The American Baron: A Novel — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
The American Baron: A Novel
John Stuart Mill · en
They drove on for some time, and at length reached Civita Castellana.
Here they drove up to the hotel, and the ladies got out and went up to
their apartments. They had three rooms up stairs, two of which looked
out into the street, while the third was in the rear. At the front
windows was a balcony.
The ladies now disrobed themselves, and their maids assisted them to
perform the duties of a very simple toilet. Mrs. Willoughby's was
first finished. So she walked over to the window, and looked out into
the street.
It was not a very interesting place, nor was there much to be seen;
but she took a lazy, languid interest in the sight which met her eyes.
There were the two carriages. The horses were being led to water.
Around the carriages was a motley crowd, composed of the poor, the
maimed, the halt, the blind, forming that realm of beggars which from
immemorial ages has flourished in Italy. With these was intermingled a
crowd of ducks, geese, goats, pigs, and ill-looking, mangy, snarling
curs.
Upon these Mrs. Willoughby looked for some time, when at length her
ears were arrested by the roll of wheels down the street. A carriage
was approaching, in which there were two travelers. One hasty glance
sufficed, and she turned her attention once more to the ducks, geese,
goats, dogs, and beggars. In a few minutes the crowd was scattered by
the newly-arrived carriage. It stopped. A man jumped out. For a moment
he looked up, staring hard at the windows. That moment was enough.
Mrs. Willoughby had recognized him.
She rushed away from the windows. Lady Dalrymple and Ethel were in
this room, and Minnie in the one beyond. All were startled by Mrs.
Willoughby's exclamation, and still more by her looks.
"Oh!" she cried.
"What?" cried they. "What is it?"
"_He's_ there! _He's_ there!"
"Who? who?" they cried, in alarm.
"That horrid man!"
Lady Dalrymple and Ethel looked at one another in utter horror.
As for Minnie, she burst into the room, peeped out of the windows, saw
"that horrid man," then ran back, then sat down, then jumped up, and
then burst into a peal of the merriest laughter that ever was heard
from her.
"Oh, I'm _so_ glad! I'm _so_ glad!" she exclaimed. "Oh, it's so
_aw_fully funny. Oh, I'm _so_ glad! Oh, Kitty darling, don't, please
don't, look so cross. Oh, ple-e-e-e-e-e-e-ase don't, Kitty darling.
You make me laugh worse. It's so _aw_fully funny!"
But while Minnie laughed thus, the others looked at each other in
still greater consternation, and for some time there was not one of
them who knew what to say.
But Lady Dalrymple again threw herself in the gap.