Manners Volume I Part 9

Before Lady Eltondale drew aside the curtain that screened the door of the anteroom, a few chords on the harp were distinguished--and on entering the apartment they perceived two ladies. One was an old woman, dressed in mourning, with a large black bonnet, which almost entirely concealed her face, whom Lady Eltondale introduced as Lady Hammersley.

She looked up, for a moment, from a book she appeared to be perusing intently, and after saluting the strangers with an obsequious inclination of the head, resumed her studies in silence. The other lady, who was reclining against the harp, was dressed in the extreme of French fashion. Her face, though not youthful, appeared, at that distance, handsome, from the judicious arrangement of white and red, with which it was covered. But a closer inspection proved the only charms it could really boast were a pair of large black eyes, that could a.s.sume any requisite expression, and a set of teeth, which, whether natural or artificial, were certainly beautiful. Her dark hair was crowned with a wreath of roses _en corbeille_, the colour of her cheeks; and her tall slim figure was covered, not concealed, by a loose muslin robe _a la Diane_.

At first the Viscountess took no notice of the fair minstrel; but having placed Mrs. Galton close to the fire in a Roman chair, and ordered coffee, and an opera basket for her feet, she drew Selina's arm through her own, and, approaching the stranger, addressed her, saying, "At last, Mademoiselle Omphalie, here is my niece: have I said too much of her?" "_Ah! mon Dieu, qu'elle est belle!_" returned the complaisant foreigner. "_Ma foi, elle est fail a peindre._[14] _Ma chere_ young ladi, ve must be ver good friends: I am positive I shall dote a you." So saying, she held out her hand to Selina, who returned the proffered courtesy with a glow of grat.i.tude for the unexpected kindness. But the Viscountess did not give her niece time to profit much by the stranger's civility. She just happened to recollect, that Selina's furs were unnecessary in her ladyship's drawing-room, and proposed to the travellers to have them introduced to their apartments, which they gladly acceded to. But here a new fashion struck their wondering eyes.

The Viscountess desired her footmen to send "Argant" to show the rooms.

Mrs. Galton and Selina ignorantly imagined they were to be consigned to the care of a house-maid. What then was their dismay, when a Swiss groom of the chambers made his appearance, with their wax tapers, and escorted them, not only to their rooms, which adjoined each other, but familiarly entered the apartments with them; and having deliberately lighted the candles on their respective toilets, with a thousand shrugs and grimaces asked, "_Si mesdames lui permettront l'honneur d'oter leurs pelisses[15]?_" When he had at last retired, Mrs. Galton could no longer suppress her feelings; the tears trickled down her cheeks as she clasped Selina to her bosom, with a fearful antic.i.p.ation of the trials and temptations, a scene so new and so bewitching was likely to offer to a girl so totally inexperienced. But unwilling, unnecessarily, to damp the dear girl's spirits, which were already fluttering between joy and sorrow, she attributed her depression solely to the idea of so soon parting with her, as she had fixed to leave Eltondale with Augustus very early the following morning. When the two ladies returned to the drawing room, they found the gentlemen had joined the party. Besides Lord Eltondale and Mordaunt, the circle was enlarged by Sir Robert Hammersley, an old fat Scotch admiral, and his son, who had thrown himself, at full length, on a sofa, listening to an Italian _arietta_, that Mademoiselle Omphalie was warbling forth in "liquid sweetness long drawn out," whilst he occasionally interrupted her finest cadences with an audible yawn, or an almost unintelligible "_brava_." Lady Eltondale, Lady Hammersley, and Mrs. Galton formed a group together, and entered into general conversation, while Sir Robert and his host were warmly engaged in continuing a political dispute. Selina remained attentively listening to the delightful harmony of Mademoiselle Omphalie's melodious voice, till at length her eye meeting that of Mordaunt, which rested solely on hers, her expressive countenance told him in a moment all her admiration and delight. He softly approached her, and, leaning over her chair, said, in a low tone, "All these new pleasures will soon make you forget----I mean you will scarcely have time to think of Yorkshire." She turned her beautiful face towards him, with an expression of melancholy and surprise, but meeting his speaking glance, she hastily withdrew her eyes, and coloured, with an ill defined feeling of painful pleasure: some flowers, that she had inconsiderately taken from a china vase, that stood on a table near her, suffered from her agitation, as she unconsciously scattered some of the myrtle leaves on the floor.

Augustus picked up one of the fallen branches, and, looking at Selina, "_Je ne change qu'en mourant_," said he, with an emphasis that seemed to apply the motto in more ways than to the leaf he held. Selina's confusion increased, and a tear stood on her long eye-lashes, but before she could articulate the half formed sentence that trembled on her lip, Lady Eltondale advanced to the table, and abruptly asked her to give her opinion of some drawings that were scattered about it; and so completely did she monopolize her for the remainder of the evening, that she had not again an opportunity of speaking to Augustus. When, however, the company were separating for the night, he advanced to ask if she had any further commands for him; but, with a trepidation she did not wait to a.n.a.lyse, she postponed her adieus, entreating him not to say farewell then, as she meant certainly to be up long before Mrs. Galton and he would leave Eltondale in the morning.

[Footnote 14: "Ah! how beautiful she is!" "She is divinely formed."]

[Footnote 15: "If the ladies would allow him to take off their pelisses."]

END OF VOL. I.