Lord, Lord, Nephew, Lord, Lord, Cousin, both women in a breath, what ado you make about nothing! You persuade your lady to be afraid of alighting.--See you not that she is just fainting?
Indeed, Madam, said the vile seducer, my dearest love must not be moved in this point against her will. I beg it may not be insisted upon.
Fiddle-faddle, foolish man--What a pother is here! I guess how it is: you are ashamed to let us see what sort of people you carried your lady among--but do you go out, and speak to your friend, and take your letters.
He stept out; but shut the coach-door after him, to oblige me.
The coach may go on, Madam, said I.
The coach shall go on, my dear life, said he.--But he gave not, nor intended to give, orders that it should.
Let the coach go on! said I--Mr. Lovelace may come after us.
Indeed, my dear, you are ill!--Indeed you must alight--alight but for one quarter of an hour.--Alight but to give orders yourself about your things. Whom can you be afraid of in my company, and my niece"s; these people must have behaved shockingly to you! Please the Lord, I"ll inquire into it!--I"ll see what sort of people they are!
Immediately came the old creature to the door. A thousand pardons, dear Madam, stepping to the coach-side, if we have any way offended you--Be pleased, Ladies, [to the other two] to alight.
Well, my dear, whispered the Lady Betty, I now find that an hideous description of a person we never saw is an advantage to them. I thought the woman was a monster--but, really, she seems tolerable.
I was afraid I should have fallen into fits: but still refused to go out --Man!--Man!--Man!--cried I, gaspingly, my head out of the coach and in, by turns, half a dozen times running, drive on!--Let us go!
My heart misgave me beyond the power of my own accounting for it; for still I did not suspect these women. But the antipathy I had taken to the vile house, and to find myself so near it, when I expected no such matter, with the sight of the old creature, all together made me behave like a distracted person.
The hartshorn and water was brought. The pretended Lady Betty made me drink it. Heaven knows if there was any thing else in it!
Besides, said she, whisperingly, I must see what sort of creatures the nieces are. Want of delicacy cannot be hid from me. You could not surely, my dear, have this aversion to re-enter a house, for a few minutes, in our company, in which you lodged and boarded several weeks, unless these women could be so presumptuously vile, as my nephew ought not to know.
Out stept the pretended lady; the servant, at her command, having opened the door.
Dearest Madam, said the other to me, let me follow you, [for I was next the door.] Fear nothing: I will not stir from your presence.
Come, my dear, said the pretended lady, give me your hand; holding out her"s. Oblige me this once.
I will bless your footsteps, said the old creature, if once more you honour my house with your presence.
A crowd by this time was gathered about us; but I was too much affected to mind that.
Again the pretended Miss Montague urged me; standing up as ready to go out if I would give her room.--Lord, my dear, said she, who can bear this crowd?--What will people think?
The pretended Lady again pressed me, with both her hands held out--Only, my dear, to give orders about your things.
And thus pressed, and gazed at, (for then I looked about me,) the women so richly dressed, people whispering; in an evil moment, out stepped I, trembling, forced to lean with both my hands (frighted too much for ceremony) on the pretended Lady Betty"s arm--Oh! that I had dropped down dead upon the guilty threshold!
We shall stay but a few minutes, my dear!--but a few minutes! said the same specious jilt--out of breath with her joy, as I have since thought, that they had thus triumphed over the unhappy victim!
Come, Mrs. Sinclair, I think your name is, show us the way----following her, and leading me. I am very thirsty. You have frighted me, my dear, with your strange fears. I must have tea made, if it can be done in a moment. We have farther to go, Mrs. Sinclair, and must return to Hampstead this night.
It shall be ready in a moment, cried the wretch. We have water boiling.
Hasten, then--Come, my dear, to me, as she led me through the pa.s.sage to the fatal inner house--lean upon me--how you tremble!--how you falter in your steps!--Dearest niece Lovelace, [the old wretch being in hearing,]
why these hurries upon your spirits?--We"ll be gone in a minute.
And thus she led the poor sacrifice into the old wretch"s too-well-known parlour.
Never was any body so gentle, so meek, so low voiced, as the odious woman; drawling out, in a puling accent, all the obliging things she could say: awed, I then thought, by the conscious dignity of a woman of quality; glittering with jewels.
The called-for tea was ready presently.
There was no Mr. Belton, I believe: for the wretch went not to any body, unless it were while we were parlying in the coach. No such person however, appeared at the tea-table.
I was made to drink two dishes, with milk, complaisantly urged by the pretended ladies helping me each to one. I was stupid to their hands; and, when I took the tea, almost choked with vapours; and could hardly swallow.
I thought, transiently thought, that the tea, the last dish particularly, had an odd taste. They, on my palating it, observed, that the milk was London-milk; far short in goodness of what they were accustomed to from their own dairies.
I have no doubt that my two dishes, and perhaps my hartshorn, were prepared for me; in which case it was more proper for their purpose, that they should help me, than that I should help myself. Ill before, I found myself still more and more disordered in my head; a heavy torpid pain increasing fast upon me. But I imputed it to my terror.
Nevertheless, at the pretended Lady"s motion, I went up stairs, attended by Dorcas; who affected to weep for joy, that she once more saw my blessed face; that was the vile creature"s word: and immediately I set about taking out some of my clothes, ordering what should be put up, and what sent after me.
While I was thus employed, up came the pretended Lady Betty, in a hurrying way----My dear, you won"t be long before you are ready. My nephew is very busy in writing answers to his letters: so, I"ll just whip away, and change my dress, and call upon you in an instant.
O Madam!--I am ready! I am now ready!--You must not leave me here. And down I sunk, affrighted, into a chair.
This instant, this instant, I will return--before you can be ready-- before you can have packed up your things--we would not be late--the robbers we have heard of may be out--don"t let us be late.
And away she hurried before I could say another word. Her pretended niece went with her, without taking notice to me of her going.
I had no suspicion yet that these women were not indeed the ladies they personated; and I blamed myself for my weak fears.--It cannot be, thought I, that such ladies will abet treachery against a poor creature they are so fond of. They must undoubtedly be the persons they appear to be--what folly to doubt it! The air, the dress, the dignity of women of quality. How unworthy of them, and of my charity, concluded I, is this ungenerous shadow of suspicion!
So, recovering my stupefied spirits, as well as they could be recovered, (for I was heavier and heavier! and wondered to Dorcas what ailed me, rubbing my eyes, and taking some of her snuff, pinch after pinch, to very little purpose,) I pursued my employment: but when that was over, all packed up that I designed to be packed up; and I had nothing to do but to think; and found them tarry so long; I thought I should have gone distracted. I shut myself into the chamber that had been mine; I kneeled, I prayed; yet knew not what I prayed for: then ran out again: it was almost dark night, I said: where, where, where was Mr. Lovelace?
He came to me, taking no notice at first of my consternation and wildness, [what they had given me made me incoherent and wild:] All goes well, said he, my dear!--A line from Capt. Tomlinson!
All indeed did go well for the villanous project of the most cruel and most villanous of men!
I demanded his aunt!--I demanded his cousin!--The evening, I said, was closing!--My head was very, very bad, I remember I said--and it grew worse and worse.--
Terror, however, as yet kept up my spirits; and I insisted upon his going himself to hasten them.
He called his servant. He raved at the s.e.x for their delay: "twas well that business of consequence seldom depended upon such parading, unpunctual triflers!
His servant came.
He ordered him to fly to his cousin Leeson"s, and to let Lady Betty and his cousin know how uneasy we both were at their delay: adding, of his own accord, desire them, if they don"t come instantly, to send their coach, and we will go without them. Tell them I wonder they"ll serve me so!
I thought this was considerately and fairly put. But now, indifferent as my head was, I had a little time to consider the man and his behaviour.
He terrified me with his looks, and with his violent emotions, as he gazed upon me. Evident joy-suppressed emotions, as I have since recollected. His sentences short, and p.r.o.nounced as if his breath were touched. Never saw I his abominable eyes look as then they looked-- Triumph in them!--fierce and wild; and more disagreeable than the women"s at the vile house appeared to me when I first saw them: and at times, such a leering, mischief-boding cast!--I would have given the world to have been an hundred miles from him. Yet his behaviour was decent--a decency, however, that I might have seen to be struggled for--for he s.n.a.t.c.hed my hand two or three times, with a vehemence in his grasp that hurt me; speaking words of tenderness through his shut teeth, as it seemed; and let it go with a beggar-voiced humbled accent, like the vile woman"s just before; half-inward; yet his words and manner carrying the appearance of strong and almost convulsed pa.s.sion!--O my dear! what mischief was he not then meditating!
I complained once or twice of thirst. My mouth seemed parched. At the time, I supposed that it was my terror (gasping often as I did for breath) that parched up the roof of my mouth. I called for water: some table-beer was brought me: beer, I suppose, was a better vehicle for their potions. I told the maid, that she knew I seldom tasted malt liquor: yet, suspecting nothing of this nature, being extremely thirsty, I drank it, as what came next: and instantly, as it were, found myself much worse than before: as if inebriated, I should fancy: I know not how.