"Had persuasion been used instead of those arbitrary means which had been adopted, and had that persuasion been directed by reason, I could have yielded myself a sacrifice, however painful the task; but as no motive could be alledged to justify measures so repugnant to my inclinations, they appeared so despotic and capricious that I could neither reconcile them to my feelings or my understanding.
"The stately distance that was uniformly preserved by the Abbess, precluded the possibility of winning her over to my interest; and though I more than once determined to solicit her interference in my behalf, her looks, her voice, and her manners were sufficient to awe me into silence.
"Some of the sisters apparently pitied my situation, whilst others secretly triumphed in my disappointment; for there were some that, though trained to habits of hourly devotion, were destitute of sensibility and every amiable principle of the mind.
"It was on the eve of the vigil of San Marco that my father again repeated his visit, and as it is usual at this festival for nuns to be professed, I naturally imagined that he had received some previous intimation of it from the Superior, and was come at once to enforce and to witness my vows.
"No powers of language can do justice to my feelings at that moment; for though as a novice I was not absolutely a prisoner for life, yet placing but little confidence in the paternal tenderness of my father, and being perfectly aware of the watchfulness of the Lady Abbess, any successful attempt of effectuating an escape from captivity would, I knew, be impracticable, before the expiration of the year, when the other veil would follow of course. Thus situated, I resolved, though with no sanguine hopes of success, to soften, if possible, the native ferocity of my father's temper; and, if every spark of affection was not entirely extinguished in his breast, to strive to rekindle and call it into action.
"As soon as I was admitted into his presence, which was not till the Abbess had retired, I endeavoured to execute my intention by appealing to his compassion; and, contrary to my expectation, he heard me with complacency;—and whether it was my altered looks, for my complexion was much faded by sorrow, or the result of a previous conversation with the Superior, that occasioned it, I was unable to ascertain; but, after fixing his eyes upon mine, which were streaming with tears, with an expression of earnestness not unmingled with pity, after a few gentle reproaches he granted me his permission to accompany him home, and to remain resident there till my health was re-established; though he took some pains to convince me that his former resolution was unchanged; but in compliance with my unjustifiable prejudices, as he termed it, he would grant me the indulgence of postponing the performance of it till another opportunity.
"Even this indulgence, though not augmented by a promise of its permanency, so much exceeded my expectation, that, in the ecstatic emotions of the moment, I loaded him with the effusions of my gratitude; and having yielded to the intreaties of the Abbess to wait the celebration of the festival, which was crowded with friars, pilgrims, and other professed devotees, we quitted this religious asylum, whose massy walls and solitary cells heard only the sigh of regret and the groan of mental anguish, and repaired to Mantua.
"As I gazed upon the venerable spires of the convent retiring into distance, which were half lost amid the rocks that surrounded them, I secretly determined not to enter it again, since I believed that misery and confinement were inseparable.
"Every object which I regarded, and every sound that I heard, had now the advantage of novelty; the hills covered with verdure, the flowers that embroidered the valleys, the low warblings of the birds from the deep shade of the woods, all were in unison with my feelings, and I felt as if just called into existence to enjoy the sublimities of nature. With the vanity inseparable from youth and inexperience, I anticipated the pleasures of society, anxious to display the few accomplishments I had acquired, and to be convinced of their value.
"My solicitude to please being frequently carried to excess, my father did not fail to observe, with concern, a propensity that threatened to render his favourite scheme of professing me abortive. This induced him resolutely to oppose my mixing with the world, which he constantly represented as teeming with misfortune, folly, and insincerity.
"The only persons who were in habits of intimacy in the family, were Father Alberto, a Jesuit, who was my father's Confessor; Signor Lamberto, a man of fortune and connexions resident in Mautna, and Lorenzo d'Orfo, a young officer, who was committed to his care by his last surviving parent, a short time before his death, which happened in consequence of a wound received in a desperate engagement, a few months after he had been raised by merit to the rank of Mareschal, not without some hopes that a future provision might be the effect of this politic arrangement, should this veteran, who had lately retired from the toil and uncertainty inseparable from a military life, continue single, or die without heirs.
"Signor Lamberto was not so rigid in his principles as my father, and being informed of the decided aversion I had expressed to the solitude of a cloister, and of his inexorable determination to oblige me to take the vow, used some arguments to dissuade him from his purpose. But they were overruled by the more powerful ones urged by the Jesuit, who was my father's friend and adviser on every occasion, and who contrived, from interested motives, to convince him that his eternal salvation depended upon the sacrifice of his daughter; who, if allowed to remain with him, would so far influence his affections as to withdraw them from the only true source of all consolation.
"To be continually in the society of the Signor d'Orfo without feeling a prepossession in his favour, would have been impossible. His manners were easy and elegant, his figure was more than ordinarily graceful, and his countenance expressive of a certain ingenuousness of mind, which could not be contemplated without affection. I had not been many weeks in the city before we mutually felt and acknowledged our attachment, though it was necessary to conceal it from my father, his Confessor, and even from Signor Lamberto; who, was every objection to be removed on the part of my friends, would, we had every reason to believe, vigorously oppose an alliance which, in the indigent situation of his dependant, could not be justified by prudence. But though we attempted to disguise our affection under an assumed appearance of indifference, we were so narrowly watched by the scrutinizing eyes of the Jesuit, who contrived to overhear our conversation when we imagined ourselves in secrecy, that my father was early apprised of it.
"Perfectly aware of the extent of my punishment, and more than ever averse to a conventual life, which would inevitably separate me for ever from the amiable object of my early love, I at last consented to accept the protection of Signor d'Orfo, and to unite my destiny with his.
"My father, in the mean time, placing no confidence in the dutiful acquiescence of his daughter, probably from a consciousness that he had never deserved it, resolved to accelerate my departure, as the most effectual method of preventing any future intercourse between us, and desired me to prepare to accompany him to the convent on the following week; at the same time commanding me not to quit my apartment during the interval, on pain of his everlasting displeasure.
"Thus secluded from the possibility of obtaining another interview with Lorenzo, I abandoned myself to despair; and since, in the despondency of the moment, I believed the fate that awaited me was irreversible, wished, for the first time, that I had never quitted my prison, since I should now return to it with redoubled reluctance.
"By means of a confidential servant, a method of informing the Signor of my confinement was with some difficulty effected; who I discovered by a letter, which was immediately conveyed, was actually meditating my escape.
"This, by the assistance of the domestics, who were bribed to our interests, notwithstanding the vigilance of my father and his Jesuitical Confessor, was finally accomplished: a ladder of ropes was placed beneath the window of my apartment, which I unreluctantly descended, and a vehicle being stationed at a convenient distance from the mansion, I placed myself in it, without asking whith
er I was going, and was conveyed rapidly away.
"It was the intention of the Signor to take a cross-road, lest a premature alarm might occasion pursuit, and to alight at one of the monasteries in the road, where a priest might be procured, and the ceremony be performed.
"It was long past midnight when we commenced our journey; but the moon shining with unclouded radiance, enabled us to prosecute it with speed, till her light became gradually pale, and the grey mists of the morning rose slowly upon the summits of the hills.
"Having arrived at a lonely and apparently deserted village, situated at the foot of a mountain, we enquired for the nearest convent, and was directed to one about a league from the place.
"Here we arrived when the Monks were returning from matins. It was a society of Augustines, and having engaged a Friar of the Order to officiate, the marriage was solemnized.
"As we had no fixed residence to return to, nor any friend or relation to receive us, we mutually agreed to drive on to the next town that could offer us accommodation, and to remain there till we could fix upon some plan for our future conduct.
"Here we arrived early in the day; and as soon as my scattered thoughts were somewhat collected, I wrote to my father, at once to solicit his forgiveness and his patronage. Lorenzo also wrote to Signor Lamberto, but our letters were disregarded; another and another were written, but without success; and having no hopes of obtaining the attention we requested, we determined to relinquish the pursuit.
"Near a month elapsed in this situation, when Lorenzo received orders to join his regiment, that was stationed in a remote province, whither, after some little preparation, I accompanied him.
"The journey was accomplished with little fatigue; and soon afterwards we had the satisfaction of being placed in a state of security and comfort, in which we experienced all the happiness that life could bestow. Our circumstances were indeed limited, but we managed so as to make not only a decent, but a respectable appearance, and might be said to be rich in each other's affection.
"Some years had passed in unclouded tranquillity, without any interesting event, except the birth of a son, who bore the name as well as the resemblance of his father, but of whom death early deprived me. Scarcely was I recovered from the indisposition this loss had occasioned, before our regiment was ordered into another part of the kingdom, to secure it from the invasion of the enemy, which obliged us to remove with all possible speed.
"Alas! I knew not then it was destined to become the seat of war, and being anxious to recover my spirits, exulted in the variety a change of situation would afford.
"But not to weary you with too long a detail, the regiment was soon afterwards engaged in a close action, and Lorenzo d'Orfo fell!
"Gracious heaven! what were my sufferings at that dreadful moment when I was informed that he was amongst the numbers of the fallen; though, to soften the intelligence, I was told he was only wounded. Frantic with despair, I flew into the field with the wildness of distraction, though it was night, and I had no one but a servant to attend me thither. After examining for a considerable time the mangled forms of the vanquished; which were so covered with blood as to render the features scarcely perceptible, I discovered the object of my search. But he was dead; the breath seemed newly to have forsaken the body, and his limbs were not yet stiff in death.
"In an agony, not to be described, I pressed him to my heart; and it was long before the people, whom my cries had attracted, could tear me from the place. A fever and delirium succeeded, which brought me to the brink of the grave; but the natural goodness of my constitution finally resisting the attack, I was gradually restored.
"As soon as the disorder of my mind was in some degree removed, I formed a resolution of returning to Mantua, for the purpose of soliciting the protection of my father, who, I now believed, would receive me with compassion and affection. When the physician who attended me, pronounced me able to travel without endangering my safety, I availed myself of his permission, and soon put my design into execution.
"After a few days" journey, which was performed with less fatigue than was expected, I arrived within the territories of Naples, and from thence proceeded, by easy stages, to Mantua.
"Here I learned, to my inexpressible grief and disappointment, that my father had been dead some time; and, on extending my enquiries concerning the disposal of his property, was informed that he had bequeathed the whole of it, which was indeed nothing very considerable, to the Jesuit, his Confessor.
"Having now no other means of subsistence than what my own exertions could procure, I had recourse to the embroidering of silks, to supply the convents and principal nobility of the place; which, from some skill in the art, more than supplied me with the actual necessaries of life.
"Near two years had elapsed without any incident worthy of attention, when a cessation of hostilities, which was somewhat suddenly effected, occasioned a visit from the Marchese de Martilini; who, having been acquainted with my misfortunes, and the injustice of my father, requested my acceptance of a sum sufficient to elevate me above want and dependance. This, knowing the exalted character of the bestower, I gratefully accepted; and, on the death of the Marchese de Montferrat, which happened some years after this event, consented, at the request of my patron, to accept of this situation, till one more eligible could be procured. Here I hope, in the capacity of Casiera: to enjoy at least peace and tranquillity.
"I have not at present been introduced to the Marchese de Montferrat; but as the castle will soon be in readiness for his reception, it is not probable that he will continue much longer in Italy. He has already honoured me with two letters respecting the repairs, and the disposal of the pictures, statues, vases, and other ornamental effects, in which he has discovered much taste and sentiment.
"In his last letter he mentioned a young person of the name of Laurette, who was shortly to be placed under my protection, with whose person, he added, he was yet unacquainted, though he had maintained and patronized her from infancy. This, I acknowledge, excited my curiosity, and instigated me to extend my enquiries among the servants, from whom I could gain no satisfactory intelligence upon the subject."
Here the Signora was silent; and Laurette, who had listened with a painful interest to this brief yet mournful narrative, in return for such unlimited confidence, proceeded to inform her new friend of some particulars relative to herself. The incidents of her life were few and simple; but the tone and manner in which they were delivered, and the tears that accompanied the recollection of infantile felicity, gave importance to the most trivial event, and won the esteem of her auditor.
When she arrived at that part of her story which treated of the sudden departure of her more than parent, the attention of the Signora was fixed in astonishment; and when the name of Enrico escaped her lips, the blush that suffused her cheeks, and the tremulous accent in which the words were delivered, declared how tenderly she was interested in his concerns, and breathed more than sisterly affection.
The Signora, who observed these emotions with the most refined compassion, endeavoured to console her with an assurance that she would make some immediate enquiries respecting the fate of the young chevalier, desiring her at the same time to look up and be comforted; not to give way to causeless suggestions, but to continue to rely on the protection of that Supreme Power, which she had never wilfully offended, and who consequently would never abandon her.
Those who know what it is to suffer, and to have those sufferings alleviated by the sympathy of friendship, will conceive the delightful sensation that was imparted to the bosom of Laurette in thus finding, contrary to her expectation, a person inclined to bestow that consolation which her present feelings required, in a stile the most grateful to her heart, and in whom, from what had recently passed, she had reason to believe she might entirely confide.
The only part of her narrative which Laurette had concealed, was the extraordinary appearance and behaviour of the mysterious Monk, with the delivery of the
picture. This circumstance she had strictly promised to conceal; and though it returned frequently and forcibly to her thoughts, accompanied with the most dreadful presages, she resolved, agreeably to the solemn vow she had taken in the presence of the father, never to disclose it.
CHAPTER II
Oft at the silent shadowy close of day.
When the tir'd grove has sung its parting lay.
When pensive Twilight, in her dusky car.
Comes slowly on to meet the evening star.
Above, below, aerial murmurs swell.
From hanging wood, brown heath, and bushy dell.
A thousand nameless rills, that shun the sight.
Stealing soft music on the ear of Night;
So oft the finer movements of the soul.
That shun the sphere of Pleasure's gay control.
In the still shades of calm Seclusion rise.
And breathe their sweet seraphic harmonies.
-ROGERS
Laurette had not been long resident in the castle of Lunenburg, before Paoli received an order from the Marchese to hasten his return into Italy; who having made some necessary arrangements, and given general orders to the Signora, prepared to depart.
His attention was so wholly directed to the business of rendering the mansion a fit residence for his Lord, and he so seldom obtruded himself into the presence of the ladies, that Laurette was scarcely conscious that he was an inhabitant of the place. When he entered the saloon to bid them adieu, being anxious to know when Dorothée and Lisette were to be conveyed thither, she ventured to follow him through the hall to make some enquiries concerning them, and was informed, to her inexpressible uneasiness, that they were already discharged; the Marchese having recently given orders for none of her former domestics to attend her.
The Complete Northanger Horrid Novel Collection (9 Books of Gothic Romance and Horror) Page 352
