Romance of the Pyrenees. By a CHAP. LXXIII. retired for life into a convent, destroyplanfible ftory of Victoria's having ed every hope of his obtaining her, and at length lured him into her own toils. Our heroine's name was no fecret to the domeflics of the château; and even could Elvira remove her from Montfort's fight, he could not hope to conceal from his knowledge her having been there: thus her deceptions would be difcovered, his hopes renewed, and her own for ever blasted. Love and jealousy, in arms, led her to refolve upon fome defperate enterprife to crufh his hopes at once, and fave herfeif from the bitter pangs of difappointment; determining that not even the fame or happiness of Victoria fhould be fpated in the attempt; and fo rapidly did the impetuofity of her paffions urge her on, that, in ftriving to fecure her young favourite to herfelf the braved the vengeance of conte Vicenza, nor feemed once to reflect how totally her crimes had placed her in his power, or how unrelentingly he would purfue her to deftruction, fhould the prove the means of foil. ing his fchemes, and annihilating his hopes of obtaining Victoria. We recollect no circumftance from is time, until the ducheffa di Man- With no other counsellor then, edonia arrived at the château, than her own invention, the arranged there our heroine had taken refuge her plans, and only called in her ta fter the thipwreck, that requires ex- miliars, Bianca and Maratti, to affift lanation to our patient reader. in the execution of them. DeterThe perplexity and confternation of mined to work upon the feelings of at diabolical woman were exceffive, her fufceptible niece, to territy her then the found Victoria was in the into a marriage that muft.at once deâteau where the fo fhortly expect- ftroy all Montfort's hopes, the first 1 to be joined by conte de Montfort; ftrove to conciliate the too juttly ef hó, though entrapped by her artful tranged affection of Victoria; then landifhments, ftill fighed for and fabricated the ftory of Polydore's lolized Victoria. The fight of her, death, and Hippolyto's attainder.erefore, Elvira well knew threaten- Maratti procured the men to perfo i deftruction to all her own schemes nate affaffins, who were artfully lative to that weak and volatile thrown, with every alarming circumoung man, who was now the dearest ftance, in the way of the timid Robject in the world to her, of whofe felia, whom Maratti not once loft redulity the had taken every advan- fight of, and who, as Elvira well ge; and by deceiving him with a conjectured, would, though uninOctober, 1808. 4 E tentionally, tentionally, prove a valuable auxilia ry; and fearing the power and interference of the monks Anfelmo and Pierre, fhould Victoria apply to them for advice or protection, Elvira thought it judicious to win them over to her intereft, often having derived ready affistance from the venal brothers of the convent. But with all her art fhe was not equal to a combat with the inflexible virtue of father Pierre; while with the placid Anfelmo the feemed to fucceed bevond her mon fanguine expectations. But Anfelino not lefs firm in virtue than his brother Pierre, only feemed to enter into her plans to fubvert them. Anfelmo knew the ducheffa di Manfredonia well; although the lapfe of many years, his change of name, of country, language, his overshadowing cowl, fecured the good, the juft, the pious venerable Rinaldo from the recognition of his fworn implacable enemy. Trembling for the fate of conte Ariofto's child, the good man affected the fanctified villain; and promiffing to aid her in all her vile machinations, he was fent to win Hippolyto to her purpose. time, as it must in fome degree p Anfelmo conveying to Elvira Hips mea It would be too bold an attempt for us to pourtray the feelings Orlando upon that eventfui morne C when the hand of Victoria was u ed to his. The tumult of his m was too powerful for our defcrison; and the tortures of uncerta although leffened by the foft inlin ations of flattering hope, were aima too violent to be concealed fro obfervation. But when he behel the affecting trepidation of the lover victim which perfidy bestowed up The holy man, ftrongly prepof- him; when he faw her amiable and feffed in favour of that gallant young delicate efforts to fpare him the pag man, candidly unbofomed himself to of mortification; with diffic him; and Orlando, equally pleafed could he restrain the impetuous in with the good monk, as frankly dif- pulfe which would have thrown h clofed his fuppofed name and fituati at her feet, there to acknowledge on to him, his views upon Victoria's of deception which circumftanc heart, and all the dangers the had had led him to practife towards he efcaped, with thofe that fill threaten- to avow his name, and plead for be ed her; when, after much defibe- pity and forgivenefs. But prodes ration, it was mutually agreed, that prevailed over the tenderness even could Victoria, even by tratagem, his feelings. He thought the m be led into the intended marriage, it ment not arrived that could rela would be the fafcft afylum from de- him from his facred promife to tr fraction which circumflances now cifco. He felt himself not out of left open to her; fince from the pro- power of his enemies, while tion of a husband, upon whom dearer felf was encompaffed by the her guardian had beftowed her, the toils; and not until the was fate machinations of enemies could not lodged at St. Marguerite's he withdraw her; while at the fame predetermined upon making the portant difcovery to Victoria. How ever, the unexpected arrival of conte Je Montfort changed at once his intentions. He knew full well the impetuolity and infolence of that young man's temper, with the ardency of his adoration of Victoria; and from all united he apprehended fome unǝleafant occurrences, ungenial to the lelicacy of Victoria's feelings, degrading to her dignity, were the fufered to appear to him as the wife of the obfcure Hippolyto, and with no other protection than fuch a friendlefs unknown alien could afford her, The moment, therefore, that the wily Elvira clofed the door upon him and the good Rinaldo, he haftened (finding the apartment he had retired o was a dreffing-room, and fuited for his purpofe) to reaffume his own complexion; and when, as conte di Urbino, he answered the envenomed ummons of the ducheffa to the hufband of Victoria di Modena,' to appear, no pen can (at least ours cannot) pourtray the difmay and confternation of the diabolical Elvira. The infatuation of jealoufy and pafion was chased at once by the terror of conviction; for well the knew the fatal blow fhe had thus given to Polydore's views upon Victoria, by uniting her to him the believed his own fon, was the inevitable fiat for her destruction. Immediately, therefore, fhe fled with her affociates in guilt, Maratti and Bianca, to Engand, taking with her, for fubfiftence, the jewels, and a few other valuables The had with her in Provence. But in England the found not the tranquil fylum the fought for: appalled by confcious guilt, her crimes transformed every nidividal the met with, every thing the encountered, into bjects to fhrink from; even her own vile creatures were foon arrayed by her trembling fears in the terrible garb of perfidy. She roved from place to place, vainly friving to fly rum juftice, which fill followed her in the miferies inflicted by her agonifing apprehenfion; and in the courfe of a very few years, the accumulated horrors of her mind, aided by à continually broken reft, brought on a complication of almost every direful malady to which the human frame is incident. By piece-meal the at length expired in tortures fo extreme, that, but for the magnitude of her crimes, the eye of pity must have wept for her; fince, added to her bodily anguifh, the catholic prieft, to whom in her laft moments the made her genuine confeffion, recoiling from the black catalogue, and under the influence of horror and indignation, which the dreadful recital" but too juftly infpired, even in the most direful terms refufed her abfolution, and fent her tortured and difmayed fpirit fhrieking to another world, there to meet from an unerring judge its final doom. CHAP. LXXIV. To account for fome things contained in Orlando's addrefs to Victoria, in the coach which conveyed them from Montfort's château to St. Marguerite's, we must lead our read. er back for a few moments to the Py renean cafile. A few evenings preceding that on which Orlando was fuffered to convcy Victoria from don Manuel's caftle, as he was roving through the afles of the church for exercife, and in his own proper perfon til fondly hoping to meet our heroine, he fuddenly faw a fmall ray of light gleam through the iron railing of the nave. Orlando had no fears, mental or perfonal, but thofe of the latter which prudence naturally infpired. The fafety of his Victoria depended upon his efcaping the detection of all don Manuel's people; and though he had been well affured that church was unknown to them, he thought it poffible that means as unforeseen as thofe which conducted Victoria there might lead fome dangerous perfon Nither : thither he therefore thought it advifeable to conceal himself, left it fhould be fo; while his euriofity ftrongly prompted him to delay a little, and cautiously to obferve the light, which, after feeming ftationary for a length of time, fuddenly difappeared. been mortally wounded in a rencoun ter with fome of don Manuel's people, and had by miracle been led to feek refuge in that fecret place, and now was dying without affiftancefor Orlando had nothing for his relief, and feared to leave him to go in quest of any but while in this dilemma, nature, by a fuccessful effort, ref:ored the ftranger's faculties; and at length opening his tearful eyes, he fixed them mournfurly upon Orlando, while, in the hollow tone of fickness, and the deep voice of forrow and defpair, he fpoke Orlando now determined to retire; when as fuddenly the light again was feen much stronger than before. Orlando paufed; the rays of light increased, though flowly; and at length broken fighs and deep-drawn groans ftruck upon his ear, at once aroufing pity, and strongly arresting Child of my abufed benefactor! his attention. In a moment more he of my dreadfully injured friend! beheld a knight, completely cafed in ceafe this humanity to a wretch deblack armour, emerging from behind ferving only thy contumely and aba thrine, and bearing in his hand a horrence. Spurn me! revile me! Jamp. With tottering and uneven but do not, do not, kindly treat fteps he flowly advanced towards the place of Orlando's concealment.-- Compofe yourfelf, I entreat you, His vifor was off, and Orlando be- fir, and let me know how I can best held a countenance fo cadaverous, be ferviceable in a moment when you that it almoft taught him fuperftitious fo greatly want affiftance,' faid Or fear; while, as the knight approach- lando benignly, and grafping him ed along the pavement, echo returned with encreafed fervour-finding by no found of footsteps to Orlando's the ftranger's movements, he meant ear, and he faw the knight's armour to fhrink from his approaching armş ftained in many places with new to the ground. fhed blood. me.' Orlando,' replied Elfridii wildly; At length, as with downcaft looks for this black knight, who had terri this ghaftly figure moved along, he fed Victoria in the library and on ftruck against a pillar. The hock the ftairs, was no other than Elfridii, feemed to overpower him; he laid who, though long confidered by Pehis lamp upon the flab of a monu- dro as convalefcent, was often by ment, and refted against a pillar for debility of frame, after fevere penanfupport. Compaffion delayed not to ces and terrible retrofpect, led back hear the voice of prudence; Orlando to the dieadful confines of infanity, in an inftant clasped the ftranger in if not quite to the calamity of actual his arms, tenderly demanding where- derangement, when ftrange fantaftic in he could be of fervice to him.- fancies would poffefs him of affuming The lamp gleamed full upon our he- in every refpect both the appearance ro's face, The aftonifbed knight and character of thofe contrite finlooked up, and uttering a cry par- ners he had heard or read of, whofe taking of furprife and horror, became repentance and inflictions he was inat once fenfelefs in the fupporting defatigaby indicting; amongst whem arms of Orlando. was a black knight, whole crimes had been as enormous, and whofe contrition had been as profound, as Elfridii's own; and as his penances The confternation of this compaffionate young man was now extreme. He doubted not but the ftranger had bad don- and affiftance from him whom the Almighty has pitied and reclaimed?' faid Orlando, with energy.Be comforted, good fire; cheer up, and teach me where to lead you. Let me fupport you! Let the son of him you called your friend, guided by the hand of peace, lead you to your couch, there fmooth your pillow, and, under the aufpicies of both my bleffed parents' approving influence, gain for you, by my best fervices and withes, a fweet and calm repofe.' had been the moft fevere this wretched man had ever heard of, this black knight of the crefcent, then, was the being he ofteneft fancied himself to be, and in the affumed drefs and ap. pearance of whom he had alarmed many of the captives as effectually as he did our heroine, whom he purpofely chafed from the library to avail himfelf of the trap-door, or retreat to the vaults beneath; while the terror he occafioned her on the ftairs was merely accidental, when, upon hearing her approach, he put on his vifor, which refembled the face of a keleton. The reafon why no echo of his footfteps could be heard was, that he never omitted to wear in the caftle shoes foled with fuch a foft fubftance, that in his invifible rounds he was alfo unheard, and, when feen, no found could lead purfuers to trace him to his cell.- Orlando, child of confeffion; to receive from me all the murdered Viola !' faid Elfridi, 'you whom I have bereft of birthright, of every hope and comfort under heaven, fupport me not; fofter not the wily ferpent that has infinuated his baleful poifon through the vitals of thy whole race. Shrink from my noxious touch, and dafh me to that earth which I have pollu ted with my crimes moft horrible.' If you have injured me,' replied Orlando, it is unknown to me; and in a moment like this, believe, me, I only wish to learn how I may most effectually affift you.' If I have injured you! Elfridii reiterated, if I have injured you !— Oh that there was a doubt! Look, fee, behold these wounds, this blood, inflicted, thed by my own guilty hands, fruggling if poffible, by mortal means to expiate fome of my direful crimes committed againtt Heaven and thee! Then pity me not; but hate me, fpurn me! fpurn me !' Mortality prompted you to fin, but Heaven alone coul' infpire repeutance fuch as your; and dare I, a worm, an atom, withhold my par Oh God omnipotent!' exclaimed the before feeble Elfridii,.ftarting, by an exertion fcarcely human, from Orlando's grafp, and dropping upon his knees, thy ways how merciful, how infcrutable! This boy, this forgiving angel, thou baft infpired and guided hither to hear my horrible the attonement now, alas! in my power to make.' He arofe from his knees with firmnels. Orlando regarded him with, awful attention. Follow, moft amiable, moft injured youth, the implacable deftroyer of thy fainted mother, the perfidious, friend of thy ineftimable father, the baneful enemy of thy illuftrious race. Follow, as Heaven directs thee, to my cell, there to receive papers invaluable to thee. They will lead thee to wealth and honours, to a father, whom even you, good and virtuous as you are, will kneel to with exulting pride.' Gracious Providence! does myfather indeed live? Am I fo bleft to claim kindred with the good, and am I not the nephew and dependent of the villanous Vicenza?' exclaimed Orlando, panting for breath, and well conjecturing this man to be the myfterious guardian of Matilda and himfelf, whom from time to time he had gathered fome vague accounts of from Francifco. the Your father's rank is amongst moft honourable of men; his itation |
