"From the loud camp retired and noisy court,
In honorable ease and rural sport;
The remnant of his days he safely passed,
Nor found they lagged too slow nor flew too fast.
He made his wish with his estate comply,
Joyful to live, yet not afraid to die:
One child he had--a daughter chaste and fair,
His age's comfort, and his fortune's heir."--PRIOR.
Oscar's regiment, on his first joining it in Ireland, was quartered in
Enniskillen, the corps was agreeable, and the inhabitants of the town
hospitable and polite. He felt all the delight of a young and
enterprising mind, at entering, what appeared to him, the road to glory
and pleasure, many of his idle mornings were spent in rambling about the
country, sometimes accompanied by a party of officers, and sometimes
alone.
In one of his solitary excursions along the beautiful banks of Lough
Erne, with a light fusee on his shoulder, as the woods, that almost
descended to the very edge of the water, abounded in game; after
proceeding a few miles he felt quite exhausted by the heat, which, as it
was now the middle of summer, was intense; at a little distance he
perceived an orchard, whose glowing apples promised a delightful repast;
knowing that the fruit in many of the neighboring places was kept for
sale, he resolved on trying if any was to be purchased here, and
accordingly opened a small gate, and ascended through a grass-grown path
in the orchard, to a very plain white cottage, which stood upon a gentle
sloping lawn, surrounded by a rude paling, he knocked against the door
with his fusee, and immediately a little rosy girl appeared; "tell me,
my pretty lass," cried he, "whether I can purchase any of the fine
apples I see here." "Anan!" exclaimed the girl with a foolish stare.
Oscar glancing at that moment into the passage, saw, from a half-opened
door, nearly opposite to the one at which he stood, a beautiful fair
face peeping out; he involuntarily started, and pushing aside the girl,
made a step into the passage; the room door directly opened, and an
elderly woman, of a genteel figure and pleasing countenance, appeared.
"Good Heaven!" cried Oscar, taking off his hat, and retreating, "I fear
I have been guilty of the highest impertinence; the only apology I can
offer for it is by saying it was not intentional. I am quite a stranger
here, and having been informed most of the orchards hereabouts contained
fruits for sale, I intruded under that idea." "Your mistake, sir," she
replied with a benevolent smile, "is too trifling to require an apology;
nor shall it be attended with any disappointment to you."
She then politely showed him into the parlor, where, with equal pleasure
and admiration, he contemplated the fair being of whom before he had but
a transient glance: she appeared to be scarcely seventeen, and was, both
as to face and figure, what a painter would have chosen to copy for the
portrait of a little playful Hebe; though below even the middle size,
she was formed with the nicest symmetry; her skin was of a dazzling
fairness, and so transparent, that the veins were clearly discernible;
the softest blush of nature shaded her beautifully-rounded cheeks; her
mouth was small and pouting, and whenever she smiled a thousand graces
sported round it; her eyes were full and of a heavenly blue, soft, yet
animated, giving, like the expression of her whole countenance, at once
an idea of innocence, spirit, and sensibility; her hair, of the palest
and most glossy brown, hung carelessly about her, and, though dressed in
a loose morning-gown of muslin, she possessed an air of fashion and even
consequence; the easy manner in which she bore the looks of Oscar,
proclaimed her at once not unaccustomed to admiration, nor displeased
with that she now received; for that Oscar admired her could not but be
visible, and he sometimes fancied he saw an arch smile playing over her
features, at the involuntary glances he directed towards her.
A fine basket of apples, and some delicious cider, was brought to Oscar,
and he found his entertainer as hospitable in deposition as she was
pleasing in conversation.
The beautiful interior of the cottage by no means corresponded with the
plainness of the exterior; the furniture was elegantly neat, and the
room ornamented with a variety of fine prints and landscapes; a large
folding glass door opened from it into a pleasure-garden.
Adela, so was the charming young stranger called, chatted in the most
lively and familiar terms, and at last running over to the basket,
tossed the apples all about the table, and picking out the finest
presented them to Oscar. It is scarcely necessary to say he received
them with emotion: but how transient is all sublunary bliss! A
cuckoo-clock, over Oscar's head, by striking three, reminded him that he
had passed near two hours in the cottage. "Oh, Heavens!" cried he,
starting, "I have made a most unconscionable intrusion; you see, my dear
ladies," bowing respectfully to both, "the consequence of being too
polite and too fascinating." He repeated his thanks in the most animated
manner, and snatching up his hat, departed, yet not without casting
"One longing, lingering look behind."
The sound of footsteps after him in the lawn made him turn, and he
perceived the ladies had followed him thither. He stopped again to speak
to them, and extolled the lovely prospect they had from that eminence of
the lake and its scattered islands. "I presume," said Adela, handling
the fusee on which he leaned, "you were trying your success to-day in
fowling?" "Yes; but, as you may perceive, I have been unsuccessful."
"Then, I assure you," said she, with an arch smile, "there is choice
game to be found in our woods." "Delicious game, indeed!" cried he,
interpreting the archness of her look, and animated by it to touch her
hand, "but only tantalizing to a keen sportsman, who sees it elevated
above his reach." "Come, come," exclaimed the old lady, with a sudden
gravity, "we are detaining the gentleman." She took her fair companion
by the arm, and hastily turned to the cottage. Oscar gazed after them a
moment, then, with a half-smothered sigh, descended to the road. He
could not help thinking this incident of the morning very like the novel
adventures he had sometimes read to his sister Amanda as she sat at
work; and, to complete the resemblance, thought he, I must fall in love
with the little heroine. Ah! Oscar, beware of such imprudence! guard
your heart with all your care against tender impressions, till fortune
has been more propitious to you! Thus would my father speak, mused
Oscar, and set his own misfortunes in terrible array before me, were he
now present: well, I must endeavor to act as if he were here to exhort
me. Heigh ho! proceeded he, shouldering his fusee, glory for some time
to come must be my mistress!
The next morning the fusee was again taken down, and he sallied out,
carefully avoiding the officers, lest any of them should offer to
accompany him; for he felt a strange reluctance to their participating
in either the smiles of Adela or the apples of the old lady. Upon his
arrival at the orchard, finding the gate open, he advanced a few steps
up the path, and had a glimpse of the cottage, but no object was
visible. Oscar was too modest to attempt entering it uninvited; he
therefore turned back, yet often cast a look behind him; no one,
however, was to be seen. He now began to feel the heat oppressive, and
himself fatigued with his walk, and sat down upon a moss-covered stone,
on the margin of the lake, at a little distance from the cottage,
beneath the spreading branches of a hawthorn; his hat and fusee were
laid at his feet, and a cool breeze from the water refreshed him; upon
its smooth surface a number of boats and small sail-vessels were now
gliding about in various directions, and enlivened the enchanting
prospect which was spread upon the bosom of the lake; from contemplating
it he was suddenly roused by the warble of a female voice; he started,
turned, and beheld Adela just by him. "Bless me!" cried she, "who would
have thought of seeing you here; why, you look quite fatigued, and, I
believe, want apples to-day as much as you did yesterday?" Then, sitting
down on the seat he had resigned, she tossed off her bonnet, declaring
it was insupportably warm, and began rummaging a small work-bag she held
on her arm. Oscar snatching the bonnet from the ground, Adela flung
apples into it, observing it would make an excellent basket. He sat down
at her feet, and never, perhaps, felt such a variety of emotions as at
the present moment: his cheeks glowed with a brighter color, and his
eyes were raised to hers with the most ardent admiration; yet not to
them alone could he confine the expression of his feelings; they broke
in half-formed sentences from his lips, which Adela heard with the most
perfect composure, desiring him either to eat or pocket his apples
quickly, as she wanted her bonnet, being in a great hurry to return to
the cottage, from which she had made a kind of stolen march. The apples
were instantly committed to his pocket, and he was permitted to tie on
the bonnet. A depraved man might have misinterpreted the gayety of
Adela, or at least endeavored to take advantage of it; but the sacred
impression of virtue, which nature and education had stamped upon the
heart of Oscar, was indelibly fixed, and he neither suspected, nor, for
worlds, would have attempted injuring, the innocence of Adela: he beheld
her (in what indeed was a true light) as a little playful nymph, whose
actions were the offspring of innocence.
"I assure you," exclaimed she, rising, "I am very loath to quit this
pleasant seat; but, if I make a much longer delay, I shall find the lady
of the cottage in anxious expectation." "May I advance?" said Oscar, as
he pushed open the gate for her. "If you do," replied she, "the least
that will be said from seeing us together, is, that we were in search of
each other the whole of the morning." "Well," cried Oscar, laughing at
this careless speech, "and if they do say so, it would not be doing me
injustice." "Adieu, adieu," said she, waving her hand, "not another word
for a kingdom."
What a compound of beauty and giddiness it is! thought Oscar, watching
her till she entered the cottage. As he returned from the sweet spot he
met some laborers, from whom he inquired concerning its owner, and
learned she was a respectable widow lady of the name of Marlowe.
On Oscar's return from Enniskillen, he heard from the officers that
General Honeywood, an old veteran, who had a fine estate about fourteen
miles from the town, was that morning to pay his compliments to them,
and that cards had been left for a grand _fête_ and ball, which he
annually gave on the 1st of July, to commemorate one of the glorious
victories of King William. Every person of any fashion in and about the
neighborhood was on such occasions sure of an invitation; and the
officers were pleased with theirs, as they had for some time wished for
an opportunity of seeing the general's daughter, who was very much
admired.
The general, like a true veteran, retained an enthusiastic attachment
for the profession of arms, to which not only the morning, but the
meridian of his life had been devoted, and which he had not quitted till
compelled by a debilitated constitution. Seated in his paternal mansion
he began to experience the want of a faithful companion, who would
heighten the enjoyments of the tranquil hour, and soothe the infirmities
of age: this want was soon supplied by his union with a young lady in
the neighborhood, whose only dowry was innocence and beauty. From the
great disparity of their ages it was concluded she had married for
convenience; but the tenor of her conduct changed this opinion, by
proving the general possessed her tenderest affections: a happier couple
were not known; but this happiness was terminated as suddenly as fatally
by her death, which happened two years after the birth of her daughter;
all the general's love was then centred in her child. Many of the ladies
in the neighborhood, induced by the well-known felicity his lady had
enjoyed, or by the largeness of his fortune, made attempts to engage him
again in matrimonial toils; but he fought shy of them all, solemnly
declaring, he would never bring a stepmother over his dear girl. In her
infancy, she was his plaything, and as she grew up his comfort;
caressed, flattered, adored from her childhood, she scarcely knew the
meaning of harshness and contradiction; a naturally sweet disposition,
and the superintending care of an excellent woman, prevented any
pernicious effect from such excessive indulgence as she received; to
disguise or duplicity she was a perfect stranger; her own feelings were
never concealed, and others she supposed equally sincere in revealing
theirs: true, the open avowal of her regard or contempt often incurred
the imputation of imprudence; but had she even heard it she would have
only laughed at it--for the general declared whatever she said was
right, and her own heart assured her of the innocence of her intentions.
As she grew up the house again became the seat of gayety; the general,
though very infirm, felt his convivial spirit revive; he delighted in
the society of his friends, and could still
"Shoulder his crutch, and show how fields were won!"
Oscar, actuated by an impulse, which if he could, he, at least, did not
strive to account for, continued daily to parade before the orchard, but
without again seeing Adela.
At length the day for General Honeywood's entertainment arrived, and the
officers, accompanied by a large party, set off early for Woodlawn, the
name of the general's seat. It was situated on the borders of the lake,
where they found barges waiting to convey them to a small island, which
was the scene of the morning's amusement: the breakfast was laid out
amidst the ruins of an ancient building, which, from the venerable
remains of its gothic elegance, was most probably, in the days of
religious enthusiasm, the seat of sacred piety: the old trees in groups
formed a thick canopy overhead, and the ivy that crept along the walls
filled up many of the niches where the windows had formerly been; those
that still remained open, by descending to the ground, afforded a most
enchanting prospect of the lake; the long succession of arches, which
composed the body of the chapel, were in many places covered with
creeping moss, and scattered over with wall-flowers, blue hair-bells,
and other spontaneous productions of nature; while between them were
placed seats and breakfast-tables, ornamented in a fanciful manner.
The officers experienced a most agreeable surprise on entering; but how
inferior were their feelings to the sensations which Oscar felt, when,
introduced with the party by the general to his daughter, he beheld in
Miss Honeywood the lovely Adela! She seemed to enjoy his surprise, and
Mrs. Marlowe, from the opposite side of the table, beckoned him to her
with an arch look; he flew round, and she made room for him by herself:
"Well, my friend," cried she, "do you think you shall find the general's
fruit as tempting as mine?" "Ah!" exclaimed Oscar, half sighing, half
smiling, "Hesperian fruit, I fear, which I can never hope to obtain."
Adela's attention, during breakfast, was too much engrossed by the
company to allow her to notice Oscar more than by a few hasty words and
smiles. There being no dancing till the evening, the company, after
breakfast, dispersed according to their various inclinations.
The island was diversified with little acclivities, and scattered over
with wild shrubs, which embalmed the air; temporary arbors of laurel,
intermingled with lilies, were erected and laid out with fruits, ices,
and other refreshments; upon the edge of the water a marquee was pitched
for the regimental band, which Colonel Belgrave had politely
complimented the general with: a flag was hoisted on it, and upon a low
eminence a few small field-pieces were mounted: attendants were
everywhere dispersed, dressed in white streamers, ornamented with a
profusion of orange-colored ribbons; the boatmen were dressed in the
same livery; and the barges, in which several of the party were to visit
the other islands, made a picturesque appearance with their gay
streamers fluttering in the breeze; the music, now softly dying away
upon the water, now gradually swelling on the breeze, and echoed back by
the neighboring hills, added to the pleasures of the scene.
Oscar followed the footsteps of Adela; but at the very moment in which
he saw her disengaged from a large party, the general hallooed to him
from a shady bank on which he sat; Oscar could not refuse the summons;
and, as he approached, the general, extending his hand, gave him a
cordial squeeze, and welcomed him as the son of a brave man he had once
intimately known. "I recollected the name of Fitzalan," said he, "the
moment I heard it mentioned; and had the happiness of learning from
Colonel Belgrave I was not mistaken in believing you to be the son of my
old friend." He now made several inquiries concerning Fitzalan, and the
affectionate manner in which he mentioned him was truly pleasing to
Oscar. "He had once," he said, "saved his life at the imminent danger of
his own, and it was an obligation, while that life remained, he could
not forget."
Like Don Guzman in Gil Blas, the general delighted in fighting over his
battles, and now proceeded to enumerate many incidents which happened
during the American war, when he and Fitzalan served in the same
regiment. Oscar could well have dispensed with such an enumeration; but
the general, who had no idea that he was not as much delighted in
listening as he was in speaking, still went on. Adela had been watching
them some time; her patience at length, like Oscar's, being exhausted,
she ran forward and told her father "he must not detain him another
minute, for they were going upon the lake; and you know, papa," cried
she, "against we come back, you can have all your battles arranged in
proper form, though, by the bye, I don't think it is the business of an
old soldier to intimidate a young one with such dreadful tales of iron
wars." The general called her saucy baggage, kissed her with rapture,
and saw her trip off with his young friend, who seized the favorable
opportunity to engage her for the first set in the evening. About four
the company assembled in the Abbey to dinner; the band played during the
repast, the toasts were proclaimed by sound of trumpet, and answered by
an immediate discharge from the Mount. At six the ladies returned to
Woodlawn to change their dresses for the ball, and now
"Awful beauty put on all its charms."
Tea and coffee were served in the respective rooms, and by eleven the
ballroom was completely crowded with company, at once brilliant and
lively, particularly the gentlemen, who were not a little elevated by
the general's potent libations to the glorious memory of him whose
victory they were celebrating.
Adela, adorned in a style superior to what Oscar had yet seen, appeared
more lovely than he had even at first thought her; her dress, which was
of thin muslin, spangled, was so contrived as to give a kind of aerial
lightness to her figure. Oscar reminded her of the promise of the
morning, at the very moment the colonel approached for the purpose of
engaging her. She instantly informed him of her engagement to Mr.
Fitzalan. "Mr. Fitzalan!" repeated the colonel, with the haughty air of
a man who thought he had reason to be offended: "he has been rather
precipitate, indeed; but, though we may envy, who shall wonder at his
anxiety to engage Miss Honeywood?"
Dancing now commenced, and the elegant figure of Adela never appeared to
greater advantage; the transported general watched every movement, and,
"incomparable, by Jove!--what a sweet angel she is!" were expressions
of admiration which involuntarily broke from him in the pride and
fondness of his heart. Oscar, too, whose figure was remarkably fine,
shared his admiration, and he declared to Colonel Belgrave, he did not
think the world could produce such another couple. This assertion was by
no means pleasing to the Colonel; he possessed as much vanity, perhaps,
as ever fell to the share of a young belle conscious of perfections, and
detested the idea of having any competitor (at least such a powerful one
as Oscar) in the good graces of the ladies. Adela, having concluded the
dance, complained of fatigue, and retired to an alcove, whither Oscar
followed her. The window commanded a view of the lake, the little
island, and the ruined Abbey; the moon in full splendor cast her silvery
light over all those objects, giving a softness to the landscape, even
more pleasing than the glowing charms it had derived from the radiancy
of day. Adela in dancing had dropped the bandeau from her hair; Oscar
took it up, and still retained it. Adela now stretched forth her hand to
take it. "Allow me," cried he, gently taking her hand, "to keep it;
to-morrow you would cast it away as a trifle, but I would treasure it as
a relic of inestimable value; let me have some memento of the charming
hours I have passed to-day." "Oh, a truce," said Adela, "with such
expressions (who did not, however, oppose his putting her bandeau in his
bosom); they are quite commonplace, and have already been repeated to
hundreds, and will again, I make no doubt." "This is your opinion?"
"Yes, really." "Oh, would to Heaven," exclaimed Oscar, "I durst convince
you how mistaken a one it is." Adela, laughing, assured him that would
be a difficult matter. Oscar grew pensive. "I think," cried he, "if
oppressed by misfortune, I should of all places on earth like a
seclusion in the old Abbey." "Why, really," said Adela, "it is tolerably
calculated for a hermitage; and if you take a solitary whim, I beg I may
be apprised of it in time, as I should receive peculiar pleasure in
preparing your mossy couch and frugal fare." "The reason for my liking
it," replied he, "would be the prospect I should have from it of
Woodlawn." "And does Woodlawn," asked Adela, "contain such particular
charms, as to render a view of it so very delightful?"
At this moment they were summoned to call a new dance--a summons,
perhaps, not agreeable to either, as it interrupted an interesting
_tete-à-tete_. The colonel engaged Adela for the next set; and though
Oscar had no longer an inclination to dance, to avoid particularity he
stood up, and with a young lady who was esteemed extremely handsome.
Adela, as if fatigued, no longer moved with animation, and suddenly
interrupted the colonel in a gallant speech he was making to her, to
inquire, if he thought Miss O'Neal (Oscar's partner) pretty--so very
pretty as she was generally thought? The colonel was too keen not to
discover at once the motive which suggested this inquiry. "Why, faith,"
cried he after examining Miss O'Neal some minutes through an opera
glass, "the girl has charms, but so totally eclipsed," looking
languishingly at Adela, "in my eyes, that I cannot do them the justice
they may perhaps merit: Fitzalan, however, by the homage he pays her,
seems as if he would make up for the deficiency of every other person."
Adela turned pale, and took the first opportunity of demanding her
bandeau from Oscar; he, smilingly, refused it, declaring it was a trophy
of the happiness he had enjoyed that day, and that the general should
have informed her a soldier never relinquished such a glorious memento.
"Resign mine," replied Adela, "and procure one from Miss O'Neal."--"No!"
cried he, "I would not pay her charms and my own sincerity so bad a
compliment, as to ask what I should not in the least degree value."
Adela's spirits revived, and she repeated her request no more.
The dancing continued after supper, with little intermission, till
seven, when the company repaired to the saloon to breakfast, after which
they dispersed. The general particularly and affectionately bid Oscar
farewell, and charged him to consider Woodlawn as his head-quarters. "Be
assured," said the good-natured old man, "the son of my brave, worthy,
and long-respected friend, will ever be valuable to my heart and welcome
to my home; and would to heaven, in the calm evening of life, your
father and I had pitched our tents nearer each other."
From this period Oscar became almost an inmate of his house, and the
general shortly grew so attached to him, that he felt unhappy if
deprived of his society; the attentions he received from Oscar were such
as an affectionate son would pay a tender father; he supported his
venerable friend whenever he attempted to walk, attended him in all the
excursions he made about his domain, read to him when he wanted to be
lulled to sleep, and listened, without betraying any symptoms of
fatigue, to his long and often truly tiresome stories of former battles
and campaigns; in paying these attentions Oscar obeyed the dictates of
gratitude and esteem, and also gratified a benevolent disposition, happy
in being able
"To rock the cradle of declining age."
But his time was not so entirely engrossed by the general as to prevent
his having many hours to devote to Adela; with her he alternately
conversed, read, and sung, rambled with her through romantic paths, or
rode along the beautiful borders of Lough Erne; was almost her constant
escort to all the parties she went to in the neighborhood, and
frequently accompanied her to the hovels of wretchedness, where the woes
which extorted the soft tear of commiseration he saw amply relieved by
her generous hand; admiring her as he did before, how impossible was it
for Oscar, in these dangerous _tete-à-tetes_, to resist the progress of
a tender passion--a passion, however, confined (as far at least as
silence could confine it) to his own heart. The confidence which he
thought the general reposed in him, by allowing such an intercourse with
his daughter, was too sacred in his estimation to be abused; but though
his honor resisted, his health yielded to his feelings.
Adela, from delighting in company, suddenly took a pensive turn; she
declined the constant society she had hitherto kept up, and seemed in a
solitary ramble with Oscar to enjoy more pleasure than the gayest party
appeared to afford her; the favorite spot they visited almost every
evening was a path on the margin of the lake, at the foot of a woody
mountain; here often seated, they viewed the sun sinking behind the
opposite hills; and while they enjoyed the benignancy of his departing
beams, beheld him tinge the trembling waves with gold and purple; the
low whistle of the ploughman returning to his humble cottage, the
plaintive carol of birds from the adjacent grove, and the low bleating
of cattle from pastures which swelled above the water, all these, by
giving the softest and most pleasing charms of nature to the hour,
contrived to touch, yet more sensibly, hearts already prepossessed in
favor of each other. Adela would sometimes sing a little simple air, and
carelessly leaning on the arm of Oscar, appear to enjoy perfect
felicity. Not so poor Oscar: the feelings of his soul at these moments
trembled on his lips, and to repress them was agony.
An incident soon occurred which endeared him yet more to the general.
Driving one day in a low phaeton along a road cut over a mountain, the
horses, frightened by a sudden firing from the lake, began rearing in
the most frightful manner; the carriage stood near a tremendous
precipice, and the servants, appalled by terror, had not power to move.
Oscar saw that nothing but an effort of desperate resolution could keep
them from destruction; he leaped out, and, rushing before the horses,
seized their heads, at the eminent hazard of being tumbled down the
precipice, on whose very verge he stood; the servants, a little relieved
from their terror, hastened to his assistance; the traces were cut, and
the poor general, whose infirmities had weakened his spirits, conveyed
home in almost a state of insensibility. Adela, perceiving him from her
dressing-room window, flew down, and learning his danger, fell upon his
neck in an agony of mingled joy and terror; her caresses soon revived
him, and as he returned them, his eyes eagerly sought his deliverer.
Oscar stood near, with mingled tenderness and anxiety in his looks; the
general took his hand, and whilst he pressed it along with Adela's to
his bosom, tears fell on them. "You are both my children!" he exclaimed;
"the children of my love, and from your felicity I must derive mine."
This expression Oscar conceived to be a mere effusion of gratitude,
little thinking what a project relative to him had entered the general's
head, who had first, however, consulted and learned from his daughter it
would be agreeable to her. This generous, some will say romantic, old
man, felt for Oscar the most unbounded love and gratitude, and as the
best proof of both, he resolved to bestow on this young soldier his rich
and lovely heiress, who had acknowledged to her father her predilection
for him. He knew his birth to be noble, his disposition amiable, and his
spirit brave; besides, by this union he should secure the society of
Adela. He wished her married, yet dreaded, whenever that event took
place, he should be deprived of her; but Oscar, he supposed, bound to
him by gratitude, would, unlike others, accede to his wishes of residing
at Woodlawn during his lifetime. His project he resolved on
communicating to Colonel Belgrave, whom, on Oscar's account, he
regarded, as Oscar had said (what indeed he believed), that he was
partly indebted to him for his commission.
What a thunder-stroke was this to Belgrave, who arrived at Woodlawn the
morning after the resolution was finally settled, and was asked to
accompany the general, about a little business, to the summer-house in
the garden. Poor Oscar trembled; he felt a presentiment he should be the
subject of discourse, and had no doubt but the general meant to complain
to Colonel Belgrave, as a person who had some authority over him, about
his great particularity to Miss Honeywood.
Rage, envy, and surprise, kept the colonel silent some minutes after the
general had ended speaking; dissimulation then came to his aid, and he
attempted, though in faltering accents, to express his admiration of
such generosity; yet to bestow such a treasure, so inestimable, on such
a man, when so many of equal rank and fortune sighed for its
possession; upon a man, too, or rather a boy, from whose age it might be
expected his affections would be variable. "Let me tell you, colonel,"
said the general, hastily interrupting him, and striking his stick upon
the ground, as he rose to return to the house, "there can be little
danger of his affections changing when such a girl as Adela is his wife;
so touch no more upon that subject, I entreat you; but you must break
the affair to the young fellow, for I should be in such a confounded
flurry I should set all in confusion, and beat an alarm at the first
onset."
The gloom and embarrassment which appeared in the countenance of the
colonel, filled Oscar with alarms; he imagined them excited by
friendship for him. After what the general had said, he sighed to hear
particulars, and longed, for the first time, to quit Woodlawn. The
colonel was indeed in a state of torture; he had long meditated the
conquest of Adela, whose fortune and beauty rendered her a truly
desirable object; to resign her without one effort of circumventing
Oscar was not to be thought of. To blast his promised joys, even if it
did not lead to the accomplishment of his own wishes, he felt would give
him some comfort, and he resolved to leave no means untried for doing
so.
They set off early in the morning for Enniskillen, and Belgrave sent his
servant on before them, that there might be no restraint on the
conversation he found Oscar inclined to begin.