Rosabella;
"for my good friends are so eager to show themselves off, that, I must
do them the justice to say, they neither give me the trouble to find
out their weaknesses, nor the way to win them. Prince Ferdinand is the
only one who possesses a single spark of noble feeling."
"And he, I think you say, seemed struck with your appearance?"
"He appeared to be so."
"We must improve that prepossession. The alliance of Germany may be
invaluable to us. You must encourage the hopes of the prince, and do
all you can to fan his infant passion into a flame."
"But I love Edmund."
"Pshaw! how can you be so childish? I do not wish you to love Prince
Ferdinand. If you can contrive to make him love you, it will be all
that is necessary."
"But do you consider the cruelty of trifling with his feelings?"
Marianne laughed. "I did not imagine you so romantic," said she
tauntingly. "Do not alarm yourself; the rage for dying of love is gone
by: therefore, notwithstanding the power of your charms, you must
excuse me, if I presume to doubt their murderous properties."
Rosabella was too much mortified by the manner in which her confidant
treated her scruples, to wish to continue the conversation; though the
reasoning of Marianne produced its full effect upon her mind, and even,
in spite of herself, influenced her conduct.
In the mean time, the family of Mr. Montagu experienced considerable
uneasiness on account of Clara, whose health gradually declined.
"I cannot imagine what is the matter with my daughter?" said Mrs.
Montagu one day to Dr. Coleman; "I wish you would talk to her a
little.--Here, Clara, my dear, do just step this way.--You will be
quite shocked, doctor, at the change in her appearance. Poor girl! I
don't think she has ever properly overcome the fright she experienced
at the first sight of the Mummy, for she has never seemed herself
since. Indeed
'It seems to me she hoards some secret care,
That breaks her rest and drives her to despair.'"
"What do you quote that from, my dear?" asked Mr. Montagu, more
interested in his wife's quotation than the illness of his daughter.
"Oh! it is one of a lot I bought the other day at the patent steam-book
manufactory, in Hatton-Garden. I had been buying some other things,
and so I persuaded the man to throw me in a bargain of quotations very
cheap. They were all quite new, and ready cut, dried, and made up
into pills for use. But I never saw such a man in my life;--you think
nothing at all about your daughter. I really wish you would question
her a little, for she will tell me nothing."
"Very well, my dear, I will," said Mr. Montagu; but the next instant he
was absorbed in his studies again, and had even quite forgotten that
such a being as Clara existed.
"Really," said Mrs. Montagu to the doctor, "I do not think any poor
woman in the world ever was so plagued as I am. You see what a husband
I have. He never troubles his head about any thing; and if I were to
take it into my head to walk off, I don't think he would even miss me;
and then, my daughter--but here she comes.--Clara, I sent for you to
speak to Dr. Coleman."
Dr. Coleman was excessively struck by the alteration in Clara's
appearance. The beautiful, lively, blooming girl was changed to a pale
shadow-like being, whose existence seemed to hang upon a thread, and
whose fragile form the first ungentle breeze would annihilate.
"What is the matter with you, my dear child?" asked the doctor.
"Nothing," said Clara, sighing.
"And I don't know any thing that can be worse," said Father Murphy,
who happened to be present; "for that's the speech a young lady always
makes when she's in love, and I don't know any disease that's harder to
cure."
"In love!" cried Mr. Montagu, roused from his lethargy by that
ill-omened word, which generally grates so harshly upon the ears of
parents and guardians. "In love!" repeated he, looking earnestly at his
daughter; "who can she possibly be in love with?"
"Ay, that's the question," said his wife: "for I'm sure I never trust
her from under my own eye; and I'll defy her to fall in love without my
knowing it. No, no, she cannot be in love."
"Och! and that's no rason at all," cried Father Murphy, "for I never
knew of watching doing any good at all in such matters."
"Well, Clara," said Dr. Coleman, "you hear Father Murphy's opinion; do
you plead guilty to the charge?"
Clara's blushes became deeper, and her agitation so excessive, as Dr.
Coleman fixed his eyes upon her, that, finding she could not bear his
looks, she burst into tears, and hurried out of the room. Poor Clara!
the fangs of the most cruel of passions had indeed pierced thy heart,
though thou wast unconscious of it thyself!
It may be remembered, that, on the day of Edmund's triumph, Clara
had been forcibly struck by the fine figure and noble appearance of
a youth, who had walked as prisoner in the procession. It was Prince
Ferdinand; who, having formed a strong intimacy with Lord Edmund, had
been an almost constant visitor at the house of Mrs. Montagu ever
since. Clara was just at the age when the human mind first begins to
feel the want of something to love. In her own family, her affections
had been thrown back upon herself; and, being driven to the regions of
fancy to find an object to occupy her heart, she would often wander for
hours together in the garden, picturing to herself adventures, which
she would paint in all the vivid colours of imagination; till, lost in
creations of her own, she would almost forget the tame, cold realities
of life.
Of course, all these imaginary adventures could not exist without a
hero; but Clara could never fix upon any definite form to bestow upon
him, till she had seen Prince Ferdinand. Then, all her dreams seemed
realized; and the secret God of her idolatry appeared to stand before
her, in _propriâ personâ_. Clara was now perfectly happy; and as, from
the prince's frequent visits to her cousin, she now often passed whole
days in his society, though he perhaps scarcely saw her, or at most
regarded her but as a pretty child, yet she was satisfied: she saw him,
and she heard him speak; what more was wanting to complete her dream of
bliss?
Lord Edmund's departure for the country, however, broke this magic
charm. Prince Ferdinand came no more to Mrs. Montagu's; and Clara heard
of him only as the devoted admirer of Rosabella. Jealousy till that
moment had been scarcely known to her, even by name; but it now shot
its fiercest pangs into her heart. She had never been accustomed to
conceal her feelings, and they now destroyed her. The climax, however,
was still to come. One day, as she was mournfully pacing the terrace
in her father's garden, she was startled by the appearance of Prince
Ferdinand himself: her agitation was excessive; her lips trembled, and
she panted for breath; but he passed on without noticing her--yes,
it was he, the cherished idol of her thoughts, the hero of her
dreams;--and he had passed without seeing, or at least without seeming
to behold her. Was it possible he could have seen her and passed so
coldly?--was it possible she could be so totally indifferent to one who
was all the world to her? Oh! there was madness in the thought! she
could not bear her own reflections. What would become of her, she knew
not--she cared not; and, in an agony of despair, she plunged into the
thickest grove of the garden.
Though it was summer, the day was cold and chilly; a drizzling mist
fell fast, and a thick fog from the river wrapped the grove in gloom.
Heedless however of the weather, Clara hastened on to the spot where
stood the marble urn; but as she approached it, she started back, for
close beside it stood the hideous figure of Cheops, dimly seen through
the gathering gloom.
"Fear not!" said he in a softened, though still hollow voice; "tell me
your woes, and, if I can, I will assist you."
"Alas! it is in vain," cried Clara in an agony of despair too profound
even to admit of her feeling the fear generally experienced by all who
saw the Mummy; "no one can relieve me,--I have no hope!"
Cheops smiled. "Poor child!" said he, "it is always thus when Eros
first creeps into the soul, covering his arrows with roses, so that
they are not seen till their barbed points rankle in the heart! I
cannot tell how much I pity thee! So young and lovely too, it is hard
that even thou shouldst not be exempt from the common lot of mortals!
Yet do not despair."
"I do despair!" cried Clara, darting away from him; "I am truly
wretched!"
From this moment Clara saw the Mummy almost daily, and her mind
acquired new force and energy from his society, though her health
visibly declined. It was not, indeed, possible for human beings to hold
daily intercourse with Cheops without feeling their souls withered.
The glowing tints of youth and health faded rapidly from the cheeks of
Clara; she became pale and spiritless, whilst she appeared to have lost
all interest in the common affairs of life. Her fits of abstraction,
however, her dejection, and her solitary wanderings, at length became
so evident as to excite the attention of her mother, and the scene we
have just described was the result.
Nothing could be more painful to poor Clara than the questioning
she had undergone. She rushed from the presence of her parents to
her favourite garden, to think over what had passed, and implore
the assistance of the mysterious being with whom she had associated
herself. He was not there, however; and though she repeatedly called
upon his name, he came not. The weather was now delicious; the autumnal
tints, that had just begun to change the lovely verdure of summer into
a glowing brown, gave richness to the landscape. Since the abolition
of coal and wood fires, the air of London had become pure and bright,
though it still remained soft from its vicinity to the river, and
it was thus highly favourable to vegetation: whilst, as no house
was permitted to approach within a certain distance of the Thames,
the sumptuous gardens that bordered its banks were beautiful in the
extreme. That of Mr. Montagu, which has been so often alluded to, was
in particular laid out in the greatest taste; and its grateful shade
and delicious fragrance calmed poor Clara's troubled spirits, and
soothed them to repose. Nothing, indeed, could have a more lulling
effect upon the harassed senses than the scene before her. The air was
perfectly still; not a leaf was agitated, not a flower stirred; all
nature seemed to repose, but Clara alone felt restless. The questions
of Dr. Coleman, and surmises of Father Murphy, had created a variety of
new feelings in her mind; and she wandered up and down, oppressed by a
sensation of melancholy which she had never felt before. She could not
define her own sensations; she could not analyze her thoughts; and, as
she sauntered to and fro without any determinate object, she listlessly
pulled the leaves from a rose that she carried in her hands.
The scattering of the rose-leaves, however, recalled her to herself,
and she smiled as she saw the mischief she had done. "Alas! poor rose!"
sighed she, apostrophizing the flower; "I know not why I have destroyed
thee!" Then walking hastily away, she plunged into the thickest part
of the grove. "Why am I thus agitated?" said she to herself. "Why do
I feel thus miserable and discontented? Can it be love? Love!" she
repeated, whilst deep blushes glowed upon her cheeks, and she started
at the echo of her own voice. She threw herself upon a turfy bank under
a shady tree, and, resting her head upon her hand, watched through
the leaves the light fleecy clouds that drifted along the sky, till,
oppressed by the painful nature of her own sensations, she sighed
heavily, and tears swam in her eyes.
At this moment, footsteps rapidly approached; and Clara, springing
upon her feet, hastily drew her hand across her eyes, and hid herself
amongst the trees.
Dr. Hardman and Father Morris, who approached, seemed absorbed in
conversation; and Clara, who dreaded Father Morris excessively, kept
herself concealed, to avoid meeting him. We have already mentioned,
that she was simple and innocent to a degree; but hers was the
simplicity of ignorance, not folly. Her natural abilities were
excellent, and her mind uncommonly strong. She therefore neither
screamed nor fainted, though, from her present position, she became
auditor to a scene of the deepest villainy. Notwithstanding the
influence which Rosabella's party had at present in state, Father
Morris was not satisfied. He wished to make her election certain,
and this could be only done by removing Elvira. Dr. Hardman was her
physician--the rest may be easily imagined.
Clara trembled, and her flesh seemed to creep upon her bones, as she
listened to this horrid conference. But her terror was even increased
when they changed the subject, and spoke no longer of an intended
murder, but of one which had been already committed. Clara shook in
every limb, and her lips and cheeks became blanched with fear; yet she
uttered no cry, nor betrayed her presence by the slightest motion. At
length they went, and Clara stood like one awakened from a fearful
dream, almost doubting the reality of what she had heard.
An hour elapsed, yet Clara still stood motionless. What should she
do? Would her unassisted testimony be believed in matters of such
awful import against the weight and influence of two persons of so
much consequence in the state? No, she felt it would not. Yet, if she
remained silent, she would be accessory to the murder of Elvira. What
could she do? what course ought she to pursue?--she knew not. A chaos
of thoughts seemed whirling through her brain, and threatened almost
to drive her to madness. The longer she thought, the more she became
confused; and she began to fear her senses were actually leaving her,
when a solemn voice sounded in her ear. Well did she know those deep
and awful tones--they were those of Cheops; and, confiding the awful
secret to him, she promised to comply implicitly with his injunctions.
It was the day following this adventure, that, as Father Murphy and
Abelard were conversing tranquilly together, lamenting over the
degeneracy of the age, their conference was interrupted by the sudden
appearance of the duke.
"Where is Sir Ambrose?" cried he in a state of violent
agitation--"where is Sir Ambrose? I must see Sir Ambrose immediately."
"Calm yourself, for Heaven's sake!" said Father Morris, who had
followed him unobserved. "This violent agitation will destroy you:
remember your recent illness, your age, your weakness--"
"Where is Sir Ambrose?" cried the duke.
"This vehemence is unbefitting of your station," continued Father
Morris: "moderate it, I entreat you--it can do no good."
"Will no one call Sir Ambrose?" reiterated the duke: and as the
baronet, who had been summoned by Abelard, appeared, he threw himself
into his arms, sobbing like a child.
"Oh, my dear, dear friend!" exclaimed he, "they are determined to ruin
Elvira. Lord Gustavus and his adherents are gone to their country-seats
to try to influence the election of the deputies; and my child can have
no chance against such treachery."
"If that be all," said Henry Seymour, who had accompanied the baronet,
"why not follow their example? your influence must, at least, be equal
to theirs."
"He is right," rejoined Sir Ambrose. "I know not why we did not do so
sooner; but, even now, it is not too late."
"And what end can possibly be produced by such a measure?" asked Father
Morris, scowling darkly at the youth: "the freedom of the election
should be inviolable."
"But!" hastily interrupted the duke, "if they attempt to control it, we
may surely--"
"I was not before aware," said Father Morris, in his cold, ironical
manner, "that the circumstance of others doing evil was any reason for
our committing sin."
"Nonsense!" cried the duke; "there can be no sin in securing the
election of my daughter; and so, Sir Ambrose, we will set off to-night,
if you please."
"With all my heart!" said Sir Ambrose: and the two old men and Henry
Seymour hurried away, leaving the monk alone. He did not, however, long
remain so, for in a few seconds Cheops was at his side.
"So, Sir," said Father Morris, scowling upon Cheops with a look of
deadly hatred, "you have proved yourself my friend, in suffering this
babbling boy to counteract my views. Did you not boast he was your
slave?"
The Mummy met his glance without shrinking; and, bursting into one of
his fearful laughs, exclaimed tauntingly, "And so he is: but I thought
you had determined not to oppose the duke any longer. It seems, then, I
did not understand your reasoning in the garden."
"Fiend! cursed mocking fiend!" cried the friar, gnashing his teeth.
"Nay!" returned Cheops, "why blame me? Was I wrong in believing what
you said? Was it, then, only a part you were acting to deceive me?"
"Demon! thou canst read my heart; but it is thy wish to drive me to
distraction."
"No, no, my good Father Morris, my worthy friend, I honour you too
much! If I can read your heart, I must be charmed to see such devotion
to your friends, such candour, openness, and integrity."
"Taunting devil! be my sins what they may, thy presence is a penance
that might redeem them. By Heaven! hell itself were easier to endure
than those bitter scoffs."
"And darest thou talk of Heaven?" said the Mummy in an awful voice,
that thrilled through the father's soul; whilst his eyes glared with
such supernatural lustre that the priest could not bear their beams,
and sank upon one knee before him, bending his head to the ground.
"'Tis as it should be!" continued Cheops, with one of his fiendish
laughs. "Yes, he is mine--he bends before my will! Now will I tell
thee what thy feeble reason was too powerless to discover: I am still
thy friend. The duke and Sir Ambrose will only injure their cause by
the ill-judged measures they will take to promote it. They had the
advantage of justice, honour, and open dealing upon their side; was
it nothing to deprive them of these fair sounding words? Will they in
future be able to complain of corruption, when they have attempted
to corrupt? Had it not been so, even if success had crowned your
efforts, would not the minds of men have inclined to the side of
injured integrity? for so they might have termed the party of the duke.
Might they not also have said the election was secured by bribery and
deceit; and upon the first discontent that arose against Rosabella's
government, would they not have recurred fondly to the recollection
of the honest, open dealing, plain speaking duke! Men naturally love
and respect virtue, though they may be seduced for a time by the
allurements of vice. Thus, though they might not have had strength of
mind to resist the arts of your party, their best feelings would have
still remained upon the side of Elvira. This can now no longer be the
case. The duke and Sir Ambrose voluntarily throw away their strongest
hold--they rush blindfold to destruction. They degrade themselves to
your level; whilst, as they are unused to deceit, they will not succeed
in their endeavours, and disgrace will be their only reward. Now, do
you blame me?"
"Blame you!" exclaimed Father Morris; "you are my friend, my best, my
only friend, my preserver."
"With regard to Edmund," said Cheops, "we must excite his jealousy. If
he were detached from Elvira, her cause would perish."
"It would, it would!" cried Father Morris.
"Try then thy efforts," said Cheops; "and if thou canst excite
suspicions, fan them gently to a flame, yet without seeming to do so.
Do not attack Elvira openly, or assert broadly that she loves another;
but hint it darkly, so that your victim cannot misunderstand, and
that the damning certainty may flash upon his mind with greater force
than mere words can give. Well knowest thou what I mean, and well
hath Nature modelled thee for such a part. That downcast look, that
insinuating voice, and half ironical manner; the infernal deity himself
could not well have wished a more fitting agent to execute his designs
on earth than thou. Work then upon Edmund, and success cannot fail to
follow your attempts."
"Thou Machiavel!" cried Father Morris; "my friend, my dearest friend,
my benefactor: oh! how I could fall down and worship thee!"
A sardonic smile curled the haughty lips of Cheops. "Learn then to obey
in silence," said he, "nor dare again to blame designs far beyond your
comprehension!"