He did not stir; his look revealed the plot to me, and I realized his
deceitfulness.
The Minister did all he could to lessen my vexation, and averred that he
took upon himself the responsibility for the conduct of my husband in the
future.
From that moment that gentleman showed me much attention; he introduced
me to his wife, and procured me the acquaintance of several English
ladies, among others the Misses C., with whom I became very intimate,
especially the second, afterwards the Marchioness of B., my greatest
friend.
Still I had to endure numberless mortifications; the Italian nobility
looked down on me, and milord was invited by himself to the great
receptions. Moreover, my domestic circumstances had become more
unbearable than ever.
My husband had insisted on giving me a lady’s-maid of his own country and
choice, the most worthless of women. In a short time she had succeeded in
wholly captivating her old master, and even more, his son, so that she
ruled despotically in the house; nothing was done without her, her advice
was received like an oracle, and her words were commands no one dared
disobey. If I allowed myself a comment, she treated me like a child,
and took pleasure in secretly taunting me with my lowly origin and the
contemptible part I had played in my own despite. I could not take a step
without having her at my heels, finding fault with everything I did; and
as my most innocent doings were always malignantly misconstrued, I made
up my mind to give up all outside amusements.
Keeping to my own room, I had no recreation but music and the care of my
birds.
One day when I was petting my favourite sparrow, they came to tell me
that milord was asking for me to go out driving with him. I went down,
quite resolved to make my rightful complaints to him.…
Our carriage, having crossed the town, was stopped at the barrier. We
went to another of the gates and were treated in the same fashion.
My husband, in a fury, accused Chiappini of this, and swore to have his
revenge. He forbade me to hold any communication with him, and ordered
his abominable confidante never to let me out of her sight. Paying no
attention to his reproofs, I went back quietly to my room.
Suddenly there arose a great uproar in the next room; I opened the door
and saw milord, followed by three constables, who seized him and dragged
him away to the fortress.
The lady’s-maid screamed aloud and hurled a torrent of abuse at me.
The next morning she received a letter and went to the prison, after
putting me in charge of two footmen, who took advantage of her absence to
empty a bottle or two.
Having myself taken the opportunity to go out on my balcony and breathe
freely, a note which I saw came from my father was thrown up to me.
Joyfully I picked it up.
It told me to hold myself in readiness at a certain hour.
I hastily put on all my most valuable things, and at the appointed moment
went quickly downstairs and jumped into a carriage that was at the door.
There I found my aunt, who tenderly welcomed me, and in no time we
reached Fiesole, where my father told me that, having heard by public
report that my husband wished to get away without paying his debts, he
had got leave from the Grand Duke to have him put into safe keeping.
Walking in the garden on the Sunday, I saw the arrival of his son, who,
as he met me, said,
“Milady, allow me to offer you some trifles my father sends you.”
I declared that I would take nothing from him, and that his gifts were as
hateful to me as their giver.
But the parcel had already fallen into the hands of my mother, who
welcomed its bringer with jubilation, and begged him to repeat his visits.
“Oh, how beautiful!” she cried as she opened the box; “who would have
believed milord had such good taste? I’ll wager that several of these
fine things were bought for me.”
I retorted that she might take them all, and that never in my life would
I touch one of them.
It needed nothing further to induce her to take possession of the whole
lot, except the flowers, which she looked upon as worthless.
The same messenger reappeared towards the end of the week, and handed me
the following letter—
“My angel, I cannot live without you. Oh! if you knew how
I weary for you, I am convinced your tender heart would
break. Come, come, to comfort me. Happiness awaits you with
me. A large sum of money is being sent to me to meet all my
obligations, and we will leave Florence soon and go to my own
dear country, where you will be admired by all the world,
especially by your humble and affectionate slave.”
While reading these curious sweet things, I had noticed the delight of my
family at hearing that a large sum was coming from England, and in it I
saw the omen of a distressful reconciliation.
My father left us at once, and the very same evening I had the misery of
seeing him return with milord, who fell at my feet, saying, “Dear jewel
of my heart, behold your faithful adorer.”
At the same time he offered me a bouquet, which I threw in his face.
Far from being offended, he pressed me to his bosom; and while I
struggled to free myself, my father joined in, declaring that he had no
power over my person, that he could not keep me away any longer, and that
the law obliged me to live with my husband.
I felt my blood freeze in my veins; I gave full vent to my indignation; I
stated its causes unreservedly; but the only satisfaction I could obtain
was the dismissal of my infamous persecutrix.
V
Integrity of Milord—Preparations—Secret Union—Stay at the
Hague—Arrival in England—The Country of Wales—My Exaltation—My
Griefs—My Relations—The Eldest of my Brothers.
The pretended report of Lord Newborough’s projected flight was a pure
invention of my father’s; for I feel bound to say to the credit of
the first that his integrity stood all proof, and that his too great
generosity placed him infinitely above any suspicion of meanness. If he
had prolonged his stay in Italy, it was simply to enable him to meet all
his family’s engagements by cutting off for a time a host of superfluous
expenses his presence in his own country would have necessitated.
Mr. Price had written that he was coming to us; he came, and the
preparations for our journey were begun; the accounts were all made up,
all engagements were met. My father received his 15,000 _francesconi_ and
all the arrears of his pension. It was settled that he should accompany
us to Boulogne, and that my aunt should go with us to England.
As we were to travel by land as far as the Hague, my mother managed to
instil into us a dread of robbers, and insisted on keeping back some of
my diamonds to wait for a safe opportunity for sending them direct to me.
I need not say that she never found it!…
On the eve of our departure it was perceived that the son of milord was
missing; he was called for, sought for, in vain. My father set to work
all the constables of his acquaintance, and one of them at last succeeded
in discovering him with my former maid, who had fainted. He protested
that he would never abandon his _lawful wife_; but as this wonderful
title rested on nothing more than a kind of clandestine marriage, the
Archbishop of Florence promptly absolved him from his vows. He was made
to listen to reason, and some assistance was given to the forsaken beauty.
On leaving this town, I felt the liveliest regret at the separation from
my grandmother, who had always been so kind to me; as for the rest of my
family, indifference was all they aroused in me.
At Boulogne I took leave of my father, who, as a final consolation,
assured me I should become a maid-of-honour at the English Court, and
acquire all the titles that had belonged to Lady Catherine Perceval, Lord
Newborough’s first wife.
When we reached the Hague, Mr. Price left us to make preparations in
London and Wales.
We took up our quarters in an hotel, and my husband hastened to leave his
card on the British Minister, who, being absent, was represented by Lord
H. Spencer, son of the Duke of M., who came to call on us, and offered to
present me to the Dutch Royal Family, who received me with extraordinary
affability.
He also made me acquainted with several of the best families, and my stay
in Holland was a round of drives, games and amusements.
When we had been there six months, Mr. Price wrote that everything was
ready for our reception.
When we arrived in London, my husband introduced me under the name of the
_Marchesina di Modigliana_, the name I still bear in the English Court
Circular.
As it was summer, and the greater number of the best families were in the
country, there were but few ladies for me to meet, amongst whom I was
especially attracted by Lady Ford, and we became very intimate friends.
After spending a couple of months in the capital of the British Empire,
we set forth for Wales, where Lord Newborough’s largest estates and his
finest mansion, called Glynllifon, were situated. Glynllifon is about six
miles from Carnarvon in North Wales, and in that town we had the most
magnificent reception; the horses were taken out of the carriage, and the
young men dragged us in their place. We were escorted home by six hundred
men, all people or friends of milord’s. In the evening our park, as well
as the town and the surrounding estates, were brilliantly illuminated
and filled with a vast crowd that begged at intervals to be allowed to
look at me. When I complied with their wishes, the air was rent with loud
applause.
All the noble families of the neighbourhood came to call on us, and for
six consecutive months it was like a perpetual _fête_, and we had as many
as fifty guests every day.
[Illustration: GLYNLLIFON