The Wanderer; or, Female Difficulties (Volume 4 of 5) — John Shaqi
The Wanderer; or, Female Difficulties (Volume 4 of 5)Burney, Fanny
History
The Wanderer; or, Female Difficulties (Volume 4 of 5)
Burney, Fanny
France -- History -- Revolution, 1789-1799 -- Refugees -- Fiction; Historical fiction; Refugees -- Fiction; War stories
The sensations of Juliet underwent now another change, though shame was
still predominant; her fears of exciting the expectations she sought to
annul in Harleigh, were superseded by a terrour yet more momentous, of
giving ground for suspicion, not alone to himself, but to Lord Melbury,
that, while fashioning a thousand difficulties, to accepting the
assistance that was generously and delicately offered by themselves, she
had suffered a third person, that person, also, a gentleman, to supply
her pecuniary necessities. She breathed hard, and looked disordered, but
could suggest nothing to say; while Harleigh and Lord Melbury stood as
if transfixed by disturbed astonishment.
'Well! I protest,' resumed Miss Bydel, 'if here i'n't another of the
people that we were talking of, Mr Giles! for I declare it's Mr
Harleigh, that I was telling you, you know, my good friend, was the
person that made poor Miss Joddrel make away with her herself, because
of his skimper-scampering after Mrs Ellis, when she had that swoon!
which, to be sure, had but an out of the way look; for the music would
have taken care of her. Don't you think so yourself, my dear?'
The most painful confusion again took possession of Juliet; who would
silently have walked away, had not Miss Bydel caught hold of her arm,
saying, 'Don't be in a hurry, my dear, for you shan't be chid; for I'll
speak for you myself to Mrs Ireton.'
'I am mighty glad to hear that Sir Jaspar is your friend, my pretty
lady,' said the smiling Mr Giles; 'and I am mighty glad, too, that you
have persuaded him to help to pay your debts. He's a very good sort of
man, where he takes; and very witty and clever. Though he is crabbed,
too; rather crabbed and waspish, when he i'n't pleased. He always scolds
all the men: and, indeed, the maids, too, when they a'n't pretty, poor
things! And they can't help that: else, I dare say, they would. Yet, I
am afraid, I don't like them quite so well myself, neither, in my heart,
when they are ugly; which is but hard upon them; so I always do them
double the good, to punish myself. But I'm prodigiously sorry you should
have taken to that turn of running in debt, my dear, for it's the only
thing I know to your disadvantage; for which reason I have never named
it to a single soul; only it just dropt out, before I was aware, to Miss
Bydel; which I am sorry enough for; for I am afraid it will be but hard
to her, poor lady, to keep it to herself.'
'What do you mean by that Mr Giles?' cried Miss Bydel, angrily. 'Do you
want to insinuate that I don't know how to keep a secret? I should be
glad to know what right you have to fleer at a person about that, when
you blab out every thing in such a manner yourself! and before these two
gentlemen, too; who don't lose a word of what passes, I can tell you!'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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