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
Anxious to avoid being recognized by him, she crossed to the other side
of the street, with a precipitance that caused the cover of her
band-box, which she had neglected to fasten, to slip aside, and most of
her stores to roll in the dust.
While, with great dismay, she sought to recover them, a feeble, but
eager voice, from a carriage, which suddenly stopt, ordered a footman to
descend and assist the young lady.
Not without confusion, Juliet perceived to whom she owed so uncommon a
civility; it was to her old friend and admirer Sir Jaspar Herrington.
She collected her merchandize, courtsied her thanks, but looked another
way, and hurried back to her new home.
She related her adventure to Gabriella, with whom she bemoaned the
mischief that had befallen the ribbons; and who now determined to spare
her friend any further hazard of unwelcome encounters, by carrying
herself what yet remained unsoiled of the pieces, to Soho Square.
Juliet had barely time to install herself as mistress of the small
warehouse, when she saw, through the window, the carriage of Sir Jaspar;
at the same time, that a young woman opened the shop-door, and demanded
a drachm of black sewing silk, and a yard of tape.
While Juliet with difficulty found, and with embarrassment prepared to
weigh the first, and to measure the second, the Baronet, with a curious,
but respectful air, entering, and hobbling towards the counter, desired
to look at some ribbons.
Juliet, however vexed, could not refrain from smiling; but, through
confusion, joined to the novelty of her office, she doubled the weight
of her silk, and the measure of her tape, yet forgot to ask to be paid
for either; and her customer, whether from similar forgetfulness, or
from reluctance to mark the new shop-keeper's ignorance of business,
walked off without seeming to notice this inattention.
Sir Jaspar, then, gravely repeated his request to be shewn some ribbons.
Juliet began now to hope that she had not been recollected by the
Baronet. Shading her face, therefore, still lower with her large bonnet,
she produced a drawer of black ribbons; concluding that what he required
must be for his queue, or for his shoe-strings.
No, he said, black would not do: the colour that he wanted was brown.
In a low voice that strove to disguise itself, she answered that she had
no other colour at home.
He would stay till some other were returned, then, he said; and,
composedly seating himself, and taking out his snuff-box, he added, that
he did not want plain brown ribbons, but ribbons speckled, spotted, or
splashed with brown.
Juliet who could now no longer doubt being known to him, made no reply;
though again, irresistibly, she smiled.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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