d fo frequently did Garcias go Ether to watch his vigilance, and fo arful was the miferable captive of me more dreadful punishment, that - never once failed in the task affign. him.

The illumination of the alter were, ke the characters upon the door, used by the reflexion of ftrong light pon minerals; and when the autoaton raised the dart, it was powerally charged with electric matter, to all heavily upon that rafh being ho, deriding fuch apparent terrors, hould attempt to pafs on to the trea

ury.

Although well acquainted with every cèret of this chamber, Francifco's nind was fo occupied by other maters of importance, that he not once Thought of the uplifted dart; but eager y anxious to reach Elfridii's cham her, he paffed too near, and received fhock that for fome time deprived im of all fenfe and motion. Upon his recovery and miffing Victoria, guided by the lantern her humanity ett him, he traced her footsteps imprinted upon the fandy foil of the chamber to the door through which the had retreated, and full of rage and vengeance followed her to the

chamber of Elfridii.

The dreadful fepulchre through which Victoria paffed we have already explained, and the corfe the fell over was a wretched traveller who had been maffacred in the foreft: but not quite dead when precipitated into that dreadful place, he had, guided by a ray of light which emanated through the door of Elfridii's apartment, feebly crawled to the paffage in queft of affiftance; where overcome by exertion and lofs of blood, he thortly after expired.

with the dreadful anxiety he endured for the fucccefs of Lorenzo's journey, were more than his debilitated frame could fuftain. Daily, nay almoft hourly, he found his ftrength decreased; and the terror he now fuffered left he fhould be unable to reach Francifco's cave at the time he calculated for the pope's legate to be there, affifted in reducing him to that very ftate he dreaded. At length, with inexpreffible horror, he found himfelf fo completely enervated, that with painful difficulty could he make the laft exertion he was ever able to accomplish, that of regaining the packet he had fo carefully buried near the grave of Viola; and with thefe momentous papers once more in his poffeffion, he crawled back to his dreary cell, and paffed his time in fervent prayers to Heaven, not to for fake the houfe of Manfredonia, but to guide fome friend to virtue thither to receive from his hand the confeffion of his dreadful crimes.'

Stretched upon his miferable ftone couch, deprived of every comfort, even now no longer able to obtain the fmall portion of homely food he had long allowed himfelf (for he had no attendant, and was now unabe to go in queft of fukenance), he spent the last few days of his life in agonies of mind and frame, which we find it impoffible to delineate. At length his fupplications were attended to. Almighty Providence guided Victoria di Modena to his cell, to receive from him the precious packet, which had it not been fo ordained must have fallen into, the hands of Francifco, who, for his own fafety and that of his beloved fon, would have concealed almost Eitrilii rapidly declined after the every part of its important contents, night upon which he delivered the and, where it was poflible, would packet to the duca di Mantredonia. have turned every incident to the The fhock he received upon behold- advantage of don Manuel and his ing his unfufpecting friend, the own ambitious idemes: and here victim of his matchlefs perfidy, too, by thus ciclul ordinance,

Victoria

orne to explain himself to her: o, fearing the had for ever loft guardianfhip of Francifco (as he commanded Orlando to conceal being in the caftle from Matilda, every other individual), from e fecret pleadings clung to Victofor protection, though not doubtthe friendship of Theodore or aftian ; and, independent of er feelings, the ftill confidered aufpices of Victoria the most hoarable, the moft eligible, fhe could

ain.

At the request of the duca di Mandonia, Alphonfo and Victoria pofthed their intended departue from caftle of the Pyrenees, until renoed health and other circumftances mitted him and his children to ac mpany them In a very few days er thofe interefting and affecting difveries which the important confeffis of Elfridii made, the pious refigtion of the amiable Lorenzo infpired n with a fufficient degree of fortile to undertake his laft fad, folemn, artrending duties to the manes his adored, ill-fated, ineflimable iola.

ries attended to chaunt requiems, and join in all the awful folemn rites the catholic perfuafion called for over a murdered corfe redeemed from an unhallowed grave.

Lorenzo's never-extinguished tendernefs for his defamed Viola would not now fuffer him to witness the affecting fcene; but Victoria, at his moft earnest entreaty, attended, to aid with her voice thofe requiems which, from the purity of her devotion, he faid would fooner afcend to heaven. Though almoft fubdued by the poignancy of her own feelings, the could not refufe to comply with his withes. She joined the choir; and in one line of folo, which it was in her part to fing, the excefs of her fenfibility, the fervours of her piety, led her to breath cadences of fuch thrilling pathos, fuch touching me lody, that every auditor was at once fubdued by the fenfations the magic of her expreffion forcibly awakened. The choir, bound by the fpell, had not power immediately to join in chorus; and for many minutes a total filence would have reigned, had it not been broken by the loud fobs of a numerous congregation, moved by the magic of fweet founds to weep for the fate of her whom very few of them had ever feen: while a monk of the Carthufian order, who had fixed his ftation near the coffin, and who had hitherto evinced, by tears and fighs, the most painful emotion, now buift from the weeping throng, and rufhed from the church, convulfed with anguish. No wonder, then, that Viola's own child In a few fubfequent days fathers fhould feel! Orlando, in dreadful inaldo and Pierre, with the other agitation, quitted the church; and, ronks of St. Lewis, and all the flying for once from the fafcinating incipal ones of the different orders voice of his Victoria, ftrove by every Cadaques, removed with due fo- exertion of his mind to moderate his maity ail that now remained of the fenfibility; and then fought his fifter, nce beauteous, accomplished, and whom he found feated at her fader's tuous Viola to the nave of the caf- chamber-door. Matilda would not e church, where all the nuns and intrude upon her parent's grief, but, boirs of the neghbouring monafte watchful of hint, the talloned hreNovember, 1808.

Alone he first visited her unhalwed fepulchre; and for ever facted the forrows of the real mourner! renzo, thy griefs could only be ualled by the firmnefs with which ou didit bear them; and will not re to disturb thee in that moment anguilh, which only prayer could fen; nor fhall we attempt to unveil ofe feelings which in this awful vifit rtured and poured balm into thy ounded heart,

40

felf within the reach of found, and, as the wept for the fate of her mother, echoed every heartrending figh that burft from the agonifed bofom of her father.

re

was

beer

tro

timely froft,' was conveyed for terment from Naples to the fan in mausoleum at Manfredonia; atten fies through Naples, and for many mi the out of the city, by the fame magn thr From the church was the body of cent proceffion of all the religiosthe Viola conveyed on board a galleon and all the equipages delonging tra granted by the Spanish admiralty for the court and to the nobility of Nay the purpose. The flate-cabin was les, which had received it from hung with all the infignia of woe, marine conveyance: for, althoug for the reception of the body; and fo many years had elapfed face over the Spanish colours a black flag family had been believed extin&, was hoifted, efcutcheoned with the revered was ftill the name of M armorial bearings of the houfes of fredonia, fo indelibly had the virtue Manfredoni and Palermo. Lorenzo, that noble race been enrolled upor his children, with Alphonfo, Victo- a tablet of never-fading fame, th ria, and all their different adherents, every Neapolitan was eager to evi attended the manes of this victim of respect and pay attention, to a fami unmerited vengeance upon this fo villanoufly estranged, fo miracul mournful voyage to Naples; quitting ufly restored to them. for ever that caille, where in mifery and bondage many a virtuous being had lingered.

On their way to Naples they touched at the port of Leghorn; from whence fathers Rinaldo and Pierre made as expeditious a journey as poffible to Rome, where they laid the dreadful confeflions of the late Elfridi before the pontiff; who immediately dispatched his nuncio, with proper attendants and credentials, along with thefe holy fathers, to the court of Naples, to arrange every neceffary for a pompous reception of the body of Viola, and to have inftant reftitution made of the long ufurped poffeffions of Manfredonia and Palermo.

The remains of the lovely unfortunate Viola were therefore received upon landing by one of the most magnificent proceffions that ever thronged the streets of Naples. For three days the body lay in all the ftate of catholic ceremonies, in the church of St. Rofolia, where maffes and chants were hourly faid and fung for the repofe of her foul: and at the expiration of that period, all that remained of this once beauteous fragrant flower, nipped by an uns

The long-oppreffed and ruin peafantry of Manfredonia, now m longer able to clothe themselves refpectable mourning, decked o with cyprefs, rofemory and ye came forth to meet their ruefully lamented, beloved ancient lord Da poiled by the depreffive tyranny the ufurper of every comfort und heaven, and well remembering the bleffings they had enjoyed when vaffalage was lightened by the benign and cheering influence of we benevolence and philanthropy, the old inspired the young with all the feelings, by tradition of paft Lap pinefs, united to thofe awakened by the knowledge of prefent fuffering.

The restoration of that adore lamented family was to their antic pating hopes the inftantoneous change of direful flavery, and every human mifery, to each bleffing the world could fupply. The fudden tranfitica from long habitual defpair to hop and joy broke through every bourd of moderation: their rapture was enthufiafm their happiness evinced itself in wildest tumult, in fhouts of tranfport, in frantic geftures, in fhrieks of ecftafy; nor could the efforts of the holy fathers of the neighbouring

had

7