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 LIBRARY 
 
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 FROM THE 
 
 BENNO LOEWY LIBRARY 
 
 COLLECTED BY 
 
 BENNO LOEWY 
 
 1854-1919 
 BEQUEATHED TO CORNELL UNIVERSITY 
 
Cornell University Library 
 PR 4894.L37F4 
 
 A sequel to The female Jesuit; containing 
 
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 Library 
 
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 the Cornell University Library. 
 
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 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
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 NEW V , 
 
A SEQUEL 
 
 THE FEMALE JESUIT; 
 
 CONTAINING HEE PREVIOUS HISTORY 
 AND RECENT DISCOVERY. 
 
 e-ii 
 
 Ilk. 
 
 suit; or, 
 
 i :■ i ... j_ / TVUyv*->ti%&-v> 
 
 BY MKS. & LUKE, 
 
 AUTHOR OF "THE FEMALE JESUIT; OF, THE SPY IN THE FAMILY.' 
 
 NEW YOEK: 
 PUBLISHED BY M. W. DODD, 
 
 Corner of Spruce St. and City Hall Square. 
 
CRAIGHEAD, PRINTER, 
 
 53 Vesey Street, If. f. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The readers of " The Female Jesuit ; or, The Spy in the 
 Family'' will not be surprised to hear more of Marie ; and 
 the sale of nearly four thousand copies, in less than twelve 
 months, justifies the conclusion that its numerous readers 
 will he anxious to learn the issue. 
 
 The previous tale left Marie's real character an enigma, 
 and her origin a mystery. Recent disclosures have to a 
 great extent cleared up these ; and as one of the main ob- 
 jects of the previous volume was to elicit information, it is 
 a point of honor to make known her real character. How 
 singularly the publication of her narrative has led to the 
 development of her history, will appear in the present volume. 
 
 It is right to say, that when dismissed from Cromwell 
 Terrace, the family among whom she had so long intrigued, 
 did not think her a Jesuit agent. Dark and mysterious 
 shadows, indeed, rested on her origin and character ; and it 
 seemed scarcely possible that she could have carried out her 
 previous plots without accomplices ; but it was not until the 
 suggestion had been reiterated by intelligent friends, and 
 the after-discovery of some of her proceedings appeared to 
 give countenance to the suggestion, that this impression fixed 
 itself upon their minds. The theory of her being a Jesuit 
 agent, was even then put forth only as a suspicion, and the 
 result of subsequent information is now submitted to the 
 public. 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 After the detection of Marie's fraud, no immediate thought 
 of publishing a book was entertained. So far from this, a 
 letter containing an outline of her intrigues was sent to the 
 " Times" newspaper, to caution the public. After waiting 
 some weeks, a friend inquired at Printing House Square, and 
 found that the statement was deemed too extraordinary to 
 be believed. A second copy was sent, attested by witnesses ; 
 but for some unexplained reason it was not inserted. Had 
 that letter found admission into the columns of the " Times," 
 " The Female Jesuit" might not have appeared. The neces- 
 sity which thus prompted it, cannot now be regretted ; and 
 the public interest has justified the publication. 
 
 Several kind friends have contributed information for the 
 present volume ; amongst whom, the writer expresses her 
 obligations to the Rev. G-. CunlifFe, A.M., the Rev. R. G-. 
 Milne, and Mrs. Jobson : also to John Townshend, Esq., 
 through whose kindness the sketches of the Pymrydd Mill, 
 and the Valley of the Dee, have been supplied : as also to 
 other parties, whom she is not permitted to mention by 
 name. 
 
 The writer has carefully avoided trespassing on the period 
 of Marie's residence with Mr. and Mrs. Charles Seager, to 
 whose proposed work, entitled " The Female Jesuit Abroad," 
 frequent reference is made in the following pages. 
 
 In the former volume, the names are withheld from a 
 wish to avoid unnecessary publicity ; but many doubts hav- 
 ing been expressed as to the truth of the narrative, it is now 
 authenticated by the insertion of the names in full. 
 
 March 1st, 1852. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Chap. Page 
 
 I. PHANTOMS OF MARIE 7 
 
 H. MARIE AND METHODISM 14 
 
 m. EARLY DEVELOPMENT 38 
 
 IV. MAEIE IN MANCHESTER 43 
 
 V. OPTICAL ILLUSIONS 48 
 
 VI. MARIE " IN TRANSIT" 55 
 
 VH. MARIE " IN RETREAT" 62 
 
 VIH. MARIE'S FOURTH BIRTH-PLACE 66 
 
 IX. DISCOVERT AND PURSUIT 70 
 
 X. ENIGMATICAL LETTERS 81 
 
 XI. DECEASED FRIENDS RE-APPEAR 88 
 
 XH. MARIE UNDER ARREST 95 
 
 XIII. A TETE-A-TETE 106 
 
 XIV. THE SEARCH ... 112 
 
 XV. THE POLICE COURT 117 
 
 XVL FAREWELL TO BONN 123 
 
 XVH. MARIE AND CARDINAL WISEMAN 133 
 
 XVm. INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE 136 
 
 XIX. INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE CONTINUED .... 146 
 
 XX. LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT 169 
 
 XXI. PUBLIC INCREDULITY 174 
 
 XXII. IS SHE A JESUIT? 179 
 
 XXHI. WHAT IS SHE ? 186 
 
 CONCLUSION 196 
 
SEQUEL TO "THE FEMALE JESUIT." 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PHANTOMS OF MARIE. 
 
 Nearly a year has elapsed since the volume enti- 
 tled " The Female Jesuit" made its appearance. The 
 object of that publication having been rather to elicit 
 truth than to establish a theory, it will scarcely be a 
 matter of surprise that various communications have 
 been received by the writer, some offering different 
 solutions of " Marie's" case, and some reporting other 
 instances of deception more or less similar. Many of 
 these cases, in various particulars, so closely resembled 
 her line of procedure, that it seemed for a time as if 
 she had possessed the power of animating many bodies 
 at once, and that her name must have been "Legion." 
 Several literary and medical correspondents having 
 been disposed to regard her case as a singular mental 
 development, under the technical designation of " Sim- 
 ulative Hysteria," it has been considered that a brief 
 outline of a few of these instances may not be without 
 their use. It will be seen that such cases, though 
 greatly inferior to that of "-Marie" in talent and inge- 
 
8 PHANTOMS OF MARIE. 
 
 nuity, are far from being so uncommon as might be 
 supposed, and the recital will tend to put the public 
 on their guard. It may also assist in the fuller inves- 
 tigation of that class of subjects, and of the mental 
 and moral phenomena which they are supposed to 
 indicate. 
 
 The first case which came under notice was that of 
 a nun said to have escaped from the convent of Ban- 
 bury, in 1851. She represented herself as having 
 been convinced of the errors of Eomanism by the ac- 
 cidental reading of a New Testament; and through 
 the children of the poor school she entered into cor- 
 respondence with the vicar, and other Protestants of 
 that town. The circumstances of her exit, as described 
 by herself, much resembled that of Marie. It was 
 subsequently stated, that she had been threatened 
 with dismissal from the convent on account of light- 
 ness and impropriety of deportment, and that it was 
 at this juncture that she endeavored to enlist the sym- 
 pathies of Protestants. It was proved that her father 
 and other relatives were Protestant, and that she had 
 been educated accordingly, and the tale of the New 
 Testament must therefore have been a fiction. The 
 management of the whole affair bore so strong a re- 
 semblance to Marie's species of tactics, that for some 
 little time the " Olympia Mather," alias " Olympia 
 Fitz- Allan" of Banbury, was thought to be the same 
 person under another name. Two points of difference 
 at length proved their individuality. It appeared 
 that the Banbury nun had red hair, whereas Marie's 
 was black ; and that the former spoke French fluently, 
 which Marie could not do. 
 
PHANTOMS OF MARtE. : 9 
 
 Then came a more romantic tale of a gentleman who 
 had, a few years before, been entrapped into marriage 
 
 with a young lady nineteen years of age. L 
 
 M represented herself as the orphan daughter of 
 
 Major M , and that she had been compelled to 
 
 leave her guardian's house in consequence of his 
 efforts to induce her to marry his son. After her 
 marriage she was introduced to her husband's rela- 
 tions, who were charmed with her varied talents, and 
 her account of her foreign life- in France and Spain. 
 She stated that her father had been a favorite of Na- 
 poleon, and described her presentation at court, her 
 dress, its value, &c. She corresponded with two rich 
 aunts, and a brother, in the 60th rifles, at that time 
 abroad ; and had letters from them to show how 
 handsome her fortune would be when she came of 
 age. Many months passed, till at length the doubts 
 of the husband's family having been awakened by a 
 series of disappointments, no answers having been 
 received to their letters, and appointments made by 
 them or for them with the guardian and other friends 
 always broken, they resolved to investigate the affair. 
 They had great difficulty in inducing the poor husband 
 to consent, so persuaded was he of the good faith of 
 his fascinating wife. They met her, and went into 
 the affair. Much of the mystery was at length un- 
 ravelled, though much remained. It appeared that 
 she had another husband living, and that the whole 
 of her story was a fabrication. 
 
 The correspondence with the brother and rich aunts, 
 the tales of foreign life and the promised fortune, were 
 so like Marie's fictions, that again the thought was 
 
10 PHANTOMS OF MARIE. 
 
 entertained whether the two were one and the same 
 
 person. But, on closer inquiry, it appeared that L 
 
 M had ever since resided abroad, a small pension 
 
 having been guaranteed to her so long as she remained 
 out of the country. 
 
 A third deceiver had imposed upon the Eev. "W. L. 
 Poore of Manchester. She was young, pretty, fasci- 
 nating, and possessed of great natural talent. She 
 had a tale of a cruel father and a priest who were in 
 pursuit of her, and of a threatened convent in which 
 she was to be immured for life. Some of her state- 
 ments were investigated and proved to be correct, and 
 the others were believed in consequence. A glance 
 at her ill-written letters, however, proved that this 
 was not Marie. She had received much kindness 
 from Mr. and Mrs. Poore and their friends, for a 
 length of time before her falsehood was discovered. 
 It appeared that she had a father and an aunt able to 
 support her, and that he had wished to place her in a 
 convent-school for the improvement of her education ; 
 but that a thoroughly indolent disposition which could 
 endure no exertion but novel-reading, combined with 
 a passion for romance and deception, had led her to 
 choose out her own path, and that young as she was, 
 she had imposed upon not a few. 
 
 Other instances were communicated to the Eev. S. 
 Luke in confidence, by parties who had been the suf- 
 ferers, and were with more or less difficulty distin- 
 guished from Marie's case. 
 
 One story only need be added to those already 
 given. Eom antic as it may seem, it is strictly true, 
 and to this day it remains doubtful whether it was or 
 
PHANTOMS OP MARIE. 11 
 
 was not Marie. The parties concerned incline to think 
 that it was, though eight years having passed away, it 
 is almost impossible to ascertain the fact. 
 
 At a village near M , in the county of Cheshire, 
 
 there lived a worthy farmer of the name of M . 
 
 One summer evening at the period of which we speak, 
 there came to the door of the farm-house a youth in 
 shabby attire, but with the appearance and manners 
 
 of a gentleman. He addressed Mrs. M , who was 
 
 within, and requested a glass of water. To Mrs. M.'s 
 offer of a glass of whey, he replied that he did not 
 know what that was. She asked him in, and gave 
 him the whey. While engaged in conversation with 
 her, the rest of the family returned, and a thunder- 
 storm coming on, he was asked to stay to tea. As 
 they sat round the tea-table, he became very commu- 
 nicative, and informed them that he was a boy in Dr. 
 Butler's school at Shrewsbury, but had had a quarrel 
 with one of the ushers, and fearing disgrace, had run 
 away. He said that he was trying to get back to his 
 friends in Staffordshire, and had pawned his clothes 
 to meet his necessities. His apparent artlessness so 
 interested the family, that they lent him thirty shil- 
 lings to pay his travelling expenses to Staffordshire. 
 He parted from them with his spirits greatly cheered, 
 and promised to revisit them shortly. 
 
 In a fortnight or three weeks from that time, he did 
 come again, well dressed, returned them with thanks 
 their friendly loan, informed them that his matters 
 were pleasantly arranged, and said that he was come 
 to stay a little while with them on his way back to 
 Shrewsbury. They gave him a cordial welcome, and 
 
12 PHANTOMS OF MAEIE. 
 
 he was soon perfectly at his ease. Cheerful, artless, 
 and unreserved in his manner, he won their entire 
 confidence : they invited their friends to meet him, 
 and he was lionized and fi§ted in that simple neigh- 
 borhood. He seemed very studious, and talked much 
 of Latin and Greek, and not less of the gentry round, 
 with all of whom he appeared to be on terms of inti- 
 macy ; being himself, according to his own statement, 
 the son of a nobleman. 
 
 One, day when talking with great volubility of a 
 gentleman who lived # on his own estate, at about 
 twelve miles' distance, a listener happened to be pres- 
 ent who was acquainted with the subject of his con- 
 versation. He called Mr. M aside, and told him 
 
 that the statements of his guest were untrue, and that 
 he felt convinced that the youth was not what he pro- 
 fessed to be. 
 
 Startled by this communication, Mr. M agreed 
 
 to accompany his informant to the residence of the 
 gentleman in question, and there ascertain the facts. 
 They went, and found that the whole story was false 
 from beginning to end. They also learned that the 
 constable of that place was on the lookout for a young 
 man answering the description of Mr. M.'s visitor, for 
 some impositions practised on parties at Tarporley. 
 
 The constable accompanied Mr. M and his friend 
 
 to , and the youth was given in charge. He 
 
 pulled a pistol from his breast, and dared the con- 
 stable to touch him. Young and slightly built he 
 was soon overpowered, and then he earnestly en- 
 treated to be allowed to speak to Mrs, M- afowa. 
 
 She consented, and he then communicated to her the 
 
PHANTOMS OF MARIE. 13 
 
 information that he was a young woman. The ser- 
 vants had seen some portion of female apparel peeping 
 out of the visitor's carpet-bag, and had wondered, but 
 now the mystery was explained. On hearing this 
 statement the parties were indisposed to press the 
 case. She was allowed to go free, and has not since 
 been heard of. This occurred, however, in the neigh- 
 boring locality of Marie's early histpry, and as the age 
 corresponds, there is at least a presumption that it may 
 have been herself. 
 
 At length, however, circumstances transpired with 
 which Marie was clearly identified, and which will be 
 narrated at length in the ensuing chapter. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 MARIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 Some few weeks had elapsed after the publication 
 of "The Female Jesuit," in. February, 1851, when a 
 lady called at the house of the writer, and sent in her 
 card. She was shown into the drawing-room, and in- 
 troduced herself to Mrs. Luke. " I am a stranger to 
 you, " she said, " but I will soon explain the purport 
 of my visit. It relates to a book of which I have 
 been informed that you are the auther — the ' Female 
 Jesuit.' " Mrs. L. assented. " I am the wife of a Wes- 
 leyan minister. In 1847 we resided in Manchester, 
 and there the heroine of your book made our ac- 
 quaintance. She came to us under another name, 
 but I do not think we can be mistaken, as we imme- 
 diately recognized the likeness. I have brought some 
 of her letters that we may compare the writing, and 
 shall be obliged by a sight of the original portrait." 
 
 The letters were read and compared, the portraits 
 examined, and the story told ; and as Mrs. Jobson has 
 kindly acceded to Mrs. L.'s, request, and committed 
 her tale to paper, it shall be given to the public in her 
 own words. 
 
MAKIE AND METHODISM. 15 
 
 " Dear Mrs. Luke, 
 
 " Being fully satisfied from a comparison of 
 our letters, as well as from other corroborative circum- 
 stances, that you and I have had similar impositions 
 practised upon us by the same artful individual, whom 
 you describe in your publication as 'The Female 
 Jesuit; or, the Spy in the Family,' I write down, 
 according to your request, the principal circumstances 
 connected with her introduction and visit to me. 
 
 " It was on a Monday morning in May, 1847, du- 
 ring the period when Mr. Jobson, as a Wesleyan min- 
 ister, was stationed in Manchester, that I first saw her. 
 She called at our house in Eadnor-street, early in the 
 morning, and requested to be permitted to speak with 
 the Rev. Mr. Jobson. She was shown by the servant 
 into the parlor, where I was sitting alone ; and, after 
 bowing politely as she entered, and repeating her re- 
 quest to see Mr. Jobson, she proceeded to tell me who 
 she was, and for what she came. She said, 'As a 
 stranger I have to apologize to you for my intrusion 
 into your house; but having been convinced last 
 evening, through hearing a sermon preached by Mr. 
 Jobson, of the error and danger of my state as a Ro- 
 man Catholic and a sinner, I judged it best to seek an 
 interview with him without delay, and to solicit fur- 
 ther instruction.' I replied that* Mr. Jobson was en- 
 gaged in his study, but I was sure, that under such 
 circumstances, he would not deem her visit an intru- 
 sion upon his time, and that he would rejoice to give 
 her the instruction she desired. I informed Mr. Job- 
 son of the presence and object of our visitor. He im- 
 mediately left his study and came into the parlor; 
 
16 MAK1E AND METHODISM: 
 
 when, after a few introductory sentences, she pro- 
 ceeded to relate to lis,' in general, the circumstances 
 of her life, and of her conviction of the errors of Ro- 
 manism. As far as I Can remember, she said, 'I am 
 an orphan, now residing in the house, and under the 
 protection, of the Honorable B. Trelawney, of Plas 
 Bower, in North Wales. My father was an officer in 
 the same regiment with that gentleman ; and dying 
 when with him on foreign service, he committed me, 
 to his charge, and; since then he has kindly acted as 
 my guardian. I am not entirely dependent upon him- 
 for support ; for, as the child of a deceased officer, I 
 have a pension from the government. Mr. Trelawney 
 has been always exceedingly kind to me, and most 
 attentive to my interests. He has had me carefully 
 educated, and during the two last years of my educa- 
 tion, I was in a convent near London. Since then I 
 have resided in his house ; and though I have acted 
 as preceptress to his children, yet I have been uni- 
 formly treated as one of the family. I came over to 
 visit the family of Major Ormond, at Didsbury ; and, 
 last evening, finding myself. late for the Boman Cath- 
 olic service in the new chapel near to Stretford Road, 
 I was returning home, when, as I passed a large chapel 
 in Oxford Road, there issued from it the sound of many 
 voices singing together. I went in, ascended the gal-, 
 lery stairs, and was shown into a seat. The scene was 
 singularly novel to me, for I had never been into a 
 Protestant place of worship before ; and though the 
 unrobed appearance of the minister, and his giving 
 out of the hymn by two lines at a time, struck me as 
 peculiar, yet the earnest devotion of the large con-, 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 17 
 
 gregation, singing harmoniously together, awed me 
 greatly, and bowed down my whole nature with feel- 
 ing. At the close of the hymn, Mr. Jobson com- 
 menced his sermon, on the lamentation of Christ over 
 Jerusalem. I saw the compassionate character of the 
 Saviour as I had never seen it before, and wept greatly. 
 I have been kept awake through the night, thinking 
 of what I heard ; and, having also thought much of 
 the difference between the teaching which last evening 
 so greatly affected me, and that of the Komish Church, 
 and, also, of my past unsatisfied and sinful life, I am 
 greatly shaken in my confidence in the faith in which 
 I have been educated; am greatly distressed under 
 the burden of my sinfulness and danger ; and have 
 come here for directions as to what I ought to do.' 
 
 " Mr. Jobson spoke to her, generally, on the sur- 
 passing importance of the soul's salvation, and on the 
 scriptural way in which it is to be sought. He ad- 
 vised her to count deliberately the cost of what she 
 felt to be her duty to do ; and, after a full considera- 
 tion of the sacrifices she would probably have to make 
 if she forsook the Church in which she had been 
 brought up, and to which her patron and friends be- 
 longed, to inquire of herself if she was prepared, at 
 such a price, to act according to her altered views and 
 convictions. She said that she had already thought 
 of what would probably be the consequences of be- 
 coming a Protestant ; that she had no doubt such a 
 step would issue in her forfeiting the favor of the Tre- 
 lawneys ; of her uncle, who was in a high ecclesiastical 
 office in Dublin ; and also, of her only brother, who 
 was in the army abroad, and who was expecting 
 
18 MARIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 shortly to obtain leave to visit her. The danger to 
 which she would be exposed from the influences of 
 Eomish priests in Wales was also spoken of by her: 
 there was reason to fear that she would be clandes- 
 tinely carried off to a convent abroad, and immured 
 in it for life. But after thinking of these things, she 
 felt that the motive of eternal life was so powerful, 
 that she was prepared to act according to her convic- 
 tions, at the risk of any sacrifice she might have to 
 make. She also said that her doubts concerning the 
 truth of the Eomish religion had been strengthening, 
 for some years past ; that when in the convent she 
 frequently felt her sinfulness, and sought deliverance 
 from it by prayers to St. Catherine, her patron saint, 
 and by long and painful penances which she per- 
 formed; but these affording her no effectual relief, 
 she at times questioned the truth and reality of her 
 religion. And that, since then, she had been so sur- 
 prised by the difference of the teaching of the New 
 Testament — a copy of whieh she had one day acci- 
 dentally found in Mr. Trelawney's library, and which 
 she had secretly read — that she was in some measure 
 prepared for the more full conviction of the truth, as 
 it had been brought home to her mind by the sermon 
 of the preceding evening. 
 
 " Mr. Jobson had some further conversation with 
 her on the knowledge she had of the doctrines and' 
 practices of the Church of Eome: for having himself 
 been brought up in association with some of the most 
 intelligent members of that Church, he knew more 
 concerning its doctrines and practices, than Protestants 
 who have not been so situated; but finding nothing 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 19 
 
 in her statements opposed to his own knowledge, he 
 considered them to be true. Having learned from her 
 that she was likely to remain in the neighborhood 
 until Friday, he gave her some further directions for 
 seeking the salvation of her soul, and invited her to 
 take tea with me on Thursday evening, by which time 
 he would have selected for her some books suited to 
 her state of mind. This, she said she should be glad 
 to do. Mr. Jobson returned to his study, leaving her 
 with me for further conversation. 
 
 " After her departure, I went to Mr. Jobson ; and 
 having noticed a more than ordinary reserve in his 
 manner while conversing with her, as well as the great 
 prominence he gave to the difficulties and sacrifices of 
 her proposed course, I asked him if he did not think 
 that he had been a little too cautious and discouraging 
 in what he had said. He replied he had been so in- 
 tentionally ; not that he disbelieved her statements, 
 but as she was an entire stranger to him, he thought 
 it well, before giving himself unreservedly to her case, 
 to make such inquiries as her statements permitted ; 
 and then, if satisfied of their truth, he would render 
 all the counsel and assistance necessary. 
 
 " On Thursday evening she came and took tea with 
 me. Mr. Jobson being from home, attending a meet- 
 ing of the ministers of the Manchester district, we con- 
 versed at length upon her convent life, her situation 
 as an orphan, and her state as an inquirer for salva- 
 tion ; and, feeling deeply interested in her case, I en- 
 gaged to correspond with her on matters felt by her to 
 be the most important. She gave me her address in 
 writing, which was, ' Miss Lucy Grantham Gardiner, 
 
20 MAEIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 at the Honorable B. Trelawney's, Plas Bower, near 
 Denbigh, North Wales.' 
 
 " As she stated that she was to leave by the Ches- 
 ter train on Friday morning, at a certain time, Mr. 
 Jobson, without a word having been said that would 
 lead her to expect his doing so, went at that time to 
 the Bailway station, found her there ready to leave, 
 and with the books he had given her in her hand, as 
 if intending to read them in the carriage. This, with 
 favorable answers to inquiries we had made concern- 
 ing names and residences she had mentioned in her 
 conversations with us, seemed to leave little room to 
 doubt her truthfulness. 
 
 " After her return to Wales, I received a letter from 
 her every week, each of which I answered, with the 
 hope of affording to her suitable counsel in her diffi- 
 cult and dangerous circumstances. The letters sent 
 were, at first, addressed to her according to the direc- 
 tion she had given me ; and her references to their 
 contents, as well as her formal acknowledgments of 
 their safe arrival, proved that she received them. In 
 her letters to me, she dwelt much upon the delicacy 
 and the trial of the duty to be performed — namely, 
 that of acquainting her friends with the change which 
 her mind had undergone in regard to the Protestant 
 and Bomish religions. She expressed her shuddering 
 fears of the curses of the . church she was about to 
 leave ; curses which she said would be publicly pro- 
 nounced upon her ; and the dread she had of the an- 
 ger of a Father Carberry (the private priest of the 
 family of the Trelawneys), to whom she had been ac- 
 customed to make confession ; and whose power over 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 21 
 
 her feelings she found it difficult to throw off. She 
 also related to me circumstances concerning her uncle 
 and brother; and described pleasure-parties, and f§tes 
 of archery, &c, in which she professed to have lost all 
 interest, through her serious attention of late to spirit- 
 ual subjects. All these served to make her letters the 
 more pleasing, and to strengthen my concern for her. 
 
 "In the month of June, according to an agreement 
 made between us, she visited me for some days. Du- 
 ring her stay, she conducted herself in every respect 
 with lady-like propriety, and appeared to be most 
 anxiously inquiring for the salvation of her soul. 
 Mr. Jobson and I had lengthened conversations with 
 her on this subject, and sought to assist her by our 
 daily counsel and prayers. 
 
 " At that time we were much engaged in connection 
 with the opening services of a new Wesleyan chapel 
 near to our house. She attended those services with 
 us ; spoke of the pleasure she would have in playing 
 the organ for the congregation, if she lived near to the 
 chapel ; and of the delight she would have in constant 
 attendance at it for public worship, if her circum- 
 stances would allow her to do so. In all this, there 
 was a delicacy of expression employed that did not 
 allow us to entertain the supposition, that she was 
 seeking an invitation for a permanent home in our 
 dwelling. Indeed, her whole deportment, while with 
 us, was such as fully to sustain the account she had 
 given of her position and associations ; and, rather 
 than appearing to seek any pecuniary assistance from 
 us, she seemed disposed to contribute out of her own 
 resources somewhat lavishly towards the new chapel. 
 
22 MARIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 "We checked her in this ; and, reminding her of what 
 she might soon require for her own support, insisted 
 upon her taking hack what she had .proffered. 
 
 " During her stay, she Was introduced to several 
 intelligent and respectable friends, resident in the Ox- 
 ford Eoad side of Manchester, who visited us; and 
 who, on learning her circumstances, showed great in- 
 terest in her. She conversed with them freely and in- 
 telligently, and bore herself, throughout, with great 
 consistency. Her appearance was prepossessing ; her 
 dress simple and good ; and she usually wore a large 
 brooch in her bosom, of the Madonna and : child, after 
 Eaffaelle, — by which those who conversed with her 
 were reminded of her Eomish education and associa- 
 tions. On the morning fixed for her return to her 
 friends, she complained of severe suffering from a 
 bilious attack. I procured for her suitable medicine, 
 and pressed her to remain with us another day. She 
 did so, and through the greater part of it reclined on 
 the sofa. I proposed to read to her. She expressed 
 her gratitude for the proposal, and requested me to 
 read to her, from the Old Testament Scriptures, the 
 history of Abraham ; stating that she desired to learn 
 how it was that he was justified both by his faith and 
 by his works, as she had read in the New Testament. 
 I read to her the whole of his history, and explained 
 it to her, as I proceeded, according to the teaching of 
 the apostles St. Paul and St. James. She professed 
 herself instructed and edified by my doing so ; and 
 declared that, through the Scriptures having been 
 withheld from her, she had never before read, or heard 
 read, the history of Abraham. She appeared to be 
 
MAplE AND METHODISM. 23 
 
 improved in her state of health, and left us for "Wales 
 the next morning. 
 
 "A few days subsequently I received from her the 
 following letter, which with one or two others may be 
 interesting as specimens of her correspondence. 
 
 „■».• <. -.* -,, " Puiford, Friday night. 
 
 " My dear Mrs. Jobson, 
 
 " I again take up my pen to inform you that I 
 am not going to Beaumaris for the present, but returning in 
 the morning to Plas Bower. It is a great disappointment 
 to me, for I had all ready to go, when I received a letter 
 yesterday that I must go home, for Julia* is leaving Wales 
 for London and France, on Monday week, so is anxious I 
 should spend a little time with her before she goes. Wynne 
 will be very much vexed. I expect him every moment : he 
 was expected to dinner. The Harrisons do not go before 
 Tuesday : they expect I shall meet them after Miss Julia's 
 departure ; but I fear I shall not, as circumstances will per- 
 haps order it otherwise. 
 
 " A letter has at length arrived from my brother. Mrs. 
 S." did not send it, for it is a large one, so thought it better 
 to leave it till I returned. I am very anxious to hear what 
 he thinks about me. My certificate is also sent, and now 
 waits the usual process ; so I shall have that right before I 
 leave. I purpose if I have an opportunity to-morrow to call 
 on our solicitor, and ascertain in which way my legacy is put 
 out, and where. I will do it cautiously and prudently. This 
 day week I was with you. I often think of and sigh when I 
 look back to the few happy days I spent with you, and long 
 to return again to Radnor Street. The next Sabbath I shall 
 spend in the worship of the Church of Borne, but I trust our 
 united prayers will meet at the throne of grace, and there be 
 accepted. Forget me not in your silent petitions. Pray that 
 * Her eldest pupil. 
 
24 MARIK AND METHODISM. 
 
 I may have grace and strength in the hour of trial ; that God 
 may be my shield and protector against the wiles of the 
 wicked one. I feel an increasing delight in reading the 
 Word of God. It is a sure proof of the error of any Church 
 when she does not allow her members to read that Word. I 
 wish much I had the whole ; but it is, perhaps, better that I 
 have not at the present. I have the Psalms ; what comfort 
 and hope we may find in them ! What sort of a meeting had 
 you on Wednesday ? I thought of you, and wished I had the 
 wings of a dove, that I could fly over to meet you there with 
 God's people. 
 
 " When you write, please tell me whether you had a 
 happy Sabbath, and whether the chapel is well attended. 
 I suppose you will not have seen Mr. B since I saw you. 
 
 " I hear a carriage coming up the drive : it is Wynne, so I 
 must wish you a good night. 
 
 " Saturday morning. Before I leave my bed-room I take 
 the opportunity of finishing this letter, so that I may take it 
 to the Post-office. If you will write to me on Monday I can 
 get the letter by carrier this time. I will make some ar- 
 rangement to get them from Denbigh, for it is so awkward to 
 get the letters in this way, but it is certainly the safest. 
 Direct to Wrexham Post-office, as before. Do you think I 
 might venture to have them directed to Aberconway, that is 
 one of our village posts? I am almost disposed to venture 
 their being sent at once to Plas Bower. I can judge of the 
 propriety of that when I get home. Wynne leaves here with 
 me to-day, and will accompany me in the railway as far as 
 
 Buabon, when he will go to on horseback ; that is 
 
 uncle's place. He is the same as ever ; he perceives a cool- 
 ness in me. I am grieved to pain him. Write, please, and 
 believe me, " Ever yours sincerely, 
 
 " Lucy Grantham Gardiner. 
 
 " Do wite." 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 25 
 
 " The interchange of letters continued ; and after a 
 few weeks, she informed me that an opportunity had 
 offered for her making known to the Trelawneys, ana' 
 to Father Carberry, her confessor, the alteration of 
 her views with respect to religion. 
 
 " Plas Bower, Tuesday, June 23. 
 " My very dear Friend, 
 
 " After a day spent in the greatest suspense, and I 
 may say misery, I once more retire to the loneliness of my 
 bed-room to unburthen my thoughts to you, which in my 
 present state of mind will be a great relief to me. I never 
 felt, under any severe dispensation, more of human wretched- 
 ness than I do now. Everything appears dark and gloomy. 
 I am, as it were, sunk in an abyss of doubts, fears, and per- 
 plexities. Since I wrote to you I have been much harassed 
 with the thought of how I must inform Father Carberry of 
 my determination. I commenced several letters to him, but 
 was so nervous I could not write. I therefore came at last 
 to the conclusion of leaving the event entirely to God, and I 
 trust, earnestly prayed for His direction, knowing that He 
 can turn and dispose the hearts of all men. This evening I 
 felt exceedingly ill with thoughts of how I should presume to 
 tell him of my objections to conform with the errors of the 
 Church of Home ; but when he came I was wonderfully sup- 
 ported. God was indeed a present help in time of trouble. 
 When I was informed that he waited for me in the confes- 
 sional, I thought it better to tell him on a slip of paper which 
 I sent. The purport of it was this, — ' Dear Father, forgive 
 me for leading you to suppose that I would meet you this 
 afternoon at confession. I ever felt a great repugnance to it, 
 but now I cannot, for I have come to the decision of confess- 
 ing my sins to God, who alone can pardon them.' The man 
 immediately returned, saying Father Carberry demanded my 
 
 2 
 
26 MABIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 presence directly. I went trembling. He did not seem so 
 angry as I had anticipated, but was very calm. He received 
 me rather sternly, and said he was surprised that of all com- 
 mitted to his charge, I alone should be careless of my salva- 
 tion, by refusing to confess that I might receive pardon 
 through the medium of His priests, the only way in which 
 the Church appoints. I was much overcome ; but after a little 
 while I summoned all my courage, and asked him if that was 
 the only way the Bible had appointed for us to receive abso- 
 lution. He looked much astonished, and answered me that 
 it was not my duty to dispute the authority of the Church, 
 and asked me if I knew that the Saviour had given authority 
 to priests (disciples), that whosesoever sins they remit are 
 forgiven, and whosesoever sins they retain are retained. He 
 said the priests had still that power, and reminded me of the 
 danger of refusing to confess, lest my sins should not be for- 
 given. I felt so awed and struck with the manner in which 
 he pronounced these words, that he thought I relented, so 
 desired me to proceed to confess, and by so doing, the sins I 
 had committed by neglecting and slighting the rights of the 
 Holy Church might be forgiven, so that by penance she 
 would be satisfied. Methought, would G-od be satisfied? 
 No, I should have been doubly criminal, sinning against the 
 light He has given me. However, after I had recovered 
 myself from the little flurry, I said I could not find in the 
 Word of God any passage but one in which He had com- 
 manded us to confess our sins to man, and that was only, to 
 one another. He desired to know how I dared without the 
 sanction of the Church to read the Bible, or procure one. 1 
 told him I had first seen one in the library, and afterwards 
 procured one. He wished to know if it was an English one, 
 because that was translated to favor Protestants, who had 
 altered it to suit their own views. Is it so 1 I cannot recol- 
 lect all the conversation, for I am so excited ; but one thing 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 27 
 
 he asked which puzzles me, on the infallibility of the Church. 
 He said, ' Where was the Protestant Church three hundred 
 years ago V Christ he said had built the Church of Borne, 
 saying that the gates of hell should not prevail against 
 it. Saint Peter was appointed bishop. I do not think he 
 had the slightest suspicion that I held Protestant views, but 
 merely told me of this to strengthen my belief in the Romish 
 doctrines. In the latter part of his conversation his manners 
 assumed their usual affection. Personally you could not help 
 but like him. He is so very kind. I do think his motives 
 are sincere, though he is wrapt in delusion. I wept much, 
 for his kindness affected me ; for he said that I was not then 
 in a proper frame of mind to confess, but desired me to pre- 
 pare by penance and Ave Marias against the next call, which 
 will not be for a week or two, as he is going away. 
 
 " With pain of mind I acknowledge that I was not firm 
 in telling him that I dared not do so. It is this that now 
 makes me miserable. I have deceived him. I feared to tell 
 him. I ought to have been decided, trusting in God for the 
 result. I feared man more than Him. 
 
 " I do not know whether he named it to Mrs. Trelawney, 
 for she did not allude to it. She seems the same, and to- 
 night surprised me by giving me a tunic for to-morrow's fete. 
 She is very affectionate to me. The house is now full of 
 company. The family of the De Traffords are here. They 
 came about six o'clock. I have not seen them yet, for I 
 dined alone on some gruel, for I am so very poorly. I wish 
 to-morrow were Over, for I must appear lively, but I shall 
 have a sad heart. I am anxiously expecting a letter from 
 you in the morning. I feel now quite wearied, so wish you 
 ' good night.' 
 
 " Wednesday night. I received your precious letter just 
 as we were going in the tents for luncheon, so could not pe- 
 ruse it till I went to dress for dinner. It has been a very 
 
28 MARIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 splendid day, and on the whole fine. I won a coronet of 
 gilt laurel. I was second mark on the target. I do thank 
 you for your disinterested kindness to me. Reward you I 
 cannot, but I pray that God may. As regards our justifica- 
 tion by works, I feel confident that nothing in us can merit 
 the favor of God, and that anything we can do is imperfect. 
 Many thanks to you for your kind invitation, which I should 
 be thankful to accept. It would be almost too great a hap- 
 piness to spend a Sabbath with you, if convenient to you. 
 Major H is of course a Papist, but would it be neces- 
 sary to tell him you were Protestants ? I think I need only 
 tell him that I have friends in Manchester that I wished to 
 see. He does not know a great deal about me or my friends. 
 
 As I before told you, he and Mrs. H were good friends 
 
 of my dead parents ; they occasionally visit here. I do not 
 think there would be other inquiries, or I should come to see 
 you before I went there. The carriage will take me to 
 Kuabon. I shall proceed by railway to Chester. I could 
 leave on some Friday, and inform Major H of my visit- 
 ing him the Monday following. Would that be wrong ? If 
 it is, be faithful and tell me. I would wish to do what would 
 be prudent and right. The travelling so far alone would not 
 be improper, for I have often travelled as far alone. I should 
 like to spend a Sunday with you when Mr. Jobson preaches 
 at your own chapel, as I should wish to hear Mr. J. Mrs. 
 Trelawney says I must go in the early part of July. I do 
 wish to converse with you personally, as I have a deal to tell 
 you that I cannot by letter. I am truly sorry to hear of your 
 being unwell, but hope the next letter will contain better 
 news. I am very anxious to have a -letter from my dear and 
 only brother, from whom I expect to be alienated. It is a 
 distressing thought ; but may the Lord enable me to give up 
 all for him. I am very much tired, and have also got a bad 
 headache. I left all below dancing. I left them. It is now 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 29 
 
 three o'clock, Thursday morning, and none are come up yet. 
 Write to me soon, and direct it to Wrexham Post-office as 
 before. I think it the safest ; for if a letter is intercepted, I 
 am undone. Could you write on Monday or Tuesday, and 
 say what you think about my coming, and when it would be 
 most convenient, so that I may make my arrangements. 
 Any Saturday after next I may go. I must now go to bed, 
 or else I shall not be in a fit state for this morning's school 
 duties, which will only be for two hours. With kind regards 
 to Mr. J., and dear love to yourself, 
 
 " I am ever your grateful and affectionate 
 
 " Lucy Grantham Gardiner. 
 " I shall send it by carrier? 
 
 " In a subsequent letter she described, at greater 
 length, the surprise and dismay which her friends 
 manifested ; the threats and remonstrances they utter- 
 ed ; and recorded, in her letters, the evil names of 
 ' heretic,' &c, which from time to time they applied 
 to her. All this, with various inflictions endured 
 under influence of her father confessor, and the par- 
 ticulars of which she detailed, was said to have so 
 seriously affected her health, that she had to be re- 
 moved for a change to Trevalyn Hall, where letters 
 sent would be delivered to her. 
 
 " Two letters written at this period have been pre- 
 served. The third, which entered more into detail, 
 cannot be found. The former are as follows : — 
 
 "Teevaltn, Friday. 
 " My dearest Friend will .think. me very neglectful in not 
 fulfilling my promise ; but my reason for not writing was, 
 that I thought it better that I should not do so till my sen- 
 
30 MARIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 timents were fully known, which I rejoice to inform you are 
 at last explained. 
 
 " I have undergone much more than the limits of paper 
 and time will allow me to tell you, but I have found a friend 
 where I least expected it, in the person of Mrs. Trelawney of 
 Trevalyn. We left Manchester on Thursday, and stayed at 
 Chester all night. We arrived at Plas Bower on Saturday. 
 The Trelawneys of Trevalyn accompanied us. Mr. Carberry 
 could not meet us for confession before Thursday. Major 
 
 O did not see our people before we left, so nothing 
 
 transpired before that day. I cannot describe to you my 
 anxiety. I have not now time to enter fully into what 
 occurred at the time, but will write to you, to-morrow, a long 
 letter. I acquainted Mrs. T. with my intentions (after tiie 
 storm was o-^er), at which she appeared much grieved of 
 giving up her charge. Mrs. T., of Trevalyn, acted very 
 kindly in the midst of the noise. She said I had a right to 
 act and think for myself. She has several relatives, Prot- 
 estants. I was so ill the following day that I kept my bed. 
 Mrs. Trelawney was very kind, and was, I am sure, sorry for 
 her harshness to me the preceding night. I had promised to 
 return with Mrs. T. to Trevalyn, to stay a short time with 
 her. She arrived here last night. I cannot yet decide how 
 soon I shall come to you, but hope in the course of a week 
 or two. I think you will have a letter from Mrs. Trelawney. 
 Must I write to Wynne now ? I am almost heart-broken. 
 What shall I say 1 I have had a long conversation with 
 Mrs. T. to-day in reference to him. She thinks me very 
 foolish, and laughs at my anxiety ; but at the same time, 
 though she thinks me in error, would allow me liberty of 
 conscience. I suppose I shall return to Plas Bower. I am 
 going to send Mrs. Trelawney the letter, only I shall make a 
 few alterations. I could not acquaint her personally with all 
 my motives. I will write and tell you all the awful denun- 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 31 
 
 ciations threatened me in the heat of passion. I was won- 
 derfully supported. Please write to me soon. I cannot 
 stay any longer, for I am going out an airing ; so with kind- 
 est love, 
 
 " I am, ever yours dearly, 
 
 " L. G-. Gardiner. 
 " Address, 
 
 " Miss G-ardiner, 
 
 " T. Trelawney's, Esq. 
 
 " Trevalyn Hall, 
 
 " Near Wrexham, 
 
 " Denbighshire. 
 " Don't write before Monday, for perhaps you may receive 
 more by then." 
 
 " Tbevalyn Hall, Thursday night. 
 
 " My dearest Friend, 
 
 " Tou will see I am not yet located in that place 
 which has been to me the birth-place of many a sorrow and 
 joy. I feel happy in the pleasure of stealing away from my 
 present society to converse, through the silence of paper, with 
 a kindred spirit, who I am convinced sympathizes with me 
 in every anxiety. There is a something sweet in the thought 
 of having a friend,^ real one. I envy not the man who 
 can look around him, and find not a friend. I rejoice to 
 think I am so highly privileged in possessing one who not 
 only cares for my temporal, but takes an interest in my eter- 
 nal welfare ; but I must not fill up my paper with needless 
 introductions. 
 
 " The reason I have not returned, Mrs. Trelawney, of P. B., 
 is gone into Pembrokeshire to stay a short time. Mrs. T. 
 kindly invited me to stay. I am as comfortable as circum- 
 
32 MARIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 Siances will allow, but am very much annoyed with repeated 
 controversies with (;he family, and also the priest. We had 
 a very warm argument yesterday. He would not listen as 
 
 calmly as Mrs. C to what I advanced from Scripture, but 
 
 was very impatient. Last evening he brought me a work of 
 Dr. Wiseman's, on Purgatory. I could not in courtesy re- 
 fuse it, but shall return it unperused. 
 
 " Since my last I have seen Wynne, and spent several hours 
 with him. You say I must be directed by conscience ; if so, 
 I must give him up. We should each act in opposition 
 respecting our worship, and perhaps eventually each miss our 
 way. The Bible says, ' a house divided against itself cannot 
 Btiitnd.' If I marry him, I shall render myself forever miser- 
 able. ' The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.' I cer- 
 tainly must sacrifice much as far as worldly matters are con- 
 cerned, for few in his station will take a portionless female ; 
 but what is that compared with my eternal welfare. 
 
 " I was very anxious, indeed, to have gone to Manchester 
 this week, but Mrs. T. was very pressing, and I cannot come 
 before I see her; and Wynne begged of me to stay a 
 little time to see if I could not make some arrangement with 
 Mrs. T., and also to consider what I was doing. That is 
 already done ; but it will be quite impossible to convince him 
 of the propriety of my present intention. I should have writ- 
 ten earlier, but have been waiting to hear from Walter, but 
 have been disappointed. I cannot account for his silence. I 
 saw his promotion last week in the paper. My uncle has re- 
 mitted Mrs. T. the money advanced, which is very kind. I 
 believe I am quite the subject of conversation among the 
 friends of the family. 
 
 " Mrs. T. told me yesterday I should have my name put 
 in the newspapers, by your body, as a convert to your re- 
 ligion. Oh, dear Mrs. J., I hope such a step would be pre- 
 vented. I cannot bear the idea of my name being published 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 33 
 
 to the world. I must stay here for a week, till Mrs. Tre- 
 lawney, of Plas Bower, returns, when I shall return, and 
 finally decide matters. I am apprehensive my uncle knows. 
 Write, please. Address as before, and believe me, with 
 dearest love. 
 
 " Yours, ever truly, 
 
 " Ltjcy G. Gardiner. 
 
 " P.S. Last Sunday I attended the parish church. I did 
 not like the sermon, it was so very long, and the minister so 
 inanimate. Do unite' 
 
 " Bon soir, ma chere amie. 
 
 " Excuse paper and writing, for my writing-case is down- 
 stairs." 
 
 "From the same place other letters arrived, in 
 which Lucy professed to be in a state of severe afflic- 
 tion, and to be attended by a medical man, and a 
 daily nurse. These accounts, of course, excited great- 
 ly our fears concerning her; but, after a time, we 
 were relieved by tidings of her recovery. 
 
 " Soon after this she called upon us again, having 
 come, as she said, with the Trelawney family to hear 
 Jenny Lind sing. We saw her several times during 
 her stay in the town. "We invited her to spend the 
 Sabbath with us, which she did ; and Mr. Jobson and 
 I had lengthened conversations with her on the alter- 
 ed conduct of her friends towards her. We considered 
 what would be the best advice to give her under the 
 circumstances ; and at length Mr. Jobson proposed to 
 her, that if she found that she could not comfortably 
 continue with the family in which she resided, she 
 should leave it, and come and abide with us until some 
 
84: MABIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 i 
 
 other course should open before her. To this proposal 
 she appeared gratefully to accede; and she left us with 
 the expectation that she would soon be an inmate of 
 our house. At this last interview an accident occur- 
 red which was the only one that excited suspicion in 
 my mind respecting the truth of any of her statements ; 
 and that was not sufficient to allow me to retain the 
 suspicion. We had made inquiries of a friend at 
 
 Didsbury, the Eev. Dr. H , respecting the Major 
 
 Ormond, of whom she spoke ; and he had not heard 
 of such a gentleman being resident there. I named 
 this to her, when she seemed greatly confused. But, 
 knowing that it was not impossible for a military gen- 
 tleman to reside near the Doctor, and yet be unknown 
 to him, I said so ; when she recovered her calmness, 
 and most adroitly improved the help I thus afforded 
 to her. I remembered this circumstance, and spoke 
 of it afterwards to Mr. Jobson, and we proposed to 
 make further inquiries concerning the Major, as soon 
 as we had opportunity ; but we did not see sufficient 
 in it to lead us to hesitate in reference to the proposal 
 made for her coming to reside with us; though, since 
 then, I have had no doubt that this circumstance pre- 
 vented her doing so. 
 
 " A week or ten days after this occurrences he wrote 
 from Wales, stating that, since her return, her health 
 had very seriously failed ; that Dr. Jones, of Chester, 
 had been consulted, who pronounced her to be in 
 danger of consumption. Other letters followed, stating 
 that she had ruptured a blood-vessel, and that the 
 medical man feared the consequences would be fatal. 
 I wrote to her a letter of Christian sympathy, which 
 
MARIE AND METHODISM. 35 
 
 was returned to me through 'the post. I concluded 
 that the handwriting was known to her friends around 
 her, and that the letter from a Protestant friend was 
 disowned by them. On the day following came a 
 brief letter from her, as if written by a most tremu- 
 lous hand, informing me of her very great debility, 
 so that she had to be propped up in bed with pillows 
 while she wrote; and requesting to hear from me. 
 Another letter was sent, directed by Mr. Jobson, so 
 that my handwriting might not be the reason of its 
 rejection. Not receiving any further communication 
 from her, and fearing that her illness had proved fatal, 
 inquiries were made, through a friend, of Dr. Jones, 
 of Chester, when he said he had not attended a young 
 lady in such circumstances as were described; and, 
 removing to London, we were left in anxious per- 
 plexity concerning her. 
 
 " As soon as your book made its appearance, all 
 doubt and anxiety vanished from our minds. The 
 friend who had made the inquiries for me, wrote to 
 me in March last, to say that if I obtained your book, 
 giving the title, I should learn whom I had had in my 
 house, and regarding whom it was that the inquiries 
 had been made. Of course, this information greatly 
 excited me ; and on Mr. Jobson coming home from 
 the city, I informed him of the communication I had 
 received. He replied, ' I am not surprised, for I have 
 seen the book open in a bookseller's shop-window, 
 and as soon as I saw the portrait, in the frontispiece, 
 I recognized the likeness, as that of Miss Gardiner.' 
 The spell was broken : we read the book with almost 
 breathless interest — found internal evidence sufficient 
 
36 MABIE AND METHODISM. 
 
 in the circumstances of the convent-life, and the uncle, 
 &c., to satisfy us that the heroine of your publica- 
 tion had been the subject of our solicitude ; and, 
 baving examined her handwriting with you, and con- 
 versed with you, at length, upon her appearance, at- 
 tainments, and conduct, there can be no doubt that 
 your Mark and my Lucy are one and the same person ; 
 who, whether she profess herself to be a Catholic or a 
 Protestant, is certainly destitute of moral principle, to 
 say nothing of religion. 
 
 " I am, 
 " Dear Mrs. Luke, 
 "Yours truly, 
 
 "Elizabeth Jobsoht. 
 
 "Hackney Eoad, Nov. 24th, 1851." 
 
 There was another link in the chain of discovery, 
 mentioned on the preceding page, which r as a conclu- 
 sion to Mrs. Jobson's narrative, may interest the 
 reader. 
 
 About a fortnight after the publication of " The 
 Female Jesuit," Mr. Luke was visiting Chester, where 
 he had formerly been for thirteen years a resident. It 
 was natural that the book should be read with peculiar 
 interest by many who had known him in that city, 
 and he was met by eager inquiries on all sides. He 
 
 was told that Mr. E , a solicitor, wished to see 
 
 him, as he could throw some light on the history of 
 Mr. Luke's former protegee. Mr. Luke called, and 
 learned from him the following particulars. 
 
 It appeared that Mr. and Mrs. R had been the 
 
 friends to whom Mrs. Jobson had applied. They had 
 
MAEIE AND 'METHODISM. 37 
 
 inquired in all directions without success, and the 
 search had long been relinquished. A few days be- 
 fore Mr. Luke's visit Mrs. E — — turned into a book- 
 seller's shop, to purchase a present for a friend in 
 Manchester. The young man who served her, strong- 
 ly recommended a book which had just come out, — 
 
 " The Eemale Jesuit." Mrs K took it home, and 
 
 examined it. As she read, a strong impression forced 
 itself on her mind, that the heroine must be the miss- 
 ing Lucy ; but never having seen her, she sent the 
 book to her friends without expressing her suspicion. 
 The ladies to whom the book was sent were friends 
 of Mrs. Jobson's. They had frequently seen Marie, 
 and had participated in the deep interest felt for her 
 by Mr. and Mrs. Jobson. On catching sight of the 
 portrait, it is scarcely too much to say, that they were 
 horror-struck at recognizing the interesting object of 
 Mrs. Jobson's solicitude. They read the volume with 
 breathless haste ; and as each chapter disclosed some 
 corresponding development of character or plot, they 
 were increasingly persuaded of the identity of the 
 party. They wrote under the strongest feeling to 
 
 Mrs. E , who, if she had not given them all the 
 
 pleasure she had designed, had certainly awakened 
 
 far more emotion. Mrs. E immediately wrote to 
 
 Mrs. Jobson, and' the result has been already stated. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 EARLY DEVELOPMENT. 
 
 It is a subject of much regret that we have been 
 able to obtain but few particulars of Marie's childhood, 
 as it would be extremely interesting to ascertain how 
 far those mental and moral deformities, of unexampled 
 growth, had their commencement in her childish years 
 or early training ; how far they originated in her own 
 mental peculiarity, and how far they were the growth 
 of circumstances ; what discipline and examples influ- 
 enced her in her early home ; who were her instruc- 
 tors, who her companions, and what her first pursuits, 
 have, from the singularity of her case, become ques- 
 tions of deep interest. 
 
 Marie, or as her real name is Mary G , generally 
 
 spoke of her father, as a surgeon. If we call him 
 a veterinary surgeon, or, according to the more homely 
 language of the north, a farrier, or blacksmith, it will 
 be nearer to the truth. She was born at Stockport, 
 but on the death of her father, removed with her 
 mother and brother to Southport. She appears to 
 have had an affectionate and doting mother, who 
 stinted herself in the necessaries of life, in order to 
 obtain for her only and darling girl, an education 
 superior to her own position in life. How far her 
 
EARLY DEVELOPMENT. 39 
 
 over-strained anxieties on this head may have tended 
 to foster that aspiring disposition which has instigated 
 Marie to many a bold and ambitious movement, and 
 how far her devoted tenderness may have nourished 
 the enormous egotism and selfishness which have been 
 developed in later years, would be another interesting 
 subject of inquiry. 
 
 Marie as a child evinced a species of vulgar cunning 
 which grew with her growth, but which, as she ad- 
 vanced, became loftier in its aims. Her earliest vices 
 were lying and stealing, and her favorite pursuit was 
 novel reading, which as she approached to womanhood 
 engrossed her whole attention. Her propensity for 
 tricks continued to develop itself, but the impression 
 on a casual observer was, that she was a giddy, frivo- 
 lous girl. "With her mind thus occupied, it is not to 
 be supposed that studies of a higher kind were pursued 
 to much purpose. The efforts and sacrifices of her 
 anxious mother were thrown away, and the latter 
 reaped no better reward from her ungrateful daughter 
 than has been the lot of others who have shown her 
 kindness. Disappointed in her progress, ashamed and 
 dismayed at her conduct, grieved by her undutiful- 
 ness, and it may be, oppressed and terrified by the 
 prospect of future disgrace, the mother's health gave 
 way. Her declining state awakened no remorse or 
 tenderness in the bosom of her daughter. Marie left 
 that mother to languish on a sick bed while she went 
 out to take her pleasure, and spent the slender resour- 
 ces which might have procured comforts for her dying 
 parent, in the purchase of sweets and delicacies to 
 gratify her own appetite. The mother died, and none 
 
40 EARLY DEVELOPMENT. 
 
 may appeal to her to describe the anguish of the gradual 
 process which brought her to that most painful of all 
 painful deaths, a broken heart. 
 
 It must have been about the year 1845, some time 
 before her mother's death, and when twenty or twenty- 
 one years of age, that -Marie obtained a situation at 
 Crewe Hall, Farndon, Cheshire, as governess to two 
 little girls. Farndon and Holt are two pretty villa- 
 ges, divided by the river Dee, and Crewe Hall is a 
 large farm-house in Farndon — farm-houses in Cheshire 
 being often dignified by the name of halls. 
 
 While here she frequently visited Chester, and be- 
 came acquainted with Mr. Luke's name and character, 
 of which, as the readers of " The Female Jesuit" are 
 aware, she availed herself on coming to London. Here 
 also she often went to Wrexham, and obtained that 
 knowledge of the neighborhood which has since so 
 well served her purpose. The artful combination of 
 truth with falsehood, grounded on her accurate infor- 
 mation respecting parties and localities, has doubtless 
 been one secret of her success. It has answered the 
 two-fold purpose of giving an air of reality to her ro- 
 mances, and of affording many incidental confirma- 
 tions of her statements. 
 
 Her master passion was not wanting in its indica- 
 tions at this period. On returning to Southport for 
 a holiday, an acquaintance of her mother's happened 
 to be lodging in the house. Marie went to her one 
 day, and complaining that she had a bad arm, asked 
 
 Miss to write two or three notes for her. Aware 
 
 of her propensity, the lady declined the honor, and 
 " There is nothing amiss with your arm ; I shall not 
 
EARLY DEVELOPMENT. 41 
 
 write for you," sent Marie off in search of some more 
 accommodating friend. Such early practice will ac- 
 count for the adroitness with which this trick was 
 repeated while she was a resident at Westbourne 
 Green, the particulars of which were given in a for- 
 mer volume. 
 
 While at Crewe Hall, she commenced the practice 
 of vomiting blood. Mr. Maybury, a surgeon and 
 apothecary near Wrexham, was called in to attend 
 her. He treated the matter very lightly, having dis- 
 covered that the substance was not blood ; and, gain- 
 ing wisdom by experience, she afterwards improved 
 in the art. She seems, however, to have taken a dis- 
 like to him in consequence, and this will, perhaps, 
 account for the violent death to which she has since 
 in imagination consigned him. 
 
 It is scarcely possible to assign a motive, apart from 
 the pure love of deception, for these vagaries. She 
 appears to have been comfortable in her situation, and 
 to have satisfied her employers. She retained it for 
 two years, and was dismissed only in consequence of 
 the successive deaths of both the parents of her pu- 
 pils. One of the guardians of the latter, on receiving 
 a letter of inquiry from Mr. Luke, gave her a good 
 character ; and among her papers has been found the 
 following testimonial from another of the children's 
 relatives : 
 
 " Miss €r has resided as governess for two years with 
 
 my brother, the late T. B , Esq., Crewe Hall, Cheshire, 
 
 during which time she conducted herself to the satisfaction 
 of those around her. Her amiable temper and lady-like 
 deportment, combined with uprightness of character, cannot 
 
42 EAKLY DEVELOPMENT. 
 
 fail to gain the affection and esteem of her pupils. She is 
 fully competent to impart a sound English education ; and 
 is, I believe, accomplished. 
 
 " I should be most happy at any time to answer any fur- 
 ther question, if addressed to me, H Hall, Flintshire. 
 
 " C B .» 
 
 The talent which enabled her to keep this situation 
 for two years, and to obtain such recommendations at 
 the close, might surely have enabled her to obtain 
 another situation, had such been her object. And if 
 indisposed to further exertion, she might have lived a 
 yet more easy life ; for after the death of her mother, 
 her aunt, who was in respectable circumstances in 
 Manchester, offered her a home. 
 
 Those who regard Marie as a common impostor, 
 compelled by the want of character and education to 
 pursue so discreditable a course, will find it difficult 
 to explain facts which are so inconsistent with their 
 theory. 
 
 A growing taste for intrigue and adventure proba- 
 bly led her to seek out some more erratic path ; for 
 it must have been during her residence in this family, 
 and while still in the neighborhood of Wrexham, that 
 she commenced her correspondence with Mrs. Jobson. 
 On leaving Crewe Hall she had nearly succeeded in 
 establishing herself with them, when taking alarm at 
 the sound of the word "inquiries," she abandoned 
 her purpose, and turned her thoughts in another di- 
 rection. 
 
CHAPTEE IV. 
 
 MARIE IN MANCHESTER. 
 
 After relinquishing the idea of becoming an inmate 
 ■with. Mr. and Mrs. Jobson, Marie's next project was 
 of a bolder character. It was to settle herself as in- 
 door patient, under the roof of a respectable surgeon 
 in Manchester. 
 
 His first introduction to her was on the 31st of Jan- 
 uary, 1848, and he was called in to attend her at two 
 different places before she became one of his family. 
 How she managed to install herself under his roof is 
 not known ; but that she did so is a fact, and she re- 
 mained there till the 1st of May in the same year. 
 
 The skill and kindness of her medical friend were, 
 as may easily be supposed, put to a severe test. His 
 past experience furnished no precedent for the treat- 
 ment of her case ; and perplexed beyond measure at 
 its peculiarity, he called in one of the first surgeons 
 of the town and paid the consultation fee himself. 
 
 It was not long before Marie's host received a com- 
 munication purporting to be from a gentleman of great 
 xespectability and influence in Manchester ; and reques- 
 ting him to pay her every attention both professionally 
 and otherwise. This gentleman engaged to meet all 
 expenses, and begged that she might not be allowed 
 
44 MAKIE IN MANCHESTER. 
 
 to want anything. The reason assigned was the 
 high esteem in which Miss Q was held by a fam- 
 ily in Chester, with whom he was intimately associated 
 and with whom she had been living as governess. 
 
 From this gentleman Mr. and Mrs. received 
 
 more than one invitation to dine at his house ; and 
 two or three appointments were made for settling her 
 account, but some singular contingency at the eleventh 
 hour always ^prevented the acceptance of these invita- 
 tions. 
 
 Had any doubt, however, been raised by the repeti- 
 tion of such disappointments, the frequent and flatter- 
 ing attentions of various highly respectable parties, 
 must instantly have put all suspicion to flight. Several 
 of these visited her at the house, and among others a 
 clergyman of the Church of England. Presents of 
 fish, game, and other things suited to the delicate ap- 
 petite of an invalid, and accompanied by polite notes, 
 were of more frequent occurrence ; and gifts of larger 
 value, and of more durable character, gave assurance 
 of the high estimation in which she was held by a 
 large and influential circle. Among these were ar- 
 ticles of jewellery from various friends, and a very 
 handsome Church Service and Bible, with a very kind 
 note from Sir Watkin William Wynne. 
 
 At length the game was up. The illness proved to 
 have been unreal, the notes to have been forgeries, the 
 visitors to have been duped, and the jewellery to have 
 
 been obtained at Mr. and Mrs. ■ — 's own jewellers. 
 
 Marie was taken by surprise, and a final scene, similar 
 to the one in Cromwell Terrace, concluded the farce. 
 Marie was the better prepared for encountering the 
 
MARIE IN MANCHESTER. 45 
 
 party assembled to confront her at "Westbourne Green, 
 having gone through a similar ordeal once, or it may 
 have been more than once, before. 
 
 At a period not far removed from the one just men- 
 tioned, but whether before or after is not known, 
 Marie selected for another victim, a lady who kept a 
 respectable boarding-school in the outskirts of Man- 
 chester. She soon became very intimate, and paid 
 several lengthened visits. It is said that she proposed 
 partnership, and was to bring a large sum of money 
 into the concern. Most numerous and elevated was 
 her circle of friends, and the connection was to be as 
 valuable as the capital. 
 
 Miss , on the strength of these brilliant pros- 
 pects, projected an establishment on a much larger 
 scale ; and after ordering furniture to a considerable 
 amount, was about selecting more, when her father 
 suggested that it would be more prudent to wait. 
 
 The letters received from Marie's high acquaintances 
 were, however, confirmatory of her statement, and at 
 length an invitation to dinner, including Marie's kind 
 entertainer, and some other members of her family, 
 followed up the expressions of regard with which the 
 letters abounded. The kindness shown to her had 
 prompted this invitation, and her friends wished to 
 show their appreciation of this kindness, by welcoming 
 her hostess and family to their residence. As the in- 
 vitation came from parties whose rank in life was 
 superior to their own, rather more preparation was 
 made than ordinary for its acceptance. More than one 
 new dress is said to have been purchased for the oc- 
 casion, and a conveyance was ordered to take Marie 
 
46 MARIE IN MANCHESTER. 
 
 and her friends to the house ; when, just as it drew up 
 to the door at the hour appointed, the violent ringing 
 of Marie's bell induced a general rush to her room. 
 There, to the dismay of the assembled circle, with her 
 cheeks almost matching her new white dress, and ex- 
 tended on the bed lay the helpless Marie, having just 
 ruptured a blood-vessel ! They could not take her 
 with them ; they could not go without her. The car- 
 riage was dismissed ; the new dresses were laid aside ; 
 and their disappointment was forgotten in the anxiety 
 which was immediately concentrated upon herself. 
 
 These incidents have reached us indirectly. The 
 letter which follows, and which is given nearly entire, 
 is from the lady herself. 
 
 "November 12th, 1851. 
 "In reply to yours of November 5th, re- 
 questing some information respecting Mary Gr , I 
 
 would just say, that my first acquaintance with thai 
 extraordinary impostor, was founded upon circum- 
 stances equally as deceptive as those by which she be- 
 came known to you. The associations were not pre- 
 cisely the same, but that was because they were neither 
 convenient nor practicable. Her impositions carried 
 on in your family were more extensive, but never 
 deeper laid, and executed with more cunning than 
 here. We were for some time her obedient dupes ; 
 and, surely, never did deception and intrigue assume 
 a darker and more revolting character than did hers ! 
 " I am perfectly familiar with all the incidents of 
 her well-feigned sickness mentioned in your narrative, 
 and if I had not seen the portrait, must have come to 
 
MARIE IN MANCHESTER. 47 
 
 •the conclusion that it was no other person. She is a 
 most singular being ! Somehow or other there was a 
 spell, a charm, an indescribable something about 
 the girl, that I think must have compelled us to give 
 credence to all she said; for, frequently, now we won- 
 der that we could not perceive such outrages upon the 
 most extended credulity ; and many a hearty laugh, 
 as well as much sorrow have we had. Sorrow to 
 think of the wretched condition such a course must 
 inevitably lead to, and the prostitution of talents 
 which, if otherwise directed, would have raised her in 
 the scale of society. It were vain for me to attempt 
 a narrative of what I know here. A manuscript only 
 would do it. I shall be happy to hear from you 
 again, but it is utterly impossible to give any partic- 
 ulars here." 
 
 Marie left the house of her kind medical adviser in 
 May, 1848, and in November of the same year obtain- 
 ed an introduction to a London convent. The circum- 
 stances of her pretended escape, and of her residence 
 in Mr. Luke's house, have been detailed at length in 
 the previous volume ; and it is necessary to resume the 
 narrative from the date at which it there closes, in 
 June, 1850. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 
 
 After Marie's dismissal from Mr. Luke's house, and 
 removal to the Continent in 1850, intense curiosity 
 prevailed to know what had become of her. This 
 curiosity was increased by the discovery that the per- 
 sons with whom she professed to have taken shelter, 
 had no existence in Ghent. The general impression 
 was, that like the hunted stag, she- had merely crossed 
 the water to avoid pursuit, and that having attained 
 her object, she had almost immediately returned to 
 London. 
 
 This impression received confirmation from the 
 united testimony of a number of persons who had 
 known her well, and who felt persuaded that they had 
 all severally met her in or near London. One had 
 seen her in the Hampstead Road ; a second had pass- 
 ed her in Cheapside ;' a third had caught a glimpse of 
 her in Park Crescent ; a fourth had met her in Picca- 
 dilly ; and a fifth had recognized her in an omnibus. 
 
 One of the family she had recently quitted was satis- 
 fied that she had seen her with two ladies near the 
 house, and that after passing it, they turned round, 
 stopped, and were for a few moments in earnest con- 
 versation. 
 
OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 49 
 
 Mrs. K had seen her in Regent Street with two 
 
 ladies, something like " Sisters of Mercy." She sepa- 
 rated from them, and on observing that she was rec- 
 ognized, darted into a shop. Mrs. K passed on 
 
 a short distance, and, on returning, met Marie again 
 face to face. She averted her eyes, slunk by Mrs. 
 
 K , and disappeared in the direction of Oxford 
 
 Street. 
 
 Mr. K thought that he had seen her in the neigh- 
 borhood of Bryanstone Square, and as the Queen 
 Square Sisters of Mercy had removed thither, it was 
 conjectured that she might be with them. On three 
 fine mornings Wood was set to watch in that neigh- 
 borhood without success. 
 
 Wood, the memorable "Wood," however, had him- 
 self seen her on Pentonville Hill ; " was sure it was 
 
 Miss G ," but he was on the other side of the 
 
 road, and the hill was crowded, and he lost sight of 
 her. 
 
 Mr. K had met her again one morning in Re- 
 gent's Park, with a little boy and girl. Determined 
 not to lose sight of her, he dodged her for nearly an 
 hour. At length she took her station at the corner 
 of Portland Road to watch a gay wedding at Trinity 
 church, and he stood a few paces from her at the 
 corner of Park Crescent, when in a moment, how he 
 could not imagine, children and all had disappeared. 
 He sought her in vain, and was compelled to give up 
 the pursuit in despair. 
 
 It was this circumstance in particular which justified 
 the statement in the former volume that Marie had 
 been again seen in London. Singularly truthful and 
 
50 OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 
 
 careful in all his assertions, and as free from the influ- 
 ence of imagination as any man could be, Marie's for- 
 mer friends placed full reliance on Mr. K 's testi- 
 mony. Mrs. L ■ asked if she might venture to as- 
 sert it as a fact ? If he was quite, quite sure ? He re- 
 plied, "If it was not Marie, I should regard it as more 
 supernatural than anything that has transpired about 
 her yet. I was as near to her as I am to you, and felt 
 as sure of one as of the other." 
 
 Finally, a young law-stationer in Chancery Lane 
 was confident that he had seen her. Two years be- 
 fore, when he was in a large house in the same line 
 of business, she used to enter the shop with a request 
 to see some law books, and study them attentively for 
 some time. She stated that she was entitled to some 
 property of which the lawyers were trying to defraud 
 her, and that she was determined to be her own solici- 
 tor. She carried a parcel of papers tied with red tape, 
 and went among the young men by the name of " the 
 pretty she-lawyer." She had disappeared for about 
 the space of time during which she would have been 
 at Mr. Luke's, and within the last few weeks he had 
 twice seen her pass with her red-taped parcel, as in 
 former days. He seized the book to glance at the 
 portrait, and she was gone. The second time he ran 
 out after her, but there was no one else in the shop, 
 and he was obliged to return. 
 
 In fact there were comparatively few who had not 
 seen her, so sure was each individual, especially among 
 the ladies, that she had encountered Marie.< These 
 impressions were but so many proofs of the singular 
 power which she exerted over the imagination of those 
 
OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 51 
 
 who had seen or heard of her. All were mistaken, 
 for as will hereafter appear, she could plead one gen- 
 eral "alibi." 
 
 These misapprehensions were of little consequence ; 
 but there were others of a more serious character, 
 where innocent parlies were in danger of suffering 
 from their supposed resemblance to Marie. 
 
 In April, 1851, Mrs. Luke received a letter from 
 
 C , which, after appealing to her interest as the 
 
 writer of " The Female Jesuit," proceeded thus : 
 
 "I am a professor of French, German and Italian in 
 
 C , having resided on the continent in order to become 
 
 a proficient in those languages. 
 
 " It is reported throughout the city that I am the person 
 of whom you have written ; and although I wear spectacles, 
 and have done so ever since seventeen — and I am now nearly 
 twenty-four — it is asserted that I wear them for disguise: 
 
 " Ail this is very hard for one who is trying to earn her 
 living by honest means. As to my not being the impostor 
 
 mentioned in your book, I refer you to Major , and in 
 
 C , to Miss , who can assure you that I am neither 
 
 a Jesuit nor a Koman Catholic. 
 
 " I should feel obliged if you would send me a letter 
 
 that I could publish in the C papers. 
 
 " Tours respectfully, 
 
 "Adelaide Julia C ." 
 
 Mrs. L. immediately wrote to Major , requesting 
 
 him to get the book from the library, and favor her 
 with the points of difference. The Major replied that 
 though he had not seen the book, he could safely assure 
 her that there was not a single point of resemblance, 
 
52 OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 
 
 and gravely urged her, for her own sake as well as for 
 
 Mrs. C 's, at once to send the certificate : most 
 
 conclusively, as he thought, arguing from the very 
 application that the book must be a fiction. 
 
 " I have said," he proceeded, " for your own sake more than 
 
 for Mrs. C 's, because the entire value of your book 
 
 arises and rests upon the belief that it is a narrative of truth 
 and not of fiction. In fact, all the old ladies of my acquaint- 
 ance, who are determined Protestants, have devoured ' The 
 Female Jesuit,' and are quite ready to swear that every 
 word of the composition is truth ; whereas your letter to me 
 proves the book to be the work of imagination : a very 
 clever fiction, and has the semblance of reality. 
 
 " If there had been a person in existence whose character 
 is described in ' The Female Jesuit,' you would have replied 
 
 to Mrs. C 's letter at once, and stated that she was not 
 
 the person, and sent immediately the certificate she requires. 
 
 " But instead of doing this, you say, ' never having known 
 
 or seen Mrs. C , I cannot furnish this certificate- from 
 
 my own knowledge, but shall be most happy to do so if you 
 will kindly favor me with such particulars as will afford 
 proof of her being altogether a different person ! ! ! ' " 
 
 Mrs. Luke- was somewhat amused, but perceiving 
 she could not get much further by letter, and anxious 
 to put poor Mrs. C out of her disagreeable posi- 
 tion, she set off the next morning to see Major . 
 
 He was a fine specimen of the old military school, and 
 received her with ceremonious politeness. 
 
 "I have called about poor Mrs. C ," she said, 
 
 and he smiled. " I am as anxious as yourself that she 
 should be righted. The style of her note, and her 
 application to myself, convinced me that it could not 
 
OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 53 
 
 be Marie ; but it would not suffice to convince others, 
 nor could I broadly assert it on such ground ; and as 
 our story is true, and the heroine a real personage, I" 
 have come to ascertain from you such facts as may 
 prove that they are different persons." 
 
 The Major said it was a sad affair. He had just 
 
 heard from Mrs. C herself, and found that all her 
 
 pupils had left her, and that the C people would 
 
 not receive her into their houses. " But I don't see," 
 he continued, " how you could conceive it possible for 
 them to be the same. Your ' Female Jesuit' had not 
 the same name, I suppose ?" 
 
 " No ; but Marie had assumed several names, and 
 was as likely to have called herself Adelaide Julia 
 C , as anything else." 
 
 " "Well ; but the hand-writing must be different." 
 
 " Yes ; but Marie could get others to write for her 
 when it suited her purpose." 
 
 "Then Mrs. G is a Protestant. She was a 
 
 Catholic, but has not been so for some time." 
 
 "Just Marie's case. She had been a Catholic, and 
 then professed herself a Protestant." 
 
 The Major began to feel a little at a loss. He men- 
 tioned the age. It was pretty nearly the same. He 
 described her personal appearance — dark eyes, &c, 
 and the description corresponded. 
 
 " But Mrs. C has been on the Continent," he 
 
 said, " to perfect herself in the languages. She has 
 been in Belgium." 
 
 " Yes ; and Marie went thither in June, and Mrs. 
 C returned in July." 
 
 The Major changed his posture, and began to look 
 
54 OPTICAL ILLUSIONS. 
 
 very serious. All his outposts were taken, and he 
 probably felt in some danger of a blockade. " Upon 
 my' word," he acknowledged, " things look very black 
 against her, poor woman." 
 
 " Our best plan will be to compare dates," said Mrs. 
 Luke, " and see where each were at that time. Marie 
 was with us in 1849 and part of 1850." 
 
 " Oh, then, I can satisfy you," he said, " for Mrs. 
 
 C was living at the whole of the year 1849, 
 
 and she often came to me, as I have a good deal to do 
 with her affairs. Besides, I have known her from a 
 child, and can tell you where she was, and what she 
 was doing from time to time ; " and he specified vari- 
 ous circumstances which effectually distinguished therm 
 
 Mrs. L. expressed herself fully satisfied, and has- 
 tened home. She wrote to Mrs. C by that day's 
 
 post, and had the pleasure of learning that her pupils 
 had returned, and that her distress and annoyance had 
 terminated. 
 
 A poor young lady at Ryde, who maintained her- 
 self by taking pupils, was not so fortunate. Mrs. 
 
 L did not hear of her case till she had endured 
 
 much distress and privation owing to her supposed 
 resemblance to Marie. Had the same step been taken 
 in the first instance as in Mrs. C 's case, the mis- 
 take might as promptly have been rectified. 
 
 These instances are mentioned in the hope of dis- 
 couraging hasty and groundless suspicions of any other 
 poor governess who may chance to bear some unfortu- 
 nate personal resemblance to Marie. 
 
 The reader having been duly certified where Marie 
 was not, shall now be informed where she really was. 
 
CHAPTEE VI. 
 
 MAEIE "IN TRANSIT." 
 
 PassIng over the period of romantic intrigue re- 
 corded in the "The Female Jesuit," it is necessary to 
 take up the thread of Marie's story from the date at - 
 which it was allowed to drop at the close of that 
 volume. 
 
 It will be remembered, that after leaving Mrs. 
 Luke's house in June, 1850, Marie lodged for a fort- 
 night with a Mrs. Eashleigh, living at 53, North- 
 Street, Edgeware Eoad. While here she frequently 
 w.ent out for three or four hours at a time, returning 
 only to meals. She told her landlady that she had 
 found a little attractive nook by : the side of the canal, 
 where she could read her book, and think more agree- 
 ably than in the house. Mrs. Eashleigh thought her 
 taste somewhat singular, the banks of Paddington 
 Canal, in that vicinity, being more likely to invite to 
 suicide than to religious contemplation. It may be 
 doubted, however, whether she went near the canal, 
 her time being probably occupied in devising plans 
 for the future, and providing herself with introduc- 
 tions, either forged or surreptitiously obtained, for 
 future service. 
 
 Having>parted with Mr. Luke and Mr. Kilpin on 
 
56 MAEIE "IN TRANSIT." 
 
 board the steamer, she was soon " herself again," and 
 neither the roughness of the passage, nor the reminis- 
 cences of the past, in any degree checked her flow of 
 spirits. She chatted with the few passengers, and 
 made herself particularly agreeable to a gentleman 
 and his daughter, who, like herself, were on their way 
 to Ghent. The weather was so unusually stormy, that 
 the steamer was driven on a sand bank, and lost a 
 tide, occasioning a delay of twelve hours. Of ^his 
 circumstance Marie availed herself to the full, graft- 
 ing on it certain additions of her own, at her next 
 resting place. 
 
 Being at length landed at Ostend, Marie was seen 
 by the steward, to whose charge Mr. Luke had com- 
 mitted her, to take train for Ghent, and in the same 
 carriage with the gentleman and lady whose acquaint- 
 ance she had made on board the packet. Arrived in 
 Ghent, her own statement is, that she sought admis- 
 sion at the English convent, and there is reason to 
 suppose that this statement is correct. 
 
 A few days passed over, and she re-appeared in 
 Brussels. There resided in that city an English Abbe*, 
 advanced in years, and well known for his genuine 
 kindness of heart, and unsuspicious Christian charity. 
 One morning early in July, Marie presented herself 
 in travelling attire, and apparently in great distress 
 and agitation, at the house of the Abbe - , and told the 
 following tale. 
 
 She was an orphan, she said, educated as a Prot- 
 estant, and under the care of Protestant guardians, 
 but was anxious to embrace the Catholic faith; 
 and had been already partly instructed by the Rev. 
 
MARIE "IN TRANSIT." 57 
 
 Mr. M'Neal, priest of " the Chapel of our Lady," in 
 Saint John's "Wood. By Mr. M'Neal's advice, she had 
 frankly told her friends of her intention, and had been 
 further kindly advised by him to spend a few weeks 
 in a convent, that she might with a calm and undis- 
 turbed mind enter upon her great task. This pro- 
 posal was seconded by the advice of her physicians, 
 who recommended change of climate for her health, 
 which had been much damaged by rupturing blood- 
 vessels. Being of age, and under no control, she had 
 resolved to act upon it ; and her friends had yielded to 
 the force of a resolution which they found impossible 
 to shake. Her friend and guardian, the Bev. Mr. 
 
 Duke, had seen her on board, and Colonel B , 
 
 another old friend, had accompanied her to Ostend. 
 Her voyage, however, had not been without its haz- 
 ards and its calamities. Owing to the boisterous 
 weather, the steamer had been driven on a sand bank, 
 and with much difficulty and inconvenience, the pas- 
 sengers had been put on board the Botterdam cattle 
 boat. In the confusion, her large trunk, containing 
 the greater part of her wearing apparel and cash, had 
 been lost or left behind ; and thus deprived of the 
 most valuable part of her property, with one small 
 box, she proceeded alone to Ghent. 
 
 Mr. M'Neal, she further stated, had obtained an in- 
 troduction for her from the nuns at Clapham to their 
 sisters at Ghent. She had taken this introduction to 
 the Ghent nuns, who received her most kindly, gave 
 her refreshments, waited on her at table, and " made 
 such an impression on her I" On finding that she was 
 twenty-four years of age, they declined taking her as 
 3* 
 
58 MARIE "IN TBANSIT." 
 
 a boarder, it being against the rules of their establish- 
 ment to receive any boarders above the age of eigh- 
 teen. They passed her on with an introduction to the 
 sisterhood at Brussels ; and. the same evening found 
 her seeking admission at the gate of that convent. 
 There she found the same regulation in force. The 
 sisters, however, knew an English teacher who had a 
 room in an hotel near, not far from the church of the 
 Madeleine,, and they sent Marie to pass the night un- 
 der the protection of this person. In the morning she 
 recollected a letter of introduction to the Abbe*, with 
 which she had been furnished by the Eev. Mr. Bam- 
 ber, one of the Boman Catholic priests in Spanish 
 Place. She had luckily put this in her pocket book ; 
 and she determined in her perplexity and distress to 
 go to the Abbe" for advice. 
 
 It is so common a thing for any one in distress to 
 appeal to the charity of a priest, a remark which will 
 equally apply to our Protestant clergy, that Marie's 
 visit excited no surprise ; and the introduction from 
 Mr. Bamber being quite according to rule, and such 
 as one priest might be supposed to write to another 
 with whom he was slightly acquainted, it excited no 
 suspicion. The house was large, and some of the 
 apartments usually let, were empty ; and it was with 
 fatherly pity for the forlorn and unprotected orphan 
 in a strange land, so artless and unsophisticated ! that 
 the Abbe* offered her a temporary shelter under his 
 roof, and suggested that she should have the com- 
 panionship and protection of an English lady, a valued 
 friend, then visiting for a few weeks at his house. 
 This arrangement was to be for a few days only, until 
 
MARIE "IN TRANSIT." 59 
 
 the great trunk with its valuables should turn up, and 
 she should have time to communicate with her friends 
 and form her plans. Her stay was prolonged, as it 
 was judged best to find a situation for her in some 
 Belgian family. This was not so easy, and as the 
 wish to succeed was far from Marie's thoughts, she 
 took care to render no real assistance in the search. 
 
 Taking her clue from this circumstance, and as 
 usual uniting a particle of truth with a mass of fiction, 
 Marie wrote the subjoined letter to her old hostess in 
 North Street. 
 
 " Chateau Royai, July 31a*, 1860. 
 
 " My dear Mrs. Rashleigh, 
 
 " You will feel surprised that I have not sooner ful- 
 filled my promise in writing to you, but a most severe illness 
 has alone prevented me. It has been only within the last 
 few days that I have been able to do anything. I have had 
 the brain fever. The profuse bleeding has quite broken my 
 strength. 
 
 " I had a very tiresome long sail, for we were cast on a 
 mud bank, and had to stay for some hours. The captain did 
 not concern himself at all about me, and had it not been for 
 a gentleman and his daughter, I don't know what I should 
 have done. I had a long piece of work about my passpdrt. 
 I was obliged to get one at Bruges, where I was detained a 
 few hours by illness. I was most cordially received by my 
 friends. I have got a very nice situation when I am able to 
 go to it. English ladies are in great request, and so are 
 English servants. I do not much like the customs of the 
 Belgian people. I am going into a Belgian marquis's family 
 as governess to one child, but I shall not be strong enough 
 for some time for my duty. I suffer much in mind, which 
 suffering is an endless tormentor. 
 
60 MAEIE "IN TRANSIT." 
 
 " I have not yet' written to Mr. Luke, for I am not yet 
 equal to it. I shall do so before I leave here for Germany, 
 where the family reside during one part of the year. I find 
 the people here very kind and feeling, though very few speak 
 either English or French, the Flemish language being chiefly 
 spoken. 
 
 " I have experienced very much kindness from an old lady, 
 a kind friend of my friends. She sat up with me several 
 nights while the fever was at its height. Since reason has 
 been fully restored, I have opened my whole heart to her, 
 and have found great relief from it. I can't bear now to 
 write more, for such painful things crowd on my memory. 
 
 " Two Jadies who have visited here are going to England 
 to-morrow, so I shall send this by them, and another one, for 
 I have no money to spare on postage for the present. 
 
 " With kind regards and many thanks for your kindness, 
 "lam, 
 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 « M. L. G .» 
 
 The circumstance of the English postmark, so plau- 
 sibly accounted for, was so like Marie's former tricks, 
 that this letter confirmed the impression of her having 
 returned to London, and posted the letter with her 
 own hands. Its object probably was to satisfy her old 
 acquaintances that she was safe in Germany, and to 
 set inquiry and suspicion at rest. Her unusual con- 
 sideration in not putting Mrs. Eashleigh to the expense 
 of postage, was doubtless to avoid the Brussels post- 
 mark, by which she would have been traced another 
 stage on her way. 
 
 Marie had not been ill, and perhaps no stronger 
 proof of her passion for feigning illness could be ad- 
 duced than this letter, intended as it was for the eyes 
 
MARIE "IN TBANSIT." 61 
 
 of those who had so recently been undeceived, and 
 who were now so little likely to credit her. The old 
 lady was a fictitious being, and the disclosures which 
 occasioned such relief could have been made to her- 
 self alone. It may here be added, that the Eev. Mr. 
 M'Neal, of St. John's "Wood, and the Eev. Mr. Bam- 
 ber, of Spanish Place, on application from Mr. Luke, 
 denied having furnished her with introductions, and 
 disclaimed all knowledge of her and of her story. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Marie had by her own account crossed the Chan- 
 nel mainly to find for a season some tranquil abode 
 where she could give her mind to religious contempla- 
 tion, and prepare herself for her intended profession 
 of the Roman Catholic faith. Though she had failed 
 in obtaining- admission into a convent, she had found 
 a peaceful shelter under the roof of the good old Abbe", 
 and had she been sincere, might easily have carried 
 out her avowed purpose ; but it does not appear that 
 she so much as assumed the appearance of seriousness, 
 and in so far, she even laid aside the mask which she 
 had worn with her Protestant acquaintances. 
 
 The friend of the Abbe", who had kindly under- 
 taken to be her companion, believed her story with- 
 out any suspicion ; and if Marie made an unfavorable 
 impression, it was rather that of being a shallow little 
 boaster, altogether occupied with trifles instead of the 
 great matter she had in hand, than of her being an 
 adept even in the art of deception. Her want of ac- 
 quaintance with literature of every sort was very ap- 
 parent, yet she talked of her classical education and 
 varied accomplishments to a man of learning, and had 
 access to a library of two thousand volumes without 
 
MARIE "IN RETREAT." 63 
 
 opening a book. She talked of her knowledge of 
 Italian, of her intention of going to confession in Latin 
 at Cologne, of two volumes of botany that she had 
 published, &c. &c. She spent a good deal of time in 
 the mornings with a lady who came to give her French 
 lessons, which seems to have been the only thing in 
 which she acknowledged herself to be deficient. The 
 rest of the day, or the greater part of the day, was 
 usiially spent professedly with Mrs. C. Seager, another 
 English lady to whom she had been introduced, and 
 of whom more anon. "When they went to church 
 together, Marie used to separate herself from her female 
 ..protector, on the pretext that she wished to join Mrs. 
 C. Seager ; and very frequently, when she returned 
 some hours afterwards, she had met with some adven- 
 ture ; such, for instance, as having met the Eev. Mr. 
 Close, of Cheltenham, whom she said that she had 
 known previously at Mr. Duke's, and with whom, 
 after the service, she had had an immensely long argu- 
 ment on matters of religion. 
 
 The habit of being in the hall, or on the stairs, when 
 the postman or others knocked at the door, as well as 
 that of keeping the door of her own room generally 
 open, was noticed during her stay at the Abbess, but 
 without any other suspicion than that of impertinent 
 curiosity. Occasionally she would honor his English 
 guest with her company, working most diligently and 
 skilfully at her needle, and talking incessantly of her 
 friend and guardian, the Eev. Mr. Duke — of Colonel 
 B , who had seen her safe to Ostend— of her step- 
 father, the Eev. Mr. Marryott — of her other guardian, 
 Mr. Parry, of Wrexham — and many more, including 
 
64 MAEIE "IN RETREAT." 
 
 a great aunt of large property, which was all to come 
 to her. Her great trunk, with its valuables, including 
 her dear mamma 's miniature, was a frequent subject of 
 lamentation, till she heard from a Mr. Frederick King, 
 of the Customs, to whom she had addressed a letter of 
 inquiry, that it was safe, and would be forwarded to 
 her when she pleased, though he advised her to leave 
 it under his charge until her domicile was fixed. 
 
 The readers of the preceding volume will feel inter- 
 ested in the following extract. It is from a letter of 
 the Abba's friend, the lady who has kindly furnished 
 the foregoing particulars. 
 
 " One of the most singular instances that presents 
 
 itself to my memory of Miss G 's skilful and daring 
 
 mixture of truth with falsehood, and certainly the 
 coolest proof of stony-heartedness I ever met with, 
 was a deliberate recollection that she gave me one day 
 during lunch or breakfast, of the sermon which you 
 mention in your tale as having been preached by Mr. 
 Luke, in the hope of touching her conscience. 
 
 " She said, Mr. Duke entreated her, before she left 
 her religion to go once more to hear him preach, and 
 she knew from the text (which she gave me) that the 
 sermon was intended for her. She then gave a sort 
 of analysis of the sermon, and described the emotion 
 of Mrs. Duke, who sat beside her, in a way that touch- 
 ed me — without an alteration of countenance, or a 
 change in the flippancy of her manner — to denote a 
 sense of what a cost it is, to give pain to those we love, 
 even for conscience' sake." 
 
 On the 18th of March, 1849, Marie had been bap- 
 tized as a Protestant in Orange Street Chapel* Leices- 
 
MARIE ,l IN RETREAT." 65 
 
 ter Square, London ; and on the 23d of July, 1850, 
 she was baptized as a Eoman Catholic in the church 
 of Saint Gudule, Brussels ; this, as there is reason to 
 believe, being her third conversion to popery within 
 the space of six years. 
 
 After a residence of a few weeks in the house of 
 the kind-hearted Abbe", Marie transferred herself to 
 the guardianship of Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager, to whom 
 she had been introduced by the Abbe" soon after her 
 arrival in Brussels. She availed herself of this intro- 
 duction to become one of their family for upwards of 
 thirteen months. Here Mr. 0. Seager will himself take 
 up the narrative in a volume entitled " The Female 
 Jesuit Abroad," which he is about giving to the pub- 
 lic ; and as the reader may feel interested in knowing 
 the parties who were the next sufferers by her decep- 
 tions, it may be well at this juncture to introduce them 
 in due form. 
 
 Charles Seager, Esq., M.A., son of the late accom- 
 plished Hellenist of the same name, was formerly a 
 scholar of Worcester College, Oxford, and a clergyman 
 of the Established Church. He had for some years 
 given the preparatory lectures in Hebrew with which 
 the liberality of Dr. Pusey supplies the Oxford stu- 
 dents. In October, 1843, Mr. C. Seager seceded to 
 the Eoman Catholic Church, and was followed by 
 Mrs. C. Seager a twelvemonth later. In the summer 
 of 1850, they were temporary residents in Brussels, 
 when it was their lot to fall in with Marie. 
 
OHAPTBE Till. 
 
 marie's foukth birth-place. 
 
 We must leave Marie to the care of Mr. and Mrs. 
 C. Seager, and pass over a period of nearly fifteen 
 months, diversified with as romantic a series of con- 
 Versions and persecutions, marriages and burials, 
 ►tragic accidents and violent deaths, startling and 
 strange reverses, as it has ever been the lot of the 
 most enwrapt novel-reader to meet with in the most 
 entrancing novel. The tale which the novelist is con- 
 tent to write, Marie acted. The farce which the stage- 
 player condenses into an evening's amusement, she 
 extended with unwearying activity and variety, and 
 the most perfect imitation of nature, through all the 
 details of her daily life. 
 
 But we must leave her as we have said to Mr. C. 
 Seager's care, and referring our readers to him for her 
 wonderful story, must request them to take a trip with 
 us to North Wales, and visit a tract of pleasing and 
 fertile country, bordering on the river Dee, and em- 
 bracing the eastern part of Denbighshire, and the de- 
 tached portion of Flintshire. It is an interesting 
 locality, for it includes the scene of Marie's birth-place 
 and early history. Let not the readers of the previ- 
 ous volume start at this announcement, for the Hin- 
 
MARIE'S FOURTH BIRTH-PLACE. 67 
 
 doo in his various imaginary transmigrations has 
 scarcely had a greater variety of birth-places, or a 
 more numerous parentage than our heroine. We 
 have called this her fourth birth-place, but the dis- 
 closure of her entire history would probably allow us 
 to name a much higher number. 
 
 " The Pymrydd" is the place which has had the 
 honor of Marie's latest nativity. The glowiug mem- 
 ories of childhood doubtless enlarged its dimensions 
 and magnified its beauties, for her description of the 
 original tenement and surrounding grounds, greatly 
 exceeded the reality. It is in fact a little mill, dis- 
 tant about three miles and a half from the town of 
 Wrexham ; and is situated on a stream which divides 
 the extreme eastern portion of the parish from those 
 of Marchwiel and Bangor. The little mill itself is 
 picturesque from its old and dilapidated condition, 
 partaking very much of the character of the old 
 Welsh mills, which afford such interesting subjects 
 for the pencil. The stream rises in the upper part of 
 the parish, in the mountainous district of Minera; 
 and after passing through rich meadow land, empties 
 itself a mile beyond the Pymrydd into the Dee. The 
 township road passes close to the mill, intercepting 
 the stream in five separate places within a small com- 
 pass, whence it derives its name of Pymrydd, or 
 Five-fords. 
 
 The mill is a low building with a dwelling-house 
 adjoining it. The situation is low and damp, and it 
 would never have been selected for a gentleman's resi- 
 dence. No one lives or has ever been known to live 
 there but the old miller himself! 
 
68 MARIE'S FOURTH BIRTH-PLACE. 
 
 Llwyn On (the grove of the ash), another name 
 ■which frequently occurs in Marie's correspondence, is 
 about a mile from the mill, nearer Wrexham. It 
 stands on an eminence with a wood at its bach. 
 
 Overton is a place specially signalized in Marie's 
 new history. It is a neat village seven miles from 
 "Wrexham. The high road from Wrexham to Elles- 
 mere passes through it. It stands upon a brow, com- 
 manding a beautiful and extensive view of the sur- 
 rounding mountain range, and of the Dee meandering 
 through the meadows and the wooded denies beyond. 
 The church is picturesque, encircled by its numerous 
 sombre yew-trees, which must have long been tenants 
 of the ground. Overton rectory is fixed upon by Marie 
 as the scene of various melancholy occurrences, but 
 unfortunately for the verification of her description, 
 Overton has no rectory house. It is a perpetual 
 curacy annexed to Bangor, and the curate is obliged 
 to rent a residence in the village. Prom this gentle- 
 man's garden an extensive view is obtained of the 
 valley of the Dee, flowing gently beneath in the form 
 of a horse-shoe. It may be traced nearly to Llangol- 
 len, its sides clothed with hanging woods, while in the 
 distance the river is occasionally seen as a white line 
 tumbling over its rocky bed. 
 
 The kindness of John Townshend, Esq., of Trevallyn 
 Hall, has furnished the sketch of the valley of the 
 Dee which appears in this volume. It indicates the 
 horse-shoe winding of the stream which Milman apos- 
 trophizes in his poem of " Samor." 
 
 " Bar,d-belov ! d river, that with serpent coil, 
 Dost seem as thou would'st iniDgle with thyself 
 To wander o'er again the same loved course." 
 
MAEIE'S FOURTH BIRTH-PLACE. 69 
 
 It was on the banks of the river so celebrated in 
 poetry, that Marie represented herself as having a few- 
 years later often wandered with her lover, and many 
 references will be found to the surrounding country 
 in Mr. C. Seager's narrative. We pretend not to de- 
 cide in. what precise parts of that neighborhood she 
 chose her favorite walks with Eustace, and subse- 
 quently with "Wynne. The sketch will serve to give 
 an idea ef the kind of scenery to be met with on the 
 banks of the Dee, and which was certainly well suited 
 for these interesting rambles. 
 
 It may have been observed that in her letters to Mrs. 
 Jobson, she speaks of visiting a Mrs. Trelawney, of 
 Trevallyn, and it may be as well to mention that no 
 person of that name ever lived there. She seems to 
 have clung in imagination with a certain tenacity to 
 that neighborhood ; and it will be allowed that she 
 showed some taste in the selection of a locality for her 
 early life. 
 
 Having removed with Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager and 
 their family from Brussels to Bonn, and having safely 
 escaped from all troublesome inquiry or pursuit, Marie 
 found leisure to think of her " dear friends " in North 
 Wales, and to commence a correspondence which was 
 carried on with great vigor and spirit on both sides, 
 and in which Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager were soon deeply 
 interested. Her principal correspondent, and the me- 
 dium through whom her letters to other friends were 
 transmitted, was a Mrs. Charles Cunliffe, of Lluynon, 
 with whom the reader will become better acquainted 
 in the next chapter. 
 
OHAPTEE IX. 
 
 DISCOVERT AND PURSUIT, 
 
 Par removed, both in distance and change of asso- 
 ciation, from the sphere of her former friends at Crom- 
 well Terrace, Marie doubtless exulted in her security, 
 and her imagination ventured on even bolder flights 
 than she had yet attempted. North Wales she also 
 knew was far enough from them, and the persons to 
 whom she wrote could never betray her. Yet silently 
 and surely a mine was springing for her in that neigh- 
 borhood, which was soon to explode under her in the 
 distant city of Bonn, and it will be necessary to ex- 
 plain by whom the work was accomplished. 
 
 The reader may perhaps have surmised that Mrs. 
 Cunliffe, of Lluynon, is an ideal personage, as much a 
 phantom of Marie's brain as the Uncle Clifford of 
 former days. But though there is no Mrs. Cunliffe of 
 Lluynon, there is a Mrs. Cunliffe of Llwynissa, into 
 whose hands the faithful postman of Wrexham deliv- 
 ers the first letter. She opens it, and sees the names 
 of Lilly, Elizabeth, and others unknown to her. She 
 glances at the signature and says, " This letter cannot 
 be for me." She shows it to her family, who are well 
 known for the stability and consistency of their Prot- 
 estant views. They, in their turn, remarking the ref- 
 
DISCOVERY AKD PURSUIT. 71 
 
 erences to Romanism, are only so much the more 
 perplexed to fathom the drift of the writer, as well as 
 her identity, or their own conceivable connection with 
 her lucubrations, and the letter is forthwith returned to 
 the post-office. A few weeks afterwards another 
 packet comes, and is in like manner returned. 
 
 So had Marie anticipated. She had concluded that, 
 as in her uncle's case, the letters would come back to 
 her again. She had calculated well, but she knew 
 not as yet that through the publication of her previous 
 story, her plots and stratagems had become widely 
 known ; and that her portrait and hand- writing were 
 staring out from the booksellers' windows in many a 
 street of many a town and city in old England, to 
 warn her unsuspecting countrymen. 
 
 In the interval during which Marie's letters were 
 travelling -back to Bonn, a lady in the circle to which 
 reference has been made, had been to Chester, on a 
 . visit to the Eev. Chancellor Eaikes. " The Female 
 Jesuit " had been read there with interest, in conse- 
 quence of Mr. Luke's former residence in Chester ; 
 and there also had the lady ascertained the authen- 
 ticity of the narrative. The volume meanwhile had 
 found its way into the " Wrexham Ladies' Book Club," 
 and was going the round of the members. "While peru- 
 sing it together, Mr. and Mrs. G. Cunliffe were struck 
 with the general similarity of plot, as well as with the 
 apparent identity in style of the "Uncle's" letters 
 with the two which they had themselves so recently 
 received, and which had been the subject of so much 
 mysterious perplexity to so many members of their 
 family. They applied through a friend to Mr. and 
 
72 DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 
 
 Mrs. Luke to request a specimen of Marie's hand- 
 writing, which was immediately forwarded to them. 
 They had a distinct recollection of the peculiar for- 
 mation of some of the capitals in the letter they had 
 received, and they identified the same characters in 
 the specimen of Marie's writing. But the letters had 
 been returned through the post-office, and could not 
 be recovered. 
 
 Some weeks passed over without the arrival of any 
 further despatches, and the parties interested began 
 to fear that Marie was on the alert, and that they 
 should hear no more of her, when one morning as 
 they were on the point of starting for London to see 
 the wonders of the Great Exhibition, a packet for 
 " Miss Thompson," directed to their care, arrived from 
 Bonn. The letter bore the Bonn postmark, was inscribed 
 " charge"" and " recommandirt," andhad five little black 
 seals, indicative of a registered letter on the Continent, 
 eac,h stamped with a cross moline. The envelope 
 contained two letters, both addressed to Elizabeth. 
 
 Mrs. Gr. Cunliffe was now delighted that her old cor- 
 respondent had not altogether relinquished her inter- 
 course ; but as it was within a few minutes of the time 
 when she was to meet other members of her family 
 from Trevallyn at the station, to proceed together by 
 train to London, she put the packet aside till they 
 might together sit in council upon the propriety of 
 opening a despatch to which she herself had a some- 
 what questionable claim. The objections raised were 
 soon overruled ; in some measure, perhaps, by the un- 
 restrainable curiosity of the party, but more decisively 
 by the very legitimate reasoning of Mrs. 0. herself, 
 
DISCOVERY AND PUBSUIT. 73 
 
 " that Miss Thompson was probably a visionary per- 
 sonage, who might never call her to account for her 
 violated correspondence : or, if indeed the young lady 
 had any corporeal existence at all, she regarded it a3 
 highly reprehensible that while resident under her 
 roof, and amenable to her care, she should encourage 
 a foreign correspondence without her knowledge." 
 This was voted so unanswerable, that the five mysteri- 
 ous seals were consecutively broken, and the letter 
 with its enclosure beguiled the tedium of the journey 
 till the train glided up to the platform of the station 
 at Shrewsbury. 
 
 Only two days had passed when Mr. and Mrs. Luke 
 met the party by appointment at their breakfast-table 
 in Welbeck Street. Mr. and Mrs. L. were accom- 
 panied by a young lady whose name, when introduced, 
 they did not accurately catch ; but what was their sur- 
 prise when, in the course of conversation, Mr. Luke 
 alluded to her as " Miss Thompson," the veritable 
 Miss Thompson, who was on a visit at that very time 
 to the vicar of Wrexham, at his imaginary residence 
 Lluynon, whose correspondence Mrs. Gr. C. had so un- 
 ceremoniously intercepted, and in whose possession at 
 that very moment was the five-fold evidence of her 
 temerity in the violated seals, the open envelope, and 
 its well discussed contents. Miss Thompson, however, 
 immediately absolved the guilty party from all evil 
 consequences, on the easy condition that she should 
 be allowed to read her own letter forthwith, and retain 
 its custody for the future. As the reader may by this 
 time sympathize in her impatience for its perusal, it 
 shall be given at once. 
 
 4 
 
74 DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 
 
 "Bonn, Thursday. 
 
 * My very dear Lizzie, 
 
 " It was with feelings of deep regret that I read the 
 melancholy tidings of dear Jemima's illness. Truly do I 
 sympathize with you in your sorrow for the poor afflicted one. 
 From what you have said I fear she may be no more, but i. 
 do hope and pray that my fears may not prove true. I 
 do wish it had been possible for me to have seen her once ; 
 again ; but God has willed it otherwise, so I must think that 
 all has been ordered for the best. It is very painful to think 
 of dear Jemima having turned a deaf ear to so many loud 
 calls of God. The only hope we can have in such a case is, 
 that she has not wilfully and deliberately closed her ears and 
 eyes against the truth, but that invincible ignorance has been 
 the sole cause of her blindness. Nothing we know can help 
 her but incessant prayer ; for as you very justly observed in 
 one of your recent letters, there is the same mercy for her as 
 for us ; then why should we despair of even the most un- 
 likely? 
 
 " I feel it to be a peculiarly painful duty to write now 
 about your dear sister, because I am writing as it were in the 
 dark, not knowing whether she is still living or no. I com- 
 menced writing to her a few days ago, but I shall not of 
 course send the letter till I hear further from you. If she is 
 still living, assure her of my deep and sincere sympathy with 
 her under such bitter and accumulated sufferings ; tell her 
 that I often think of her, and often pray for her, and tell her. 
 how glad I should have been to have been able, had circum- 
 stances permitted it, to be with her not only to sympathize 
 with her, but to have returned, in some small degree, the 
 manifold and continued kindness I received from her during 
 my long and severe illness, which kindness will ever be grate- 
 fully remembered by me. 
 
 " I feel quite incapable, dear Lizzie, of giving you any 
 
DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 75 
 
 comfort and consolation, for I cannot find words to express 
 what I should wish to say ; all that I can do is to tell you to 
 look to the Strong for strength. He will be your rock and 
 shield in the hour of the trial and sorrow. He has said ' As 
 thy day, so shall thy strength be ;' so fear not, but hope in 
 the Lord. We all pray for you and the poor sufferer, and 
 we shall continue to pray for you. 
 
 " Poor little Arnold, it is distressing beyond anything to 
 think of him ; his dear mother inust indeed have suffered on 
 his account. It is alhost harrowing and heart-rending sight 
 to see a fond mother's agony in parting with a beloved child. 
 I have witnessed such a scene. Never shall I forget my own 
 dear mother's last hours — the struggles and the tears it cost 
 her : but what must it be to a mother who has to leave her 
 child feeble and helpless on the world ? I do hope Mrs. 
 Blunt may have the care of the darling, for he will find in 
 her a kind and fond parent ; I don't know of any one who 
 would take so much care of him as she. She would take as 
 much as if he were her own. Friday afternoon I had pur- 
 posed sending you a long letter, but Mrs. S. wished to send 
 it to-day, so I am obliged to stop short of one third I wished 
 to say. Mrs. S. desires me to tell you that, as soon as you 
 are ready to come, you must come on here, as it is not improb- 
 able that we may remain here a little time longer than be- 
 fore intended. I am so anxious to see you. 
 
 " I was much pleased to hear of Bennett's decision ; I hope 
 nothing will occur to prevent her following out her present 
 good intentions. Remember me to her, and tell her that I 
 sincerely congratulate her on her happy decision. 
 
 " I do trust dear Betsey will ere long resolve to become one 
 with us in the household of faith. She will make a nice 
 Catholic. I am very desirous that Jane and her worthy hus- 
 band should visit the Continent. I hope nothing will occur 
 to prevent their proposed visit. I am afraid it won't do for 
 
76 DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 
 
 me to go to Paris, it would be a very exciting journey for me. 
 I am considerably better than I was two or three weeks ago. 
 A lady comes now for two hours every day to teach me 
 French and German, so perhaps I shall make something out 
 of French now. 
 
 " I really cannot stop to say much more. I was, indeed, 
 surprised to hear of your book. I wish you every good suc- 
 cess. What will your papa say to it 1 Won't he be enrag- 
 ed 1 Give my very dear love to poor Jemima, assure her of 
 my sympathy, tell her that I have prayed for her, and shall 
 continue to pray for her. 
 
 " With much love and sympathy from Mrs. S. and myself. 
 « I am, 
 
 "Ever, dearest Lizzie, 
 
 " Yours most affectionately, 
 
 " Marie." 
 
 The second note was as follows : — 
 
 " My dear Miss Thompson, 
 
 " The more I consider your kind proposal of dedi- 
 cating to me the valuable little work you are intending to 
 publish, the less I feel disposed to approve the plan. In the 
 first place I see no good likely to arise from it ; on the con- 
 trary, I cannot see the appropriateness, even on general 
 grounds, of dedicating a religious work to a private layman, 
 without so much as the external advantage of rank or posi- 
 tion ; and with the disadvantage, too, of belonging to the pro- 
 scribed class of ' married converts] whose insignificance in 
 the Catholic world is so politely intimated in a review in the 
 Catholic Standard of Saturday week (' Literature,' article 1) ; 
 while, on the other hand, to a conscience like mine, and to 
 those who know me and my antecedents better than you can 
 be supposed to do, such a dedication (however deeply I ap- 
 preciate the kindness which has prompted it) may, with no 
 
DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 77 
 
 small reason, be regarded as an equivocal, not to say at onee 
 an ironical, compliment. If, however, your advisers, after 
 reading the above, still approve your proposal, I will waive my 
 own ideas and feelings ; and, stipulating only for your having 
 the kindness not to say ' by permission] (as that certainly 
 would be giving the thing a consequence most unpleasant to 
 my feelings) leave the matter in your hands. I still hope, 
 however, that further consideration may lead you to spare 
 both your book and myself a kind of connection which (how- 
 ever kind its proposal) will, as it seems to me, be desirable 
 for neither. While on this subject, allow me to recommend, 
 you, in addition to the usual professional correction, to read 
 with care yourself the proofs of your intended publication. 
 
 " We feel deeply for poor Mrs. Duke ; could you not get 
 her to pray from the bottom of her heart for contrition and 
 love in their highest perfection, together with the highest de- 
 sire to conform, cost what it may, to the whole will and good 
 pleasure of G-od, and with such prayers to strive continually to 
 make the most earnest acts of each of these three graces ? 
 To do this is what she cannot object to ; and if the prejudices 
 of her education amount to ' invincible ignorance,' (and why 
 should they not 1) we know that one perfect (humanly perfect) 
 act of contrition will effect at once, through the all-prevailing 
 sacrifice of the cross, the salvation of her soul. Do then, if 
 it is yet in your power, by any and every means, strive to 
 bring this about ; which has also the advantage, that if her 
 ignorance is not invincible, such devotions are far more pow- 
 erful than any argument for overcoming it ; and, if she will 
 not take it amiss, entreat her also on Mrs. C. Seager's and 
 my part ( who ourselves pray earnestly for her, in this at 
 least, in the supplications and pourings out of contrition, 
 fove, and desire of conformity with the whole will and good 
 pleasure of God, to unite her heart with ours. Strive for this 
 point, whether personally or by letter ; ask this of G-od as a 
 
78 DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 
 
 paternal gift of love to yourself, an etrenne, as it were, to his 
 newly-recovered child ; gain it by the omnipotent interces- 
 sion of an immaculate Mother's heart ; and how great will be 
 your joy through eternity with her whom you will have been 
 an instrument in snatching from destruction to shine forever 
 in the paradise of God ! 
 
 " That God may vouchsafe you this, and in all things 
 help, guide, support, and prosper you, is the earnest prayer of 
 " Yours most sincerely in Christ, 
 
 " C. Seager. 
 " Baumschdle, Bonn am Rhein, ) 
 
 "Prussia; May 23, 1851. ) 
 
 " P.S. — Our plans are as yet uncertain, but when once you 
 leave England, where, so far as we can see, the probability 
 of your usefulness is the greatest, I do not see what you 
 would gain by depriving us of the pleasure of seeing you 
 here. Mrs. C. Seager desires me to add her kind love, and 
 say how glad she will be to receive yourself and Lady Char- 
 lotte, at Bonn. In the meantime we earnestly commend 
 ourselves and our intentions to your kind prayers. Adieu." 
 
 It was very evident from these letters, ,that Marie 
 had imposed upon Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager as com- 
 pletely as - upon Mr. and Mrs. Luke. She was now 
 apparently an avowed Eoman Catholic, ,and repre- 
 senting Elizabeth as a convert also: carrying on a 
 fictitious correspondence in Elizabeth's name, and 
 intercepting returned letters. She had imagined, that 
 in a part so distant as North Wales, and using the 
 Christian names only of her former friends, her char- 
 acters would never be identified, and that the letter^ 
 would be returned. She was evidently unaware of 
 the publication of the book which had so singularly 
 
DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 79 
 
 led to her detection, and was taking lessons in French 
 and German at the expense of her present friends, 
 and affecting ill-health, according to her practice in 
 former days. 
 
 It was not so easy to decide what course to pursue. 
 That Christian kindness and uprightness indicated the 
 duty of undeceiving Mr. C. Seager, all unhesitatingly 
 agreed, but how it was to be done was the question. 
 It was obvious that it would not be safe to trust to the 
 post, a communication which must then inevitably 
 pass through Marie's own hands ; nor was it every 
 messenger who would have sufficient tact and pru- 
 dence, and accurate knowledge of all the parties and 
 circumstances, to execute so difficult a commission. 
 
 Such a messenger, however, they sought to find. 
 They inquired in all directions for some person who 
 might be going to Bonn, and who would undertake 
 to see Mr. C. Seager, but they sought in vain ; and 
 as June and July passed over without the arrival 
 of any more letters from the Continent, they again 
 began to doubt whether Marie might not have taken 
 wing and escaped beyond their pursuit. 
 
 In August the Conference of the Evangelical Alli- 
 ance was held in London, and among the numerous 
 interesting foreigners who were present, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Luke endeavored to find one who would assist them 
 in pursuing the inquiry. They were introduced to a 
 Protestant minister from Bonn, and through him they 
 ascertained that Mr. C. Seager was still a resident in 
 the Baumschule, and that under his. care was a young 
 English lady, who was actively engaged in proselyti- 
 zing, and who, as he then understood, had, to his 
 
80 DISCOVERY AND PURSUIT. 
 
 great regret, been instrumental in converting to popery 
 a young lady in his own congregation. 
 
 On receiving this intelligence Mr. Luke resolved no 
 longer to wait for the intervention of others, but at 
 once himself to undertake the journey to Mr. C. Sea- 
 ger. As Mr. and Mrs. Thompson wished to attend the 
 approaching conference of the German churches at 
 Elberfeld, it was resolved that they should go together, 
 and take Bonn in their way. And lest there should 
 be any difficulty in convincing Mr. C. Seager, it was 
 settled that instead of Mrs. Luke, who could not leave 
 her children, Elizabeth, who was so fully acquainted 
 with Marie's previous history, should accompany her 
 brother, and confirm his testimony. 
 
 The passports were speedily obtained, and other ar- 
 rangements made, and with as little luggage, and as 
 many French and German tracts as they could con- 
 trive to carry, one fine moonlight night, September 
 the 8th, 1851, they embarked at one o'clock in the 
 morning for Ostend. Here we will leave them for a 
 short time, to present the reader with some letters 
 which arrived after their departure, the introduction 
 of which at a later period would be a greater inter- 
 ruption to the narrative. They had been received by 
 the Eeverend George Cunliffe, of Wrexham, and for- 
 warded by him to Mrs. Luke, and may be interesting 
 as specimens of Marie's Welsh correspondence. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 ENIGMATICAL LETTERS. 
 
 A careful perusal of the following letters may 
 possibly furnish the reader with some clue to Marie's 
 plots at this period. Should he find them unintelli- 
 gible, we must refer him to Mr. C. Seager's forthcom- 
 ing work for full explanation : 
 
 "Bonn, August 25th, 1861. 
 " My poor dear Mary, 
 
 " I cannot tell you how much I have been shocked 
 by dear Betsy's letter. It is indeed a most terrible blow for 
 you — a trial too great for human aids to alleviate. It is 
 God alone that can sustain you under it, for in such a case, 
 vain is the help of man. He who has promised to be a 
 father to the fatherless, and a husband to the widow, will 
 not forsake you if you put your trust in him. Human sym- 
 pathy is of little avail, or else gladly would I, if it were per- 
 mitted me, pour the balm of consolation into the wound 
 made by the loss of the dearest object of your affection. 
 Oh ! dearest Mary, I wish I could give utterance to all I 
 feel ; but you know me too well to need any expressions 
 of mine to convince you of how I feel for you under your 
 heavy bereavement. Silence is often the most expressive 
 language of a full heart ; I find it so at the present mo- 
 ment. It must, dearest friend, be a great source of comfort 
 to you, even amidst so dreadful a trial, that the life of your 
 darling boy is preserved ; he will now be doubly dear to you ; 
 
82 ENIGMATICAL LETTERS. 
 
 and though his presence will often bring painful reminiscen- 
 ces to your mind, yet it must always call forth gratitude to 
 God for having saved the life of so dear a little one. This 
 sad event, as you may easily suppose, has brought vividly 
 before me the past sorrows of the Pymrhydd ; for it was 
 there I lost my dear and fond papa ; that cherished spot has 
 indeed been the scene of much domestic joy and sorrow ; 
 but I must refrain from these allusions, for it is too painful 
 a subject for me to dwell upon. 
 
 " Had circumstances permitted it, how glad I should 
 have been to have personally sympathized with you. Some- 
 how I feel so completely one of you, that your joy is my joy, 
 and your grief my grief. I do hope and pray that dearest 
 Jane may receive no serious injury from the great shock she 
 has received. 1 am so glad Miss Mayburys are with you, 
 as they will be such a comfort to you. I intend to write to 
 Jane to-morrow ; I feel too ill to do so to-day. Tell her 
 that we are still in Bonn, and shall stay till we hear what 
 her plans are. I hope she has sent me a remittance. I 
 shall write to Oxford in the morning. I wish I could write 
 you a longer letter, but on the whole it is perhaps better I 
 should not. What shall I say in conclusion 1 All that I 
 can say or do is to assure you of my sincerest sympathy, and 
 to commend you to God and his grace, which can alone af- 
 ford you true comfort and consolation. That this your 
 heavy affliction may be sanctified to you and yours is the 
 most earnest and anxious prayer of 
 
 " Yours ever affectionately, 
 
 " Marie L. Wynefryde G . 
 
 " To Mrs. Maybury." - 
 
 " My very dear Jane, 
 
 " It will require no expression of mine to convince 
 you how much your dear friend sympathizes with you in your 
 
ENIGMATICAL LETTERS. 83 
 
 many bitter trials. I feel that the late heavy bereavement 
 must have given you all a sorrow so beyond all human con- 
 solation, that I cannot venture to do more than direct your 
 mind to the source of all comfort. He who hath afflicted is 
 alone able to be your rock in the hour of sorrow and affliction. 
 Death is a most solemn thing come when it may, but tinder 
 such painful circumstances as poor Maybury's, it is indeed 
 terrible. What must be dear Mary's anguish — an anguish 
 too great for utterance ! What a lesson all these things teach 
 us ! yet how one event passes after another without our 
 having received any lasting fruit from them. ' The Lord 
 speaketh once, yea twice, and man regardeth it not.' I am 
 sure this is my own experience, for really during the past 
 year. I have had such an accumulation of troubles, and yet I 
 cannot say that I have profited by any one of them. I do 
 hope that poor Maybury is by this time found. If he is not, 
 your suspense will be almost beyond endurance. You must, 
 dear Jane, for the sake of those most dear to you, take every 
 possible care of yourself. If you don't, there is no knowing 
 the consequences. I begin almost to fear that you are ill, 
 as I have not heard from you. This is not the time to speak 
 of my own great disappointment in not seeing you ere now. 
 One ought certainly to learn one thing from all such disap- 
 pointments — not to fix our hearts and minds on the fleeting 
 things of time. 
 
 " Did you receive a letter from Mr. C. Seager, in which was 
 enclosed one from me to Betsey 1 A letter you wrote to me 
 some weeks ago, which Betsey mentioned to me, has not 
 reached me. There is also one waiting for you in Paris, ad- 
 dressed to the post-office. Please send for it. We are still 
 in Bonn, and shall remain here till we know what are your 
 decided plans. From Bonn we go to Brussels. 
 
 " Has Maybury made a will 1 If so, who are his trustees ? 
 I very much fear he has not been able to save a great deal. 
 
84: ENIGMATICAL LETTEBS. 
 
 Poor Mary has now a heavy task devolving on her. I should 
 hope that your uncle William will, now do something hand- 
 some, and not wait till his death occurs. 
 
 " Since hearing the melancholy intelligence, I have thought 
 so much upon past events that have taken place at the Pym- 
 rydd. You have shared with me many, very many joys, and 
 sorrows too, on that dear cherished spot, and I often wish I 
 loved it less ! In your last letter you alluded to the change 
 that some of my friends had seen in me. I have indeed lost 
 all my natural vivacity and great flow of spirits. I have 
 never been the same in any way since that time. I am less 
 amiable in every way. I care less than ever I did to go out 
 into society ; but one thing is, that visiting here and visiting 
 in "Wales are so very different. When I go into company 
 here, I feel as a complete stranger would dp. I never feel at 
 home as I do among my own people. I like Miss Herbert 
 very much. Both she and Lady Harriet are very kind to 
 me. They are both great lovers of Wales. 
 
 " I am just now very low-spirited. The state of my mind 
 and health make me so. By the time you receive this letter, 
 Eustace's letter will have arrived. It is, dear Jane, after all 
 I have suffered, a great comfort to me to feel that he is so 
 truly penitent. With all his unkindness, I still love him-. 
 How can it be otherwise 1 I may be blamed ; but if those 
 who blame me have not passed through the same troubles as 
 mine, they cannot enter into all I have endured. To have 
 lost him by death would have been nothing compared with 
 the loss of his affections ; but notwithstanding all that has 
 passed, I would not for one moment think of accepting him. 
 To say nothing of religion, there are circumstances which 
 would ever prevent my marrying Eustace. You say that 
 you do not know to what to attribute my unhappiness — 
 whether to remorse, &c. That has I assure you a great deal 
 to do with it. I don't get on as I wish. I have been in so 
 
ENIGMATICAL LETTERS. 85 
 
 many troubles that you will quite wonder when you hear of 
 them ; then my health makes me irritable and anxious ; then 
 I am dying for my harp. Miss H. wishes me to go to the 
 Abergavenny fete next year ; it is near her brother's estate. 
 I am very glad Mrs. Duke is staying in Overton. 
 
 " Do send my money ; at the least £100. Mr. C. Seager 
 received his account from Oxford. There was no entry of 
 the £45 Mr. Boydell sent me. Will you please inquire into 
 it ? Ask dear Betsey to forward £1 to Birkenhead. I wish 
 also another £1 to be sent to the Grood Shepherds of Ham- 
 mersmith, London; also 10s. to Poplar, London ; and 10s. 
 to Weedon ; and Chester Hospital subscription is now due. 
 Next year, if I live, I hope to double it, but I cannot this 
 year. Don't forget my subscription of £1 to the Royal 
 Harpers' Society. 
 
 " I do hope and pray, dearest Jane, that you will be able 
 to visit us soon, either in Bonn or Belgium. Come as soon 
 as you can. I assure you it is of the highest importance that 
 I should see you soon. I trust that you are not angry with 
 me for not consenting to return. Please ask Betsey to write 
 to me at once. It is too much to ask you to do so. I am 
 hoping every day to receive a letter from you. Mr. and Mrs. 
 C. Seager feel so much for you all, and I have no doubt they 
 prayed for you all. I am sure I may venture to send their 
 very kind regards, as well as sincerest sympathy. Give my 
 very dear love to your papa, as well as to the rest of your 
 dear circle. Accept, my dearest Jane, the fond love of her 
 who ceases not to pray for you, and to love you with undi- 
 minished affection. Believe me ever through life to be, 
 " Your unchanged and sympathizing friend, 
 
 " Marie. 
 
 " If you send a remittance, forward it, through Coutts and 
 Co., to Mr. Jonas Cahn, Bonn, unless Jones and Boydell's 
 
86 ENIGMATICAL LETTERS. 
 
 have direct dealings with Mr. Cahn. Don't send it by Ox- 
 ford. I should like £75 of it, if convenient for me to have 
 so much just now. 
 " To Mrs. Cunliffe, 
 " Lluynon, 
 " To be left at the Post-office, 
 " Wrexham, Denbighshire, 
 " North Wales, England." 
 
 "Bonn, Thursday. 
 " My dearest Emma, „ 
 
 " As I am sending a letter into Wales, I thought I 
 would just take the opportunity of enclosing you a few lines. 
 You have of course heard of the melancholy death of poor 
 Maybury. What a sad blow for our very dear friends ! 
 Will all these trials' end, think you, in the conversion of any 
 one of them 1 I very much fear that the great shock will 
 prove too much for dear Jane. I have great hopes that your 
 prayers, and those of the good nuns, will do great things for 
 many of our friends in Wales. How do you like a convent 
 life 1 Tell me when you write. Will you please ask Rev. 
 Mother to allow the four children to speak Welsh when they 
 are together ; for I should wish to choose one of the boys, 
 the one that is in every way the most fit, and to send him, 
 .when old enough, to the Jesuits' college near St. Asaph, and 
 if he shows any sign of a vocation, have him brought up for 
 the priesthood ; so I am very desirous that they should keep 
 up their own language. Many thanks for your truly faith- 
 ful letter. The only fault I had to find with it was, that it 
 was rather too much of a sermon. I am, dear Emma, tempt- 
 ed many times to give up in despair ; for instead of advan- 
 cing in virtue and good works, I have gone back considerably 
 since I became a Catholic ; so the year's end from my re- 
 
ENIGMATICAL LETTERS. 87 
 
 ception finds me in every way a far worse Christian than 
 when I first set out. Sometimes I think I should get on 
 much better if I were in Wales. You see with strangers one 
 is so often misunderstood, and a disposition like mine is so 
 very liable to be so ; and then that frets and annoys me. 
 Then I give way to pride and temper, which only makes the 
 matter worse. I fret a great deal now, which has a very bad 
 effect on my health and spirits. I feel that Mr. and Mrs. 
 G. S. can have no real esteem for me, and that it is only 
 their great anxiety for my soul's eternal interest that makes 
 them kind and attentive to me. This thought pains me ex- 
 ceedingly. It haunts me by day and by night. My own 
 conscience makes me not happy with them, or otherwise I 
 might be, for I have in them the kindest and most faithful 
 friends. I am now in a very anxious state. There is every 
 reason to suppose that (mentioning a new and distressing 
 complaint). What to do I don't know. I see no other 
 chance but to return home ; for to be ill a long time, troub- 
 ling my kind friends as I should be obliged to do, would be 
 more than I could bear. Then again, if I fancied myself in 
 the way, I should fret, so what would you advise me to do ? 
 Pray for me, but don't pray that I may be a nun. You 
 should not have shown Jane Mrs. C. Seager's note, for she 
 is quite terrified lest I should have any thoughts of becoming 
 a nun. If you are allowed, tell me what you do, and as much 
 more as you can about the convent. 
 
 " Pray that I may become good. Pray for Mr. and Mrs. 
 C. Seager and their dear little boys. Begging the prayers 
 of your good community, believe me, dearest Emma, with 
 much love, ever Your attached friend, 
 
 " Marie Wynefryde. 
 
 " To Miss Holmes, 
 " Convent, 
 " Mount St. Vernon, Liverpool." 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 
 
 The reader may wish to rejoin the party of travel- 
 lers whom we left at Ostend on the morning of Tues- 
 day, September 9th. At this most uninviting place 
 they rested two or three hours only, reached Brussels 
 by train that evening, visited "Waterloo on Wednesday, 
 and on Thursday morning started by railway for Co- 
 logne. Thence they took steamer to Bonn, and were 
 landed there at twelve o'clock at night. 
 
 The reception of the travellers at' Bonn was suffi- 
 ciently cheerless, and quite in keeping with their er- 
 rand. The place looked black and dismal, and one 
 little oil lamp only was swimming backwards and for- 
 wards at the head of the pier. They were the only 
 passengers landed at Bonn, and as the steamer drew 
 in her cable, and the busy wheels and rushing water 
 told that she was bearing the rest of the passengers on 
 to Coblentz, they became aware of their solitude. The 
 inhabitants (for they keep early hours on the Conti- 
 nent) were all gone to rest. There was no cab or 
 conveyance of any kind, and two porters from the 
 hotels were the only human beings visible. One of 
 these had a truck, on which he took the luggage. The 
 weary travellers followed him on foot through the 
 
89 DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 
 
 long, narrow, miserable-looking streets, in which the 
 wheels of the truck, the pattering of their feet, and 
 the few words that fell from them occasionally, were 
 the only sounds that broke on the stillness of the 
 night. To Mrs. Thompson, who was exhausted with an 
 unusual amount of fatigue at Brussels and Waterloo, 
 the pilgrimage seemed interminable. Again and again 
 she declared her utter inability to proceed a step fur- 
 ther. Elizabeth cheered and persuaded by turns, till 
 at length they reached the " Coblentz gate." This 
 was a heavy archway, guarded by a single sentinel, 
 and a few paces beyond it was the hotel. The sound 
 of the great bell at the latter seemed enough ip alarm 
 the neighborhood. Five minutes elapsed before it 
 was answered, and then down came the landlord in 
 his dressing-gown and slippers, apparently doubtful 
 whether to be pleased or otherwise at the untimely 
 disturbance. It was too late for the hungry travellers 
 to get anything to eat, for there being no expectation 
 of arrivals at such an hour, there had been no prepa- 
 ration made. They were conducted to the only rooms 
 that could be so hastily assigned them, and there they 
 gladly betook themselves to rest till the morning broke. 
 Before seven o'clock on the following morning, after 
 a brief night's repose, Mr. Luke and Elizabeth were 
 off to the residence of the Eev. Theodore Plitt, the" 
 Protestant minister before mentioned, to confer with 
 him on the best plan of opening the communication 
 with Mr. C. Seager. It was resolved that a note 
 should be written, not by Mr. L., lest Marie should 
 get sight of it, but by Mr. Plitt, whose hand was un- 
 known. It was to this effect : 
 
DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 90 
 
 " Two English gentlemen, taking a short tour on the Con- 
 tinent, are anxious to have an interview with Mr. C. Seager. 
 As the subject on which they wish to consult him is of a 
 confidential nature, they request that the meeting may be 
 with him alone. They are staying at the Hotel Royal, where 
 they will be happy to see him at any hour that he may ap- 
 point." 
 
 The note written, Mr. L. and Elizabeth hastened 
 back to the hotel, to be again under cover before Ma- 
 rie was abroad. They beckoned the commissionaire 
 out into the garden, that no one might hear their in- 
 structions about the note. As he only spoke French, 
 Elizabeth repeated the directions twice or thrice to be 
 sure that he understood them. He was told that it 
 was a very important note, and that he must take it 
 at once to Mr. C. Seager's, ask to see him, and if not 
 at home, give it into no other person's hands, but 
 bring it back to them. During his absence they 
 "breakfasted, and then most anxiously awaited his re- 
 turn. It was some distance from the hotel to the 
 Baumschule, and he was nearly two hours gone. "Wish- 
 ing to be down stairs on his return, they awaited in 
 the salle-a-manger. At last his face appeared at the 
 door, and he informed them that he had taken the 
 note, and that Mr. C. Seager would be with them at 
 half-past two. They inquired if he had seen Mr. C. 
 Seager? "No: Madame Seager," he answered. "Any 
 one else ?" Elizabeth asked, impatiently. " Only some 
 children," was his reply. 
 
 Fearful of encountering Marie, Mr. Luke and Eliz- 
 abeth did not venture beyond the garden. As the 
 hour drew on, they repaired to the sitting-room to 
 
DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 91 
 
 wait Mr. C. Seager's expected visit, and took out their 
 documentary evidence in readiness for his arrival. At 
 last the door opened, and without the announcement 
 of his name, a gentleman entered. He bowed, and 
 Mr. Luke bowed. Mr. C. Seager was the first to speak, 
 and looking hard at the two strangers, he' said, " I 
 have not the pleasure of remembering you." 
 
 "No," said Mr. Luke. "I am a stranger to you, 
 but I wish to see you on very important business ;" 
 and he begged Mr. C. Seager to be seated. 
 
 Mr. C. Seager turned a most inquiring look on both, 
 and Mr. Luke took out of his bag Mr. C. Seager's 
 letter to Elizabeth, of May 23d, and placed it in his 
 hands, saying, "In order to introduce the subject, I 
 present you with your note. You remember this?" 
 
 Mr. C. Seager looked at it, opened it, and with a look 
 of mingled surprise and curiosity, answered, " Yes." 
 
 Looking from him to Elizabeth, Mr. Luke said, " I 
 now introduce to, you the Miss Thompson, to whom 
 this note is addressed." 
 
 Mr. C. Seager put the note down, and looking hard 
 at her, said, " No ; the lady to whom I addressed this 
 letter is dead." 
 
 "And I," continued Mr. L., "am the Mr. Duke 
 referred to in Marie's letters. My real name is Luke." 
 
 Mr. C. Seager turned his eyes from one to the other, 
 and said, with an expression which paper cannot con- 
 vey, "No! you were represented as dead too!" 
 
 He paused, and well he might. Yet it was not so 
 much the discovery of Marie's falsehood that over- 
 whelmed him ;_ for that of late he had been gradually 
 and painfully prepared. Nor was it the breaking up 
 
92 DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 
 
 of her plot, though that had come like a thunderclap. 
 Another feeling unconnected with herself predomi- 
 nated, and it was that of disappointment. 
 
 Elizabeth had been represented as a convert to the 
 Church of Eome, and her conversion had been as- 
 signed mainly to a pamphlet of Mr. C. Seager's. Her 
 cousin, a "Lady Charlotte," and Sarah, Mrs. Luke's 
 nurse, had subsequently become proselytes. Eliza- 
 beth's death, tidings of which had been received in 
 June, and which was attributed to the persecution of 
 her father, had been followed by the conversion of a 
 Miss Eandalls, a sister of Mrs. Cunliffe. The greater 
 part of these converts had been more or less benefitted 
 by Mr. C. Seager's book, and his ardent religious feel- 
 ing allowed scope for a prospective and still widening 
 circle beyond. 
 
 To his bewildered apprehension it now seemed as 
 if the angelic visions so frequently conjured up by 
 Marie's "glowing representations had all suddenly van- 
 ished, and given place to a dark and dreary blank. 
 
 Mr.. Luke, by even Marie's account, the most blame- 
 less of heretics, and for the repose of whose soul 
 many a prayer had been offered up in Bonn, was liv- 
 ing and present before him. Elizabeth, whom, as she 
 had died a martyr, he had thankfully and joyfully 
 regarded as already a saint in heaven, was still a her- 
 etic on earth : and all the list of converts who had 
 followed in her train, had with her altered position 
 passed out of existence. 
 
 A few moments of silence followed the announce- 
 ment, and Mr. Luke continued: " I think I ought to 
 be perfectly frank with you. It is my painful duty to 
 
DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 93 
 
 inform you, that you have an impostor under your 
 roof. I am a Protestant minister. In 1849, Marie 
 came to me at my chapel in Orange-Street, Leicester 
 Square ;" and he related the whole history. Mr. C. 
 Seager did not interpose a word till his informant ap- 
 proached the conclusion of the whole story, and in- 
 quired — " Were you prepared for such a communica- 
 tion?" "I was," replied Mr. C. Seager, " unhappily." 
 
 Mr. Luke continued his recital up to the time when 
 Marie was landed at Ostend, and seen to take train 
 for Ghent. He stated that she had been seen again in 
 London subsequently. "No," said Mr. C. Seager, 
 " that cannot be, for I can now take up the narrative 
 from my own knowledge." He then informed them, 
 at length, under what circumstances Marie had made 
 their acquaintance, and subsequently transferred her- 
 self to their care. He stated that this arrangement 
 had in the first instance been projected for a few weeks 
 only, but she had contrived to prolong it through a 
 period of thirteen months. It had been settled that 
 she should refund her expenses at her own time and 
 convenience ; but owing to various inopportune oc- 
 currences, no remittances had yet been received. 
 After leaving Brussels, she had proceeded with them 
 to Bonn, not then intending to stay so long, but owing 
 to the expected visits of Lady Charlotte and Elizabeth, 
 Mrs. Charles Cunliffe and Miss Eandalls, their stay 
 had been prolonged to this time. 
 
 Mr. C. Seager then went into detail respecting 
 Marie's conduct till the announcement of the dinner 
 hour interrupted the conversation. Mr. Luke said, 
 " You will allow me to introduce you to the Honor- 
 
94 DECEASED FRIENDS REAPPEAR. 
 
 able Mrs. Thompson, who, as her name is Charlotte, 
 may have suggested the Lady Charlotte of Marie's ac- 
 quaintance ;" and he called in Mr. and Mrs. Thomp- 
 son. A few words were interchanged, and Mr. C. 
 Seager, putting his hand to his forehead, said, " I feel 
 quite bewildered. My great difficulty will be to keep 
 it from Marie. I think I shall not even tell Mrs. C. 
 Seager." He then took his leave, and thus closed this 
 first singular interview. 
 
CHAPTEE XII. 
 
 MARIE UNDER ARREST. 
 
 After the exciting interview described in the last 
 chapter, Mr. C. Seager returned for a short time to his 
 abode. What he felt on again meeting Marie, we pre- 
 sume not to say ; but she discovered no alteration in 
 his manner, and he deemed it prudent to withhold 
 from Mrs. C. Seager the disclosures of the afternoon. 
 In the evening he called on his new acquaintances, in 
 order to bring the matter to a practical conclusion. 
 He entered into fuller details respecting Marie's con- 
 duct, and added, "We must now consider what is to 
 be done with her. To acquaint her with the discovery 
 of her wickedness, and then send her off, would only 
 be to encourage her to repeat the same course with 
 other parties. It strikes me that it is a case which 
 ought to be legally dealt with." 
 
 Mr. Luke concurred in this opinion, adding, that 
 had he, at the time of her departure from his house, 
 known all which had subsequently transpired, he 
 should himself have pursued a severer course. 
 
 "Well," said Mr. C. Seager, "whatever we do, it 
 is of the greatest importance that it should be done at 
 once. You know Miss G ; and if she has the 
 
yb MARIE UNDER ARREST. 
 
 least suspicion that anything is going on, she will be 
 off." 
 
 Mr. Luke, in reply, expressed his reluctance to be 
 the only party to advise in such a matter, and request- 
 ed Mr. C. Seager to confer with some judicious friend 
 before coming to a decision. Mr. C. Seager then said 
 that he would consult his friend the Cur£, to whom 
 Marie was well known ; and promising to let them 
 know the result in the morning, he withdrew. 
 
 Soon after ten the next morning he came again, and 
 informed them that he had seen the Cur£, who had at 
 first been unable to credit the tale? Lifting up his 
 hands in astonishment, he had said, " It is impossible ;" 
 but when convinced of its truth, he had at once agreed 
 that she ought to be arrested. Eelieved that all took 
 the same view of the case, Mr. Luke no longer hesi- 
 tated, and they both thought that no time should be 
 lost. Elizabeth ran to put on her bonnet, and tapping 
 at her mamma's door by the way, said, "We are 
 going to the police court." They went down and call- 
 ed for a carriage. " A close one," added Mr. C. Sea- 
 ger. Unfortunately the only one to be obtained was 
 a German britska, which, with its glass shutters, left 
 its occupants exposed. Mr. C. Seager felt some ap- 
 prehension lest they should meet Marie, for she had 
 that morning proposed calling on a lady who was stay- 
 ing at a neighboring hotel ; and though he had re- 
 quested Mrs. C. Seager to keep her in, he feared the 
 possibility of her giving her the slip. 
 
 "Well might Marie have been transfixed with sur- 
 prise had she seen the travellers issue from the hotel ; 
 for that was the very hotel to which, in her fictitious 
 
MARIE ONDER ARREST. 97 
 
 invitations, she had directed some of her friends to 
 come, and there she had more than once inquired for 
 them. And now two of her friends were indeed there, 
 back from their imaginary graves, and her own letters 
 had brought them. 
 
 Mr. C. Seager went out to take a survey, and in a 
 moment beckoned to them. He sprang in, and they 
 after him, and all crowded in under the hood. The 
 man was directed to drive through the back streets to 
 a house in the Vierecksplatz. The gentlemen raised 
 their hats to their faces, and Elizabeth her parasol. 
 "As the sun did not shine," said Elizabeth, in her 
 lively description of the scene, " it might have been 
 supposed that we were going to the Ophthalmic Hos- 
 pital. I enjoyed it, but poor Mr. 0- Seager seemed so 
 anxious, that I was quite sorry for him." The. house 
 to which they had been directed, proved to be the 
 wrong one, and they got in again, and were driven to 
 the residence of a magistrate, called the "Staats-pro- 
 curator" a kind of provincial attorney-general. They 
 were shown into -a room, and after waiting some time, 
 a lady made her appearance. She stated that her hus- 
 band was ill, and confined to his bed, and could not 
 possibly see anybody. Mr. C. Seager briefly stated 
 the object of their application, and she recommended 
 them to the " Landsgerieht" or Court-house. They 
 asked if she would allow her servant to fetch them 
 a close carriage. She gave directions accordingly, 
 but a close carriage could not be obtained ; and the 
 open one having been dismissed, they were obliged, to 
 walk. They hurried through the streets in nervous 
 dread of encountering Marie^ and dared not look 
 
 5 
 
98 MARIE UNDER ARREST. 
 
 around them. Five minutes brought them t© the 
 Court-house, where they were shown through a long 
 passage, and up a stone staircase into an upper office. 
 The secretary, an intelligent and gentlemanly young 
 German, presented himself. He understood a little 
 French, and Mr. 0. Seager related to him, in few 
 Wolds, the story of Marie's imposition both on Mr. 
 Luke and on himself, and of their united wish to pro- 
 ceed against her. 
 
 The young man, whose countenance indicated an 
 amused interest in the tale, went to communicate with 
 his superior. In a quarter of an hour he re-appeared, 
 and in the politest manner imaginable, requested the 
 applicants to go into an adjoining office; He again 
 disappeared, and in a few minutes returned with a 
 rather older and evidently more important personage. 
 This functionary took his seat at his large official 
 desk, and assumed a professional air, while Mr. C. 
 Seager and the secretary went through the tale, Mr. 
 0. Seager relating it in French, and the young man in- 
 terpreting in German, stopping only for occasional 
 correction or confirmation from Mr. Luke. The latter 
 placed in the magistrate's hands some of " Uncle Clif- 
 ford's" letters in confirmation of his statements, and 
 he and Mr. C. Seager wrote their names and addresses. 
 The latter recommended Marie's immediate arrest, and 
 suggested the desirableness of the police officers being 
 in plain clothes. Looking at his watch, he said, " It 
 will be a good time to take her now, as she will be at 
 dinner." " Yes, a good time for you, but not for us," 
 said they laughing, for it was their dinner hour also. 
 They went, however, to get ready, and the secretary 
 
MARIE UNDER ARREST. 99 
 
 looked in presently for Mr. C. Seager, leaving Mr. 
 Luke and Elizabeth in the office, lest an accidental en- 
 counter with Marie should give her the alarm. 
 
 Mr. C. Seager and the secretary proceeded to the 
 Baumschule, where the former resided ; and the Ger- 
 man magistrate accompanied the commissary of police 
 by another route, to avoid the observation which so 
 many officials walking together would have occasion- 
 ed. Mr. C. Seager and the secretary reached the 
 Baumschule, and ascended the staircase together. Mr. 
 C. Seager opened the door, and there sat Marie and 
 Mrs. C. Seager at dinner. Marie was sitting with her 
 back to the door. She turned her head, and Mr. 0. 
 Seager pointed to her as the guilty party. At the 
 suggestion of the secretary, he requested her to follow 
 him into the study. An eager inquiry as to the object 
 of this unwelcome summons burst from her lips. 
 " You have only to answer the questions that are put 
 to you," was the reply; and she passively obeyed. 
 Mr. C. Seager saw that Mrs. C. S. was agitated, and 
 calmed her with a brief assurance that all was right; 
 after which she withdrew to her own room, there to 
 wait in patience the solution of the mystery. 
 
 The magistrate and commissary arrived, and the 
 whole party met in the study. A few words passed, 
 during which the name " Luke" dropped from the lips 
 of one of the officers, and probably furnished Marie 
 with a clue to the whole proceedings. " Now you may 
 go and fetch the others," they said, and Mr. C. Seager 
 hastened away on his errand. 
 
 Mr. Luke and Elizabeth sat waiting in the Police 
 Court, listening for every sound. An hour had elapsed ; 
 
100 MARIE UNDER ARREST. 
 
 and not knowing the distance, they began to won- 
 der what had occurred. At length Mr. 0. Seager re- 
 entered. He looked ill and wearied. He had gone 
 over the same ground for the third time, and in the 
 greatest haste, knowing that he was keeping all parties 
 waiting. Nor could he, without emotion, aid in the 
 arrest of one who had so long sat at his table, and 
 formed one of his family ; or in his own mind divest 
 such a procedure, however justifiable and necessary, 
 of the appearance of treachery. He simply said, " She 
 is arrested, and you are wanted as witnesses." 
 
 They set out again, and Mr. C. Seager conducted 
 them to the Baumschule. They soon got out of the 
 town. The way lay between gardens, and under other 
 circumstances would have been an agreeable walk. 
 The landscape was backed by hills, and one distin- 
 guished by its beauty rose above the rest. This hill 
 is called the Kreutzberg, and is the one from which 
 the view of Bonn at the commencement of this volume 
 is taken. On the very top stands a church, in which 
 is a staircase built of Italian marble by the Elector 
 Clement Augustus, in 1725, in imitation of the one at 
 Borne, called "Pilate's staircase." On their left as 
 they went out of the town, the spires of the stately 
 cathedral presented themselves to the view of the 
 travellers ; near the cathedral was the large and far- 
 famed university at which our Prince Albert was edu- 
 cated; and between these edifices and the Kreutz- 
 berg stood the Museum, formerly the principal palace 
 of the Archbishops of Cologne. At length the large 
 hotel or boarding-house, at which Mr. C. Seager for 
 the present resided, appeared before them. It takes 
 
MAEIE UNDER ARREST. 101 
 
 its name of the " Baumsclmle," or "Plantation"," from a 
 fine grove or nursery of trees, close to which it is built. 
 The door stood open, and Mr. C. Seager in silence 
 led the way to the second story. It was a moment 
 of excitement for all. Elizabeth hesitated, and wished 
 in her heart that she could avoid the interview. She 
 had the feeling of one who is about to witness some 
 fearful sight, and she paused to nerve herself for the 
 meeting with the dreaded Marie. She motioned Mr. 
 C. Seager and her brother to preceed her, and then 
 with a desperate effort followed them up stairs. Mr. 
 C. Seager reached his floor, and silently threw open 
 the door of the sitting-room. Elizabeth felt a thrill 
 of fear and repugnance, as she expected to catch sight 
 of Marie, and it was a momentary relief to find that 
 room empty. Mr. 0. Seager led them through, and 
 opened the door of a side room which was his study. 
 There, leaning against the window with her arms 
 crossed, the first object that met their gaze, stood 
 Marie. Hearing the door open, she turned slightly 
 round. She gave a distinct look at each, and Eliza- 
 beth saw that she recognized both. Yet no surprise 
 or emotion betrayed itself; no expression crossed her 
 countenance; and a common observer might have 
 supposed her to be as little interested in them as -in 
 any ordinary passers-by in the street. Elizabeth had 
 not seen her since the time of her departure from 
 Cromwell Terrace ; and as the recollections of that 
 painful season came thronging back upon her memory, 
 she could scarcely refrain from bursting into tears. 
 She controlled her emotions, however, and took her 
 place at the table as a witness. 
 
102 MARIE UNDER ARREST. 
 
 Mr. C. Seager stood near Marie as interpreter, and 
 the examination commenced. 
 
 Mr. Luke and Elizabeth were asked if this was the 
 same person, and they replied in the affirmative. 
 
 Marie was asked her name, and, in the full posses- 
 sion of her senses, and aware that it would not answer 
 her purpose to feign or trifle now, she gave her name 
 correctly as " Mary Q ." 
 
 " Where were you born?" was the next inquiry. 
 
 " In Manchester." 
 
 " Is your father living ?" 
 
 ".No." 
 
 "Is your mother living?" 
 
 " No ; they are both dead." 
 
 " What was your father's name ?" 
 
 "JohnG ." 
 
 "What was his occupation?" 
 
 " A surgeon." 
 
 " Have you any relatives ?" 
 
 "No." 
 
 The interrogating officer turned to Mr. Luke, and 
 asked to see the " Uncle" letters. Mr. L. produced 
 them, and the officer showing them to Marie, asked 
 "Did you give these to that gentleman?" meaning, 
 to take care of, and pointing to Mr. Luke. 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Did you write them yourself?" 
 
 " No." 
 
 " Did you compose them ?" 
 
 " I decline to answer that question. I do not know 
 how it may be used against me." 
 
 Her questioners looked annoyed, and turning to 
 
MARIE UNDER ARREST. 108 
 
 Mr. C. Seager, they begged him to explain that Ger- 
 man law differed from English usage ; and that cor- 
 rect answers to the questions put to her would event- 
 ually be for her advantage. Mr. C. Seager duly in- 
 terpreted their words. 
 
 The question was repeated. "Did you compose 
 these letters?" 
 
 "Yes.'' 
 
 " Who wrote them?" 
 
 "Mr. R- — -, of Oxford Street." 
 
 "Did he write or translate them ?" 
 
 " Wrote and translated.'' 
 
 Pointing to the signature, they asked, " Is there 
 such a person as the H. G. Clifford here signed ?" 
 
 " Not that I know of," she replied. 
 
 An amused look crossed the countenance of her in- 
 terrogators, and having obtained enough to answer 
 their present purpose, the magistrate sat down at Mr. 
 C. Seager's desk, «id drew up the act of aecusation. 
 
 They had been writing* about ten minutes when 
 Marie, who had for some time been fidgetting the 
 handle of the easement window, succeeded -in partly 
 opening it. One of the officers made a sign, and Mr. 
 0. Seager approached, and was going to shut it. 
 Marie appeared to intimate that she wished for air, 
 and it was allowed to remain, one of the party stand- 
 ing near, in case she should attempt to spring up and 
 jump out. 
 
 The official party announced the examination closed.. 
 They prepared to move, when Marie said, 
 
 " Are you going to take me to gaol ?" 
 
 " Yes," was the brief reply. 
 
104 MARIE UNDER ARREST. 
 
 " I should like to change my dress first." 
 
 Elizabeth in a whisper to Mr. C. Seager, suggested 
 that Marie probably wished to hide or destroy some 
 papers. Mr. C. Seager spoke to the officers in French ; 
 and they agreed that she might change her dress if 
 somebody were with her. 
 
 Mr. C. Seager went to look for Mrs. 0. Seager. 
 Finding that there was some demur, Elizabeth and 
 Mr. Luke followed him. . Mr. C. Seager was asking 
 Mrs. C. Seager to go and watch the dressing, and poor 
 Mrs. 0. S., who had not seen Marie since the denoue- 
 ment, was saying, " Oh no ! no ! I cannot go with 
 her!" 
 
 Elizabeth immediately said, " Oh I am used to Marie, 
 I will go." 
 
 "Pray take the landlady with you," said Mr. C. 
 Seager. 
 
 Madame Schuller, who had her own private reasons 
 for entertaining no very friendly feeling towards Ma- 
 rie, was not far off, for the whole household were on 
 the qui vive at the arrival of the police officers. 
 
 Elizabeth went back into the room where Marie 
 and the officers were, and signified that she was ready 
 to attend her. The moment the door was opened, 
 Marie shot through as from a gun, and flew up stairs 
 with most extraordinary rapidity. "Up! up!" cried 
 Mr. C. Seager, " the windows are open." Elizabeth, 
 though light of foot, could not keep up with her, and 
 moved aside for the tall commissary to pass. He seized 
 the bannister, and springing up two or three stairs 
 at a time, reached the top almost at the same instant 
 as Marie. Elizabeth and Mr. 0. Seager were not far 
 
MARIE UNDER ARREST. 105 
 
 behind, and the stout landlady came last. Marie, like 
 a stag at bay, turned to take breath, and her pursuers 
 were panting also. In a beseeching tone, she said to 
 Elizabeth, " I cannot change my dress with all these 
 people in the room ;" and Mr. 0. Seager and the offi- 
 cer drew off, and left Marie with her two female gaol- 
 ers, who were soon joined by Mrs. C. Seager's maid- 
 servant. 
 
 The landlady stood by the door, and Elizabeth by 
 the window. Marie proceeded to change her morning 
 dress for a thick black one, and made one or two 
 other alterations. She smoothed her hair, put a comb 
 in her pocket, called the maid to fasten her dress, put 
 on her shawl, bonnet, and veil, and promptly, but 
 with as much self-possession as if preparing for a 
 morning call, equipped herself for her expedition. 
 Elizabeth, remembering the circumstances of her last 
 exit, went up to her and felt in the pocket of her 
 dress. " You need not do that," said Marie very 
 coolly : " it will be done in prison." She looked 
 round the room to see if there was anything more, 
 and turning to Elizabeth, said, " I am ready." Madame 
 Schiiller opened the door, and they went down at a 
 more moderate pace than they had ascended, to the 
 now vacant study. 
 
 If Marie had been in prison half a dozen times be- 
 fore, she could scarcely have taken it more philosoph- 
 ically than in the present instance. 
 
 5* 
 
CHAPTER Xm. 
 
 A TETE-A-TETE, THE OBJECT OF WHICH IS A MYSTERY. 
 
 The party .had adjourned to the sitting-room, and 
 Marie finding the study vacant, turned to Elizabeth 
 and said, "Will you let me speak to you- alone?" Eliz- 
 abeth's first impulse was to consent, and she was about 
 to close the door, when it struck her that she ought 
 to ask permission, and looking into the sitting-room, 
 she repeated Marie's request. " Oh ! not alone," ex- 
 claimed Mr. 0. Seager and Mr. Luke at once. " Take 
 some one with you," said Mr. Luke. " Take Madame 
 Schuller," said Mr. C. Seager ; and Elizabeth returned 
 to Marie, and detaining Madame Schuller, placed a 
 seat for Marie, and seated herself by her side. The 
 redoubtable Madame Schuller was well qualified to 
 fill the office of feminine gaoler. Her nearest resem- 
 blance, perhaps, would be to the portrait drawn by 
 Dickens of Captain Cuttle's landlady, the widow 
 M'Grath. She looked in fact as if she could be a 
 match for half a dozen Maries ; and Elizabeth felt 
 secure from violence with so efficient a guard. 
 
 Marie began, " I cannot speak to you with that wo- 
 man in the room." 
 
 "Why you know, Marie," said Elizabeth, "she 
 
A TETE-A-TETE. 107 
 
 does not understand English, therefore it cannot mat- 
 ter what you say before her." 
 
 Elizabeth waited a moment to see if Marie was go- 
 ing to speak, and finding her silent, began to speak 
 to her. 
 
 " You see, Marie, your sin has found you out. You 
 have brought all this upon yourself; and if you con- 
 tinue in the same course, you may expect some fearful 
 judgment to overtake you. I do not like to speak 
 harshly to you now you are in trouble, nor do I think 
 that anything I could say would be of much use, for 
 you seem to be too hardened in crime for anyibingto 
 deter you from it. "When you left us, you professed 
 that you were penitent and wished to reform. Why 
 did you plan this new scheme ? But you wish to 
 speak," she continued. "What did you want to 
 say?" 
 
 There was a pause, and Marie, looking at the land- 
 lady, said very resolutely, " Yes ; but I can't while 
 she is in the room. Send her away, and I'll tell you." 
 
 Her determined tone struck Elizabeth, and she re- 
 plied, "Well, Marie, to tell you the truth, I do not 
 feel comfortable to be alone with you. I will hear 
 anything you have to say, but we know so much of 
 your history, that it will be useless for you to make 
 any false statement" 
 
 "Well then, perhaps, I had better not say any- 
 thing," replied Marie briskly, "if you will not be- 
 lieve me." 
 
 "But why cannot you tell the truth," said Eliza- 
 beth. " You told your examiners just now that you 
 had no relations living. You have a brother." 
 
108 A TETE-A-TETE. 
 
 " I don't know," she said. " I have not heard of 
 him for several years." 
 
 " "Why did you leave him?" 
 
 "I could not live with him," she replied. "He 
 treated me so unkindly." 
 
 •" " I dare say it was you that behaved so badly," 
 retorted Elizabeth. " And you have an aunt in Man- 
 chester in comfortable circumstances. She would have 
 received you. Whether she would now, is another 
 affair. And if you did not like to live with her, God 
 had given you talents by which you could have ob- 
 tained a more honest livelihood ; instead of which 
 you had no sooner left us than you set to and plotted 
 this new scheme, acting over again your former sin- 
 ful course. Why did you not then resolve to give it 
 up?" 
 
 "Well, I have resolved several times," said Marie, ' 
 " but the temptation has been thrown in my way, and 
 I have not been able to resist it." ' ■ 
 
 " What a wretched life yours must be," pursued ' 
 Elizabeth. " You must live in continual fear of dis- 
 covery. " Did you not expect this to be found out be- 
 fore now ?" 
 
 " Yes," she replied. " I knew it must soon come 
 to an end." 
 
 Elizabeth proceeded to speak to her of the cruelty of 
 which she had been guilty. That she had not merely 
 practised deception for the sake of a home, but had 
 also subjected many, who were little able to bear it, 
 to many wanton expenses, knowing that she could 
 never by possibility repay them. 
 
 Marie affirmed that during the last fortnight she 
 
A TETE-A-TETE. 109 
 
 had been thinking of writing to her aunt, to ask her 
 assistance in repaying her present friends, but she 
 had been withheld by the fear that her aunt would 
 not notice her. 
 
 So far she had maintained a submissive manner, 
 and with her voice subdued, and her eyes cast down, 
 had kept up the appearance of a penitent. Either off 
 her guard, or weary of her assumed part, she now sud- 
 denly changed her tone, and looking up boldly at 
 Elizabeth, she sharply inquired, " How did you find 
 this out?" 
 
 " By your letters, Marie. You wrote to Mrs. Cun- 
 liffe, and we know her. She sent the letters to us, 
 and we at once saw that you were deceiving Mr. and 
 Mrs. C. Seager, as you had deceived us. "We knew 
 that it would be useless to write, as you intercept let- 
 ters ; so we resolved to come over." 
 
 "On purpose?" inquired Marie. 
 
 " Yes ; and papa and mamma are here too." 
 
 " "What ! in Bonn ?" exclaimed Marie. 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " How long have you known Mr. C. Seager? Be- 
 fore to-day ?" continued Marie. 
 
 " Yes," was the answer ; "but I am not going to 
 answer all your questions, Marie. I sat down to hear 
 what you have to say. What is it ?" 
 
 " When did Mrs. C. Seager know of it," pursued 
 Marie, without noticing Elizabeth's inquiry. 
 
 "Not till to-day," Elizabeth replied. 
 
 " Poor Mrs. C. Seager !" said Marie ; but there 
 was no feeling in the ejaculation, and whether it was 
 to save appearances or otherwise, the reader may divine. 
 
110 A TETE-A-TETE. 
 
 " "What will they do with me ? Will they send me 
 to England ?" Marie asked again. 
 
 "I do not at all know," said Elizabeth, "but you 
 are well known there, for your face is in all the shop 
 windows. You have yourself to blame for that too, 
 foa? you made my sister take your portrait for your 
 uncle, and when we found that you were still carry- 
 ing on your wicked practices, we had it engraved, 
 that others might, not be taken in by you." 
 
 Marie again assumed the penitent, and said, "I 
 would give this up if I could. I would go into an 
 asylum or a penitentiary, if Mr. C. Seager and Mr. 
 Luke could get me in. I would do anything they 
 advised by which I could retrieve my character." 
 
 Elizabeth replied, "lam quite sure that both Mr. 
 0. Seager and my brother would willingly do any- 
 thing for you even now, if they could be satisfied that 
 you were really desirous of. reforming; though you 
 have so often pretended penitence before, that you 
 cannot wonder that we should have lost all confidence 
 in you ;" — and finding that Marie really seemed to 
 have nothing to communicate, she said, " Well, we 
 must not keep the ofiicer waiting," and at that mo- 
 ment Mr. 0. Seager knocked at the door. He called 
 Marie's tall gaoler, who was waiting to take her to 
 prison. Mrs. C. Seager had collected a few of her 
 clothes ; and by Mr. C. Seager's desire, a loaf of bread 
 and some butter were put in also, as he kindly thought 
 she had not had sufficient dinner, and might find some 
 difficulty in coming down at once to prison fare. She 
 asked to be allowed to go out at the back door to 
 avoid observation ; and most of the household followed 
 
A TETE-A-TETE. Ill 
 
 her through the kitchen offices to witness her de- 
 parture. A conveyance with a hood was waiting at 
 the door. The commissary handed her into the car- 
 riage, and stepped in after her. She threw herself 
 back, covered her face with her hands, and without a 
 word, they drove off. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE SEARCH. 
 
 A sense of relief, mingled with less agreeable feel- 
 ings, followed Marie's exit. Madame Schiiller lifted 
 up her hands as if in consternation, and exclaimed in 
 French, "Ah/ mon Dieu! is it Come to this?" but 
 sworn foes as she and Marie had long been, no one 
 gave her credit for any overpowering grief; and it 
 was not observed that the servants manifested any 
 regret at her departure. 
 
 Mr. - C. Seager now called for refreshments, for 
 Marie's all engrossing business had not before allowed 
 an interval. Poor Mrs. C. Seager had yet to be further 
 enlightened as to the strange reverses of the last few 
 hours. She seemed as if in a dream, and could scarce- 
 ly comprehend how all this had come about. She in- 
 terrupted Mr. C. Seager with frequent questions, such 
 as, "But, Charles, what has become of all the money 
 that was sent through your banker?" " There never 
 was any money," he replied. " And her friends in 
 "Wales ; Lady Charlotte and the Randalls ?" " There 
 are no such people. Don't you see ? They have no 
 existence." Mr. 0. Seager could see, for he had had 
 twenty -four hours to study it, but it was not to be 
 wondered at that Mrs. C. Seager could not see it all 
 
THE SEARCH. 113 
 
 at the first view. Yet Marie had never gained the 
 hold on her that she had done on other people. Her 
 falsehoods and follies had often made her long to be 
 released from the charge ; and after hearing all, she 
 said to Elizabeth, " If you had come and told me this 
 the day after she came to us, I should have believed 
 it." 
 
 Dinner over, Mrs. C. Seager and Elizabeth went up 
 to Marie's room to make a more complete search. At 
 one end of the room was a little bracket table, on 
 which stood a small alabaster figure of the Virgin 
 Mary and the Infant Saviour, and a book of private 
 devotions. Over this was suspended a rosary and 
 little crucifix, and above it a picture of Saint Margaret, 
 with clasped hands and eyes raised to heaven. The 
 room was in a state of disorder surpassing anything 
 that had been witnessed at Cromwell Terrace. Table, 
 chairs, bed, all applied to any but their legitimate uses. 
 Bottles, books, papers, shoes, wools, patterns, clothes, 
 tossed about in all directions ; and Mrs. G. Seager and 
 Elizabeth had to move carefully, lest they should up- 
 set any articles. Mrs. 0. Seager had in fact only that 
 day been lecturing her on the untidy condition of her 
 room, and telling her that it was a perfect disgrace to 
 the house. 
 
 The drawers were in the same state. Articles of 
 all sorts Were tumbled in or huddled together. Two 
 drawers came open easily, but the third resisted their 
 efforts. A little bundle of keys were spied in one 
 corner, and these were tried, but in vain. One of 
 them summoned the maid to their assistance. "Oh ! 
 I can tell you ma'am," she said, " how Miss G 
 
114 THE SEARCH. 
 
 opens it," and she ran up, and slipping her hand at 
 the back of the drawer, gave it a jerk, and it came 
 open in true Marie fashion. 
 
 In this drawer they found the desk which Mr. Spal- 
 ding had, given her, so characteristically crowded with 
 papers that it would not shut. Among other docu- 
 ments were found letters from Mrs. Cunliffe, Betsey, 
 and Emma, and a copy of her will. Nothing else of 
 great interest was then found, a recent bonfire having 
 destroyed many documents which Marie was too wise 
 to keep ; but a subsequent and more careful search 
 afterwards put Mrs. G. Seager in possession of a small 
 volume of printed poems by "Matilda," containing all 
 the verses which Marie had passed off as her own, 
 and also the newly written draught of a letter request- 
 ing a confidential interview with the English Episco- 
 pal minister in Bonn. 
 
 Mrs. C. Seager and Elizabeth carried their spoils 
 down stairs, to share a more minute examination with 
 the gentlemen. The most legible things were scatter- 
 ed remnants of accounts, in which were noted down 
 large sums given in charity, as well as her loss in the 
 church of St. Gudule. The letters from Wales ap- 
 peared to defy curiosity. They were penned on sheets 
 of the smallest sized note paper. "Mrs. Cunliffe V 
 were written in most minute characters, and crossed 
 no less than four times. " Emma's" were written in 
 the same way, but being on thin foreign post, could 
 scarcely be identified as the same hand ; and the ink 
 having run, they were still more difficult to decipher. 
 The diagonal crossings in these were mere imitation 
 of writing, and " Betsey's" letters were in a feigned 
 
THE SEAKCH. 115 
 
 hand, made up of curls and flourishes like so many 
 hairs. 
 
 Marie had never placed these letters in the hands 
 of Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager. She had read them as she 
 held them, and the only end to be attained by so much 
 trouble, was to secure herself from detection in case 
 Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager had asked to see them. The 
 minuteness of the writing would have discouraged the 
 attempt to read "them, and the multiplied crossings 
 rendered it difficult at a hasty glance to identify the 
 hand. Elizabeth afterwards took these letters to Eng- 
 land, and, with her sister, undertook the task of tran- 
 scribing them. A stranger would probably have de- 
 clared this an impossibility, and but for their previous 
 familiarity with Marie's hand-writing and style, it 
 might so have proved. They frequently came to a 
 sentence which appeared to defy their efforts. They 
 had borrowed several lenses and magnifying glasses, 
 and sometimes these would enable them to decipher 
 the mysterious characters. Sometimes, after much 
 useless pains-taking, a general glance would put them 
 in possession of the meaning ; and sometimes, after 
 passing on in despair, the repetition of a word in a 
 subsequent sentence would furnish a clue to what had 
 gone before. As the eyesight of each grew weary by 
 turns, they would exchange the employments of deci- 
 phering and transcribing, and when evening came they 
 were compelled to lay both aside. Two days were oc- 
 cupied 1 in transcribing each one of the tiny note sheets, 
 and the small space, thus covered by Marie's writing, 
 filled three sheets of letter-paper when transcribed. 
 When Mr. C. Seager's wish to write the history of 
 
116 THE SEARCH. 
 
 Marie's residence with him was known, they transfer- 
 red these copies to his hands, and the reader will 
 probably find them at length in his work. 
 
 Having examined the papers in question, Mr. Luke 
 and Elizabeth thought it high time to return to their 
 hotel at Bonn, where Mr. and Mrs. Thompson were 
 anxiously waiting for the result of the day's work. 
 Elizabeth ran up to their room door. Her mamma 
 came to open it. "Marie is in prison." "Is she?" 
 and a momentary feeling of pleasure that the mis- 
 chievous culprit was caught at last, seemed to cross 
 her mind; but soon her habitual benevolence pre- 
 vailed, and she added, "Poor thing I" and her husband 
 .echoed the expression of sympathy, for they could 
 not rejoice in the wretchedness of even so unworthy 
 an object. Elizabeth gave them a very brief outline 
 of what had passed. They went down to tea, and 
 had not finished when Mr. C. Seager looked in. They 
 had asked Mrs. C. Seager to accompany him, but she 
 had not sufficiently rallied from the stunning surprise. 
 Their little sons had been informed of Marie's depar- 
 ture, and had received the news without any great 
 dissatisfaction. They had always manifested an un- 
 conquerable dislike to her, and Mrs. C. Seager had 
 often found it difficult to keep the peace between them. 
 They were intelligent and interesting little fellows, the 
 younger a little blondin. They had been baptized by 
 the names of Osmund and Ignatius, after "St. Os- 
 mund," one of the Catholic Bishops of Salisbury, and 
 " St. Ignatius of Loyola." They spoke Latin with 
 their father, and were being brought up, of course, as 
 zealous Catholics. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 THE POLICE COURT. 
 
 0-TJR travellers hoped that Marie's business was set- 
 tled, or at least that their further attendance would 
 be dispensed with. Not so, however. At nine o'clock 
 on Saturday, evening, Mr. Luke and Elizabeth were 
 subpaznaed to attend the Police Court at nine the next 
 morning. Mr. Luke had expressed the necessity him- 
 self and his party were under of proceeding without 
 delay on their journey ; and this probably was the 
 reason why the morrow, although Sunday, was fixed 
 for taking their evidence. The Catholic services com- 
 mencing at five or half-past five in the morning, and 
 being so numerous, they had perhaps not thought that 
 they should be interfering with the public" worship of 
 the witnesses. Much as the latter regretted this in- 
 tended kindness, there was no option. They were 
 summoned by the law of the country, and there was 
 no time to request a change. 
 
 The morning came. Unwillingly but punctually 
 they obeyed the summons, and hoped the examina- 
 tion would be over in time for service. They were 
 shown into a small scantily furnished office, opening 
 into another empty room, and beyond it a third, in 
 which they heard voices. Among these they soon 
 
118 THE POLICE COURT. 
 
 distinguished Marie's voice, in a kind of low, piteous 
 whine, occasionally raised, as if with an alteration of 
 mood or subject. Had they gone through the open 
 doors into the next office, they could have heard what 
 she said; but, of course, they did not choose to play 
 the part of listeners, annoying though they felt it that 
 she should have her tale to herself. The usage of 
 Prussia is directly contrary to that of England, prose- 
 cutor, witnesses, and delinquent being all examined 
 apart, and their evidence compared^ 
 
 They waited a whole hojir — no small trial of pa- 
 tience under all the circumstances. At last, to their 
 great relief, the door opened, and Herr Mannheimer, 
 a German Jew, who spoke English, and was the in- 
 terpreter, eame forward and asked them to walk in 
 and prove the identity of the prisoner. The Sec- 
 retary, two German magistrates, Mannheimer, and a 
 clerk or subordinate of some kind, were there. Mr. 
 Luke was asked, "Is this the person against whom 
 you appear ?" and he replied in the affirmative. 
 
 Marie walked straight up to him, and in a really 
 bold, yet affectedly modest manner, said, "I have 
 made a full and frank confession. They tell me that 
 it will be better for me, and I now throw myself on 
 your mercy." 
 
 " I am not your prosecutor, Marie," Mr. Luke re- 
 plied, " Mr. C. Seager prosecutes : I only appear as 
 a witness." 
 
 " Yes," she said, " I am aware of that ; but will you 
 intercede for me with Mr. C. Seager?" 
 
 Mr. Luke made no reply. She turned to Elizabeth, 
 and saying, "Do let me speak to you," seemed about 
 
THE POLICE COURT. 119 
 
 to draw her aside into the other office. The secretary 
 asked what she wanted. Elizabeth answered, " She 
 wants to speak to me." " No, no ! it is not allowed," 
 they all exclaimed, and she was again hurried off to 
 prison by the man who was waiting for her. 
 
 Mr. Luke's previous evidence was then read over to 
 him, carefully re-written, and signed. Some money 
 was then produced, and Mr. Luke regarding this as an 
 intimation that there was something to pay, took out 
 his purse. Mannheimer laughed, shook his head, and 
 explained that a witness was entitled to eight groschen, 
 amounting to tenpence of our money, if he chose to 
 take them, which liberal offer Mr. Luke declined. 
 
 The examination being closed, the legal party put 
 their papers aside, and seemed relieved to have done 
 with the official part of the affair. They appeared to 
 be in no hurry to go, and asked a number of questions 
 "out of confession," manifesting no little curiosity 
 about so unusual a case. "Did she give you any 
 money after leaving her situation ?" they inquired of 
 Mr. Luke. 
 
 " Yes," was the reply. 
 
 "How much?" they asked. 
 
 " Abouf£7, which she had back at different times." 
 
 "Did she leave any in your hands?" they asked 
 again. 
 
 " Yes ; something under £1." 
 
 "How much did she cost you?" He could not 
 tell. 
 
 " Give a rough guess," they said. And he made a 
 hasty estimate. 
 
 From these queries it seemed not improbable that 
 
120 THE POIilCE COURT. 
 
 Marie had endeavored to impress them with the idea 
 that she had left in Mr. Luke's hands an equivalent 
 for her expenses. 
 
 They asked, further, how she had managed her 
 tricks, such, for instance, as rupturing blood-vessels. 
 Mr. Luke explained, and they laughed. " It would 
 make a capital book," said Mannheimer. "Her story 
 with us is published," observed Mr. L. They eagerly 
 asked if he had a copy with him. Not there, he said, 
 but he would leave it with Mr. C. Seager, and they 
 could see it. He took one of the portraits which had 
 been engraved for the volume out of his pocket-book, 
 and they all looked. One said, " "Was it not done 
 some time ago ?" Another said, " It is too good for 
 her. She is not so pretty as that." These observa- 
 tions were very just, for she was much gone off in ap- 
 pearance, and looked at least thirty. Her identity 
 could not be doubted, but it was difficult to imagine 
 how any one could have altered so much in so short 
 a time. A conscience ill at ease, a mind wearied with 
 incessant plotting, and perhaps to a certain extent the 
 remedies prescribed by medical men for her imagi- 
 nary complaints, had contributed to bring about the 
 change. 
 
 Leaving the office, the two retraced their steps ; but 
 it was far too late for service. They called on their 
 friend Mr. Plitt, the Lutheran minister, who had already 
 returned from church. " I saw your Marie," he said, 
 "only just now. Being a chaplain to the prison, I 
 was requested to go in and see a young English lady 
 who had just arrived, and who wanted to see some 
 one to whom she could speak, as those around her 
 
THE POLICE COURT. 121 
 
 spoke only French and German, and she could not 
 make them understand. I was shown into the ma- 
 tron's room, and she came forward and spoke to me. 
 She said that she had raised herself too high, and that 
 God had brought her down to humble her. She 
 wanted to see some one. and would be glad if Dr. 
 Wolters, a Catholic priest who spoke English freely, 
 and who was on a visit to his parents at Bonn, could 
 be sent to her. 'You are a Protestant; I am a 
 Catholic,' she continued. 'Yes,' I said, 'you are now, 
 but you were a Protestant before, and a Catholic before 
 that? With a look of extreme contempt," concluded 
 Mr. Plitt, ''she tossed her head, and turned away 
 without vouchsafing another word." 
 
 Mr. Luke and Elizabeth attended the English ser- 
 vice in the afternoon. On their return, they called to. 
 mind Marie's earnest request to speak to Elizabeth 
 alone, and willing to afford her one last opportunity 
 .of communicating anything that might be on her 
 mind, they set out to find the prison. Passing the 
 church in their way, they fell in with Mr. Gardiner, 
 the Episcopalian minister, at Bonn. They asked him 
 to direct them to the gaol, mentioned the object of 
 their visit, and the discovery of Marie's purposed ap- 
 plication to him. They proceeded in search of the 
 prison ; and after passing down various narrow and 
 apparently interminable streets, they found it in the 
 narrowest and dirtiest they had yet traversed. They 
 knocked, and through the little grating a man peeped 
 out, and silently opened the door. They entered, and 
 found themselves in a stone hall, from which doors 
 and passages led off in different directions. Men were 
 6 
 
122 THE POLICE COUET. 
 
 loitering about, and others in the rooms looked out 
 curiously at the English visitors. They asked to see 
 
 Miss G . The man replied that they could not 
 
 see her without an order from the governor, who lived 
 at some distance; and as, on further consideration, 
 they doubted the expediency of seeking another inter- 
 view, they decided not to repeat the attempt. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 FAKEWELL TO BONNi 
 
 The proceedings with respect to Marie Laving been 
 so prompt, our travellers were equally surprised and 
 pleased to find their errand to Bonn already accom- 
 plished. They arranged to leave on Monday morning 
 at eleven, and proceed by steamer to Coblentz ; and as 
 the hour approached, Mr. and Mrs. G. Seager and three 
 other new acquaintances joined them at the hotel, and 
 accompanied them to the packet. One of the ladies, 
 
 Mrs. D , at whose house Marie had been a frequent 
 
 visitor, walked with Elizabeth, and communicated 
 some additional particulars respecting Marie's conver- 
 sation and deportment A few specimens may interest 
 the reader 
 
 Marie was in the habit of reading at this lady's house 
 letters she had received, and in particular some which 
 professed to be from her dear friend Miss Thompson, 
 In one of these was a most lively and entertaining ac- 
 count of Miss Randalls' (Mrs. Cunliffe's) wedding. In 
 another, a minute and most interesting description of 
 the reception of herself (Elizabeth) and Lady Char- 
 lotte by Cardinal Wiseman into the Catholic Church. 
 For the exciting details of both events, as well as for 
 the conclusion of Marie's history, we must bespeak the 
 
124 FAREWELL TO BONN. 
 
 reader's patience till the appearance of " The Female 
 Jesuit Abroad." 
 
 A variety of packages from Wales, similar to the 
 "boxes" at Cromwell Terrace, were anxiously ex- 
 pected and long talked of by Marie. These, among 
 other articles of value and interest, contained one which 
 was the topic of so much conversation that it left a 
 lasting impression; This was her dear papa's military 
 cloak — a large one made of the finest cloth, and quite 
 new when he died. How to turn so valued a relic to 
 the best account was a subject requiring much con- 
 sideration. At length she resolved to press it upon 
 Mrs. 0. Seager's acceptance, to make two beautiful 
 dresses for her little Osmund and Ignatius. Mrs. 0. 
 Seager did not wish to appear ungrateful, and merely 
 suggested that it was a pity to cut up so much ex- 
 quisite cloth for the children ; — who, in fact, were any- 
 thing but captivated with the idea. Marie, compelled 
 to abandon this project, resolved to have a large winter 
 polka made for herself out of it. Mrs. D en- 
 deavored to dissuade her from carrying out this pur- 
 pose. She dreaded the approach of winter, for Marie's 
 figure not being the most elegant in the world, the 
 idea of parading the streets of Bonn with the military 
 polka beside her, was no enviable position. 
 
 Another theme of protestation in Mrs. D 's 
 
 family circle, was a pair of green spectacles which 
 Marie had seen fit to adopt. Ever " since the brain 
 fever," she had suffered from an oppression on the 
 brain, which affected her eyesight. To aid in the cure 
 of this infirmity, she purchased the green spectacles, 
 which, however they might rest her eyes, contributed 
 
FAREWELL TO BONN. 125 
 
 neither to her beauty, nor to the ease and grace of her 
 movements. She would walk about with half closed 
 eyes, and stumble against the chairs and door-posts ; 
 
 and Mrs. D entreated her, if the spectacles were 
 
 not indispensable, to lay them aside. It is not improb- 
 able that her eyesight was really weakened by her 
 nightly occupations, and by the microscopic diminu- 
 tiveness of the characters in which she had recently 
 carried on her correspondence. 
 
 Mrs. D had a little girl whom Marie pronounced 
 
 to bear a most striking resemblance to Lilly. She often 
 spoke of Lilly, and said she used to shed tears when 
 she saw how fond Lilly was of her mamma, for it made 
 her think of her own dear mamma. She used to cry 
 over Lilly's imaginary death, the tidings of which 
 were communicated in her letters, and exclaim when 
 she saw her counterpart, " Oh I how very like Lilly." 
 
 After the pretended death of Elizabeth, plunging 
 her of course in the deepest consternation and distress, 
 
 she communicated as a great secret to Mrs. D that 
 
 Miss Thompson had left Mrs. C. Seager a most beauti- 
 ful grand piano-forte as a legacy, of which Mrs. C. 
 Seager was on no account to hear till its arrival. 
 
 Though Marie was "no favorite in the family of Mrs. 
 
 D , no one for an instant doubted the truth of her 
 
 statements, or the genuineness of her letters, though, 
 in common with many others, they wondered after- 
 wards how they could ever have given credit to her 
 romantic tales. 
 
 Before they parted, Mr. Luke left with Mr. C. Sea- 
 ger a copy of " The Female Jesuit," in order more 
 perfectly to acquaint him with all Marie's proceedings. 
 
1-26 FAREWELL TO BONN. 
 
 With many expressions of pleasure that they had met, 
 of gratitude on the part of Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager for 
 having undeceived them, and earnest entreaties that 
 they would revisit Bonn on their return, the party 
 separated, and the English visitors went on board the 
 steamer. Thankful to dismiss from their minds the 
 disagreeable object which had brought them to Bonn, 
 they gave themselves up for that day to the full enjoy- 
 ment of the beauties of the Ehine. It was a splendid 
 day, and, shaded from the summer sun, they dined on 
 deck, and gazed with delight on the surrounding scene. 
 They reached their hotel at Coblentz at four, and drove 
 to view the magnificent scenery at the parting of the 
 Bhine and Moselle, rendered richer and grander by 
 the rays of the setting sun. The party returned, and 
 sat up till a late hour, watching the enchanting view 
 which presented itself from the windows of their hotel. 
 It was a beautiful moonlight night, and as the shifting 
 moonbeams invested with ever-varying aspects the 
 gigantic fortress of Ehrenbreitstein on its craggy sum- 
 mit opposite, and made a bright pathway thence across 
 the river, they felt little disposition to retire to rest. 
 The early silence of a continental city was broken 
 only by occasional sounds from the small craft which 
 came up the river, or the tinkling of the little bell 
 which announced that the bridge of boats was about 
 to open, to let some small vessel through. But this 
 is not a book of travels, and not to weary the reader 
 with the often told tale of continental travellers we 
 pass hastily on. 
 
 At one the next day, the party re-embarked for Co- 
 logne, being anxious to push their way on to their 
 
FAREWELL TO BONN. 127 
 
 final destination at Elberfeld. The Bhine boat had 
 been detained by fogs in the early part of the morn- 
 ing, and they were therefore much later than usual. 
 The steamer touched at Bonn, and the first person 
 who caught their eye was Mr. C. Seager. He sprang 
 on board, and told them that he or his friends had 
 been on the look-out for them a very long time ; that 
 Mrs. C. Seager and himself had been summoned for 
 that afternoon to give their evidence ; and that he 
 thought it desirable that they also should remain in 
 Bonn. Mr. Luke and his sister could not so abruptly 
 leave Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, who were entire stran- 
 gers to Germany ; but at his earnest request they ar- 
 ranged to return from Cologne by the next train. 
 
 Having landed at Cologne, and seen their relatives 
 into the train for Elberfeld, they turned back to get 
 the train for Bonn. They had taken a carriage to 
 save time, but were stopped by a casualty which often 
 happens to travellers in crossing the Bhine. They 
 were approaching the bridge of boats, when it opened 
 to let a ship pass through. After the closing there 
 came such a crowd of people — such a string of carts 
 and carriages, each obliged to wait their turn, the 
 bridge being too narrow for more than one to pass, 
 that they were detained some minutes. When they 
 reached the station, they found the doors closed, and 
 had the double satisfaction of hearing the train start, 
 and of waiting two hours for the next. They reached 
 Bonn at nine o'clock, and hastened to the Baumschule. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager were there, and Mrs. D 
 
 and Fraulein S , and all looked much pleased at 
 
 their entrfe. Mr. C. Seager had been to await the ar- 
 
128 FAREWELL TO BONN. 
 
 rival of the intermediate train, and not finding them 
 there, had given them up. The conversation of the 
 evening turned exclusively on Marie, and each con- 
 tributed some share of fresh intelligence to the extra- 
 ordinary narrative. 
 
 Mr. Luke and Elizabeth undertook to see the two 
 
 ladies to their homes. He inquired of Mrs. D 
 
 how far Mr. Plitt had been correctly informed respect- 
 ing Marie's efforts and success in proselytizing. Mrs. 
 
 D confirmed, to a certain extent, the correctness 
 
 of the information given to Mr. Plitt ; but it appears 
 she was mistaken, and that, apart from Marie's own . 
 boastful declarations, there is no ground to believe 
 that she had made any genuine effort for the conver- 
 sion, either of the lady to whom allusion has been 
 made, or of any other individual. 
 
 On the following morning, the Baumschule was the 
 scene of another long conference with Mr. and Mrs. 
 C. Seager. The main subject was " The Female Jes- 
 uit." Mr. and Mrs. C. Seager had availed themselves 
 of the brief interval to examine the book, and had 
 been deeply interested in the transcript they there 
 found of Marie's conduct and character while under 
 their care. All were agreed as to the desirableness of 
 the publication of the new and recently discovered 
 chapters of Marie's life ; and the arrangements to this 
 end, — which were not finally decided till a later pe- 
 riod, — were then preliminarily discussed. Marie's 
 papers were further examined, and a part of them 
 including the mysteriously written letters, placed in 
 Mr. Luke's hands ; her latest " Will" was also read. 
 With Elizabeth's help, Mr. Luke made notes of cir- 
 
FAKEWELL TO BONN. 129 
 
 cumstances, so far as time permitted ; further particu- 
 lars being left for Mr. and Mrs. 0. Seager to send, or 
 if they should shortly revisit England, which they 
 rather thought of doing, to bring with them. 
 
 Finally, after these partial arrangements had been 
 concluded, Mr. C. Seager once more kindly accompa- 
 nied them to their starting-point. On this occasion 
 he begged Elizabeth, as he had before requested Mr. 
 Luke, to present his kind regards to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Thompson, and to assure the former of his regret that 
 he had ever been led to entertain an opinion of him 
 so contrary to the truth, and trusted his new acquain- 
 tance would pardon his having done so. He had 
 been much struck with the genuine kindliness of spirit 
 evident in one who had so long been represented as 
 the persecutor of Elizabeth, for her supposed conver- 
 sion to the Eoman Catholic Church. They had sev- 
 eral times met, and there had been the free expression 
 of sentiment on both sides in regard to points of re- 
 ligious difference, but without any departure from 
 Christian temper, and with increasing mutual interest. 
 
 Bidding farewell alike to Mr. C. Seager, and to 
 Bonn, Mr. Luke and his companion proceeded by 
 train to Cologne and Elberfeld. On alighting from 
 the railway carriage at the latter place, no long array 
 of cabs, as is visible at our North-Western Station, 
 met the eye of the weary travellers. Two solitary 
 conveyances were instantly caught up by other pas- 
 sengers, and ignorant of the direction in which to 
 find the hotel, they stood with their carpet-bags in 
 hand, doubting what next to do. At this moment a 
 young man jumped out of one of the cabs to look 
 
 6* 
 
130 • FAREWELL TO BONN. 
 
 after some luggage. He was an English traveller, 
 with a leather bag strapped across his shoulder. A 
 glance told him that two. of his country-people were 
 in a difficulty, and in another minute he had kindly 
 and comfortably seated them in his conveyance, while 
 he mounted the box. His friend and companion was 
 going to the same hotel as themselves. It was now 
 dark, and the distance being nearly three miles, they 
 were most grateful for the accommodation ; and, as 
 Marie in the former volume said of her phantom 
 friend in the omnibus, should their benevolent fellow- 
 trageller " ever chance to see his book," they take the 
 opportunity of again expressing their thankfulness. 
 They reached the hotel where they expected to find 
 Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, but they were not there. 
 The house was so crowded that some earlier arrivals 
 were arranging to sleep on the floor, the great meet- 
 ing of the churches having brought an unusual influx 
 of visitors into the town. The landlord, however, 
 produced a note which had been left, directing them 
 to another hotel, and back they were driven nearly 
 to the place whence they started. When they reached 
 the inn, they could scarcely believe it to be the right 
 one, and they ascended the almost perpendicular stair- 
 case, with many misgivings as to their destination for 
 that night. As Elizabeth wandered through the dif- 
 ferent rooms in search of some person of whom to 
 inquire, she heard her brother call to her in a cheerful 
 voice. She hastened back, and found him examining 
 a great-coat of well-known cut, which hung behind a 
 door, and on the table she saw a quantity of little 
 children's books, Anti-Maynooth papers, multitudi- 
 
FAREWELL TO BONN. 131 
 
 nous manuscript notes, and other indubitable traces of 
 her dear father. Much relieved, they took a convey- 
 ance from the inn, and hastened to the large old church 
 at which the meetings were held ; and on their return, 
 at the close of the service, found their relatives wait- 
 ing to receive them ; the crowded state of the hotels 
 having compelled them to take refuge at this second- 
 rate inn. 
 
 On Thursday they all went to the great meeting at 
 which the English representatives were to speak. 
 They were kept standing outside in the crowd for 
 more than an hour, and not wishing to waste the time, 
 they employed themselves in distributing tracts. The 
 eager zest with which these were seized by the peo- 
 ple, encouraged them to proceed, till they received an 
 intimation in no gentle terms from the gate-keeper, 
 that an order had recently arrived from Berlin forbid- 
 ding the distribution of tracts, and that they were lia- 
 ble to be taken up for their pains. At length they 
 obtained permission from within to enter the crowded 
 building. It was a stirring scene. The intelligent, 
 reflective, earnest countenances of the throng of Ger- 
 man clergy, and the body of schoolmasters, who there 
 form a class of scarcely inferior intelligence, with the 
 large and deeply interested auditory, formed an as- 
 sembly of no ordinary character, and which much 
 impressed our English friends. It was a meeting of 
 " The Inner Mission," the object of which is the revi- 
 val of spiritual religion in the churches of Germany. 
 
 It was now Thursday afternoon, and Mr. Luke had 
 an engagement to preach in Cambridgeshire on Sun- 
 day morning. They left the meeting at four, and 
 
claimed Mr. Luke. " We shall lose the train again." 
 " Not so," said his father-in-law. " You will be in 
 time, and get to Cambridgeshire to-morrow ;" and he 
 was right. This time the bridge was closing. They 
 promised the driver a douceur, crossed the bridge, 
 pushed past all obstacles, and reached the station just 
 as the gates were about to close. They continued 
 their journey uninterruptedly, crossed from Calais to 
 Dover at two o'clock in the morning, and arrived in 
 London by an early train on Saturday, September the 
 20th, having travelled five hundred miles in twenty- 
 four hours. 
 
 We have thus brought to a conclusion the account 
 of Marie's discovery, capture, and imprisonment. If 
 in this chapter we have occasionally turned aside from 
 the immediate subject of our narrative, we crave the 
 indulgence of the reader. We cannot but hope that 
 he too may have imbibed some slight interest in the 
 pursuers as well as in the pursued, and that an occa- 
 sional glimpse at their movements, may have been an 
 agreeable relief from the contemplation of hers. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 MAEIE AND CARDINAL WISEMAN. 
 
 One singular discovery remains to be recorded, of 
 what may surely be regarded as the master-piece of 
 Marie's audacity and skill. The reader is requested 
 to go back for a twelvemonth, and after picturing her 
 in all the exultation of successful deception at Bonn, 
 to transfer his thoughts to England, and realize what 
 is passing there. 
 
 It is the month of February, 1851. London is un- 
 usually busy and excited, for the recent Papal Ag- 
 gression, and the approaching Great Exhibition, were 
 subjects of importance to all. Parliament is sitting, 
 and these topics are debated with untiring interest 
 from night to night. Miss Talbot and her £80,000, 
 with one or two similar episodes, occasion a slight di- 
 version from the all-absorbing themes. 
 
 It is to another person who attracts a still larger 
 share of public attention that the reader must be in- 
 troduced. Cardinal Wiseman is at his residence in 
 Golden Square. He has much business to trans- 
 act. A pile of letters meet for a Cardinal claims his 
 attention, and among them is one from Marie. She 
 writes from Bonn, and tells the Cardinal that she is a 
 young EDglish lady, once a Protestant, but now a 
 
134 MARIE AND CARDINAL WISEMAN. 
 
 Catholic: that her health is very delicate, and her 
 life uncertain : that she is possessed of considerable 
 property, and is anxious to leave it for the service of 
 the Church ; but as all her friends are Protestant, and 
 would greatly object to such an arrangement, she can- 
 not employ the family solicitor, and she ventures under 
 these circumstances, to request that his Eminence will 
 kindly recommend her to a Catholic lawyer. 
 
 The unusual press of business at this period required 
 the daily attendance of the Cardinal's solicitor, and the 
 letter had no sooner arrived than it was placed in Mr. 
 's hands, with directions to give it his best atten- 
 tion. Cardinal Wiseman himself wrote to inform her 
 that he had committed her affair to the charge of his 
 own solicitor, with whom she might communicate in 
 confidence. A correspondence ensued between Marie 
 and Mr. . He informed her that there were in- 
 surmountable difficulties in the way of drawing up a 
 will for a person at so great a distance, and with 
 whose affairs he had previously been unacquainted, 
 and he could only offer such suggestions as the case 
 permitted. 
 
 In the course of the correspondence it transpired 
 that a great part of her property consisted in a large 
 farm. He informed her that she- could not leave this 
 to the Church, the law of mortmain prohibiting such a 
 transfer. Such suggestions as he could make under 
 the circumstances he willingly offered, and aided by 
 other advice in Bonn, she acted upon them. The 
 readers of. " The Female Jesuit" will remember the 
 will which she left behind her at Cromwell Terrace. 
 Among the documents left behind her in Bonn was a 
 
MARIE AND CARDINAL WISEMAN. 135 
 
 ■will of far higher character, as well as of far larger be- 
 quests. It was drawn up with great legal accuracy, 
 and properly signed and attested by two gentlemen in 
 Bonn, and the improvement on her former attempt is 
 now explained by this legal correspondence. 
 
 How came this circumstance to light ? The reader 
 shall be informed. 
 
 Among the papers which Mr. Luke had brought 
 from Bonn was an unsealed note in Marie's writing 
 
 directed, Mr. , of Lincoln's Inn. From the tenor 
 
 of this note, which glanced at her right to £2000 in 
 one quarter, and £4000 in another, &c, &c, it was at 
 first conjectured that this note was written to impose 
 
 on her friends at Bonn, and that Mr. was, like 
 
 many of her employ is, an unsubstantial person. The 
 torn cover of a newspaper directed to her at Bonn, in 
 a lawyer's hand, threw some doubts on the correct- 
 ness of this theory ; and Mr. Luke resolved to ascer- 
 tain if Marie's correspondent had any real existence. 
 He found the veritable Mr. without much difficul- 
 ty, and the latter immediately recognized both Marie's 
 writing and his own. He was solicitor to Cardinal 
 Wiseman, and at once communicated to Mr. Luke the 
 foregoing facts. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE, OK A GLANCE BACKWARDS. 
 
 Since the foregoing narrative went to press, a friend 
 who has kindly interested himself in Marie's case, has 
 forwarded a much fuller account of her transactions 
 in Manchester, than that briefly given in Chapter IV. 
 As it supplies some blanks in her past history, — as it 
 solves some questions previously left to conjecture, — 
 and throws much additional light upon her whole 
 character, it is presumed that the interest will be a suf- 
 ficient apology to the reader for the insertion, though 
 out of its proper place. 
 
 The episode in Marie's history which follows, is to 
 be dated from the commencement of the year 1848, 
 when having left her situation at Crewe Hall, we find 
 her visiting her relatives in Manchester. 
 
 Opposite to the house of her aunt and uncle to whom 
 reference has been made elsewhere, there lives a Mr. 
 Rix, a medical gentleman of high repute for skill and 
 
 benevolence. On seeing the portrait of Marie L. Gr 
 
 in " The Female Jesuit," he and his lady at once iden- 
 tified her as the Marie Gr who made their acquaint- 
 ance in 1848. 
 
 -Marie's uncle and aunt were on friendly terms with 
 Mr. Eix's family, and it was at the period just named 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 137 
 
 that her aunt, in conversing with Mrs. Eix, mentioned 
 her niece, who was now on a visit to her. She spoke 
 of her as having been governess in a highly respect- 
 able family in Chester, and as clever, good-hearted, 
 and accomplished. She also stated that she was very 
 much beloved by the family, whom she had just left, 
 and that, to mark her appreciation of Mary's faithful 
 and disinterested services, the grandmother of her 
 pupils had bequeathed to her, on the event of her death, 
 the sum of two hundred pounds ; and that since her ar- 
 rival in Manchester, the family had forwarded her some 
 little books, which were intended by them as presents 
 for her nephews and nieces. 
 
 On hearing these things, which, without doubt, were 
 credited by the aunt, Mrs. Eix very naturally invited 
 
 Miss G to spend an occasional hour with her ; and 
 
 Marie readily and repeatedly availed herself of this 
 invitation. 
 
 Not long after she took up her abode at her aunt's, 
 " Marie," or as she may here be called by her Man- 
 chester name of "Mary," was reported to be ill, and, 
 in proof of it, she penned a polite note to Mr. Eix to 
 the effect, that as she was suffering from a severe pain 
 in the chest and from occasional spitting of blood, she 
 should be greatly obliged to him if he would send her 
 a blister. To this Mr. E. very properly demurred, 
 saying, that if the symptoms were really such as had 
 
 been represented to him, the sooner Miss G called 
 
 in a medical practitioner, the greater the probability 
 of her speedy restoration. 
 
 By referring to the ledger Mr. Eix finds that the 
 blister was sent to her on January 31st, 1848. A few 
 
138 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 days after, Mary herself appeared in the surgery and 
 sought medical advice. As there seemed to be some 
 unnatural enlargement of one of the vital organs, Mr. 
 R. prescribed the remedies usual in such a case. Under 
 this treatment the unfavorable symptoms gradually 
 subsided, and consequently he ceased to attend her. 
 It is but due to Mr. Rix to add, that as he had suggest- 
 ed to her friends the propriety of calling in medical 
 
 aid, he attended on Miss G during those three 
 
 weeks, gratuitously. 
 
 On February 18th, however, the aunt hastened over 
 to his house in a very agitated state, and requested 
 him at once to see her niece, who was laboring under 
 her old affection, and in an aggravated form. To this 
 he consented so soon as other cases would permit. 
 He found Mary apparently in the circumstances de- 
 scribed ; and for several successive days he attended 
 on his patient twice and thrice. 
 
 On account of some alterations, which were contem- 
 plated in the house occupied by her uncle, it was 
 deemed advisable that temporary accommodation 
 
 should be obtained for Mary at Mrs. 's where Mr. 
 
 Rix daily paid her a visit. After a fortnight's resi- 
 dence with her new friends, Miss G called on Mrs. 
 
 Rix, and asked, as a special favor, that she would give 
 
 her a bed at her house for a night, as some of Mrs. 's 
 
 relatives had unexpectedly come over to visit her 
 family, and would occupy their spare-room. Though 
 much to her inconvenience, Mrs. R. readily granted 
 her request; and on the night of March 22d, 1848, 
 Mary first slept under that roof, where for two months 
 she practised her frauds with consummate ingenuity. 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 139 
 
 On the three successive days she professed to have 
 been at her former lodgings, and returned, saying that 
 
 as Mrs. 's visitors were prolonging their stay, she 
 
 would feel increasingly obliged to Mr. and Mrs. Bix 
 if they would allow her to be their guest until the 
 former had left. On the fourth evening she retired to 
 her room, ostensibly to pack up the few articles of dress 
 which she had brought with her. While doing this a 
 great noise was heard overhead, as of a person falling 
 on the floor, on which several members of the family 
 ran up stairs to ascertain the cause. On entering 
 Mary's bedroom, she was struggling to rise. When 
 seated on a chair she represented that she had had a 
 fit. Of this Mrs. E. was somewhat suspicious from a 
 
 peculiar smile on Miss G 's countenance ; but, out 
 
 of compassion for the sufferer, she suggested that it 
 would be wiser for her to continue another night under 
 their roof. 
 
 Most unexpectedly to her host and hostess, Mary 
 was unusually cheerful next morning, and was so far 
 recovered as to take a walk into the city. The absence 
 of the languor and stupidity usually accompanying 
 seizures of the kind from which she had suffered on 
 the previous evening, strengthened the distrust already 
 awakened. But all this was allayed that noon on the 
 receipt of a letter by post, bearing the signature of a 
 Manchester gentleman, whose name is known in com- 
 mercial circles to be as good as a bond. In this letter 
 he expressed a hope that Mr. and Mrs. Six would pay 
 
 Miss Gr every attention ; and gave a pledge that 
 
 all expenses incurred for board, lodging, and medical 
 
140 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 attendance, should be met by himself or his relatives 
 at , who were greatly interested in her. 
 
 In the full persuasion that the above document was 
 a bond fide letter from the hand of the gentleman re- 
 ferred to, Mr. and Mrs. Eix put aside their misgivings, 
 and looked on Mary as an inmate of their dwelling. 
 On the strength of it, and on account of certain per- 
 plexities connected with the case of his patient, Mr. 
 Eix deemed it prudent to call in a medical gentleman 
 of long standing and considerable fame in Manchester, 
 and to pay him the professional fee. To the latter, as 
 well as to the former, Mary was a mystery. His re- 
 mark on leaving Mr. E.'s dwelling was significant. 
 " You have got into a hobble, and I wish you out 
 of it." 
 
 Not many days after the occurrence just related, 
 Mary called on another gentleman, connected by mer- 
 cantile transactions with the reputed author of the 
 letter. The object of her call was to solicit from him 
 a recommendation to the Infirmary. Being engaged 
 with other affairs, he referred this case of charity to 
 his lady, who, with a woman's heart, heard the piteous 
 tale of the stranger, sympathized with her, and afford- 
 ed her pecuniary relief. 
 
 Pleased with the introduction thus obtained by- her 
 duplicity into this family, Mary thought of another 
 mode of working upon the kindly feelings of her bene- 
 factress. Having one day observed some crotchet- 
 work on Mrs. Eix's table, she made a few inquiries 
 respecting it. On ascertaining that it had been en- 
 trusted to the former for sale among her lady-acquaint- 
 ances, the latter requested that she might use her in- 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 141 
 
 fluence with her own friends for this purpose. This 
 being granted, Mary made her way to the house of the 
 amiable lady already alluded to, and exhibited the 
 above article as a specimen of her own skill and taste. 
 Under the idea of helping a young person, who was 
 in needy circumstances, the lady purchased the whole 
 for a considerable sum; a part' of which, Jhowever, as 
 it has been since discovered, was retained by Mary, 
 under the pretext that as she had not been able to sell 
 all the work entrusted to her, she would keep the re- 
 mainder in her possession until she had applied else- 
 where. 
 
 What tales of sorrow Mary had told her generous 
 patroness it is not difficult to divine ; for her footman 
 shortly after appeared with jellies and other delicacies 
 for the invalid. As may be conjectured, the appear- 
 ance of such a messenger reassured the host and host- 
 ess of Mary G , that with all the mysteriousness 
 
 enveloping her character, she was not intentionally 
 dishonest. 
 
 At the above interview, Mary described herself as 
 a skilful maker of wax flowers, and expressed a hope 
 that the lady would not object to examine a specimen 
 of her workmanship. After the lapse of a few days, 
 Mary called at a jeweller's in the city, and asked the 
 loan of a vase of wax-flowers, valued at £10, which 
 she was anxious a friend should see and purchase. To 
 this the tradesman objected, as he was unacquainted 
 with the young person who made the request. But 
 her urgency overruled his caution ; and he at length 
 assented, on the condition that one of his shop-boys 
 should accompany her in a cab to the house of her 
 
142 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 friend. Mary readily accepted this proposal, and 
 
 drove at once to Mrs. , to whom she exhibited 
 
 this elegant article as a new proof of her art and taste. 
 Much to her chragin, she was unable this time to effect 
 a sale. 
 
 Whether it was on this occasion or at another can- 
 not be told, but it appears that Mary represented to 
 this lady that she was in a most distressed stqje of 
 mind, for " the family with whom she resided were 
 very ungodly," and added, that she should be greatly 
 relieved if she would call on her at some early day for 
 private conversation. In accordance with the wish 
 
 expressed, Mrs. paid her a visit. But far from 
 
 permitting her kind visitor to hold " private con- 
 versation" with her, Mary soon stepped out of the 
 parlor, and begged Mrs. Eix to come down with her 
 
 infant, as Mrs. was anxious for an introduction 
 
 to her. As might be conceived, the latter was not a 
 little surprised that the special errand on which she 
 had called should be thus thwarted. . But that Mary's 
 mental ailment might be sought out and cured, the 
 lady requested her minister, a devoted evangelical 
 clergyman, to see her. 
 
 "While carrying on these intrigues, " the Spy in the 
 Family" was daily inventive of frauds, with which to 
 blind her hospitable friends, Mr. and Mrs. Eix. On 
 two separate occasions, she professed to have received 
 notes from the gentleman who had so kindly recom- 
 mended her to them, in which they with herself were 
 invited to dinner at his table. On both occasions they 
 were about to start for the party, when unforeseen ob- 
 stacles were thrown in the way. On the first, a mes- 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 143 
 
 senger handed in a note to Mr. Rix, in which Mr. 
 
 expressed his regret that the severe illness of a rela- 
 tive would preclude him from the pleasure of seeing 
 his invited guests that day. On the second occasion 
 they were prevented by a recurrence in Mary of her 
 old complaint, vomiting of blood. This occurred while 
 she was walking in the garden. Of the veritableness 
 of her story they could not entertain a suspicion, as 
 her mouth and lips were streaked with blood. In 
 consequence, Mr. Eix wrote an apology to- the gentle- 
 man for the non-appearance of himself and his friends, 
 and specified the unhappy cause of their detention. 
 And as before the transmission of his note Mary had ral- 
 lied a little, she undertook to get her nephew or some 
 other messenger to take it at once to its destination. 
 This, as the sequel has shown, was only a quiet way 
 of intercepting the apology. 
 
 Shortly after this, a very handsome Church Service, 
 consisting of a Prayer-Book, and Bible, elegantly 
 bound, with gold clasps, in a morocco case, was left at 
 
 Mr. Bix's for Miss Gr . She explained that it had 
 
 been sent her by Sir W. W. Wynne, accompanied by 
 the following complimentary but blundering note. 
 
 " Sir "W. W. Wynne's compliments to Miss Garthside, 
 and begs her acceptance of the enclosed as a token of the 
 very high respect he entertains of her moral worth, and at 
 the same time will be happy to render his assistance with 
 anything that he can be of service. 
 " Wynnstay, March 14th." 
 
 The penmanship of the note, its grammatical den- 
 ciencies, and the incorrect spelling of Mary's surname, 
 
144 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 struck both Mr. and Mrs. Eix ; yet her artless manner 
 of explaining these anomalies, precluded them from, 
 doubting her word. 
 
 On or before the 12th of April, Mary received a 
 letter from her brother, a veterinary surgeon at Church 
 Town, near Southport, representing that their mother 
 was dangerously ill ; and that if she wished to see her 
 alive it was necessary that she should make haste. 
 Finding herself without the means requisite for her 
 journey, she called on a lady who had aided her on for- 
 mer occasions, and obtained " the needful." On start- 
 ing for Southport Mrs. Eix took the opportunity of 
 urging it as a filial duty, that she should remain with 
 her dying parent, and minister to her last wants. 
 
 The morning after Mary's departure Mrs. Eix re- 
 ceived the annexed note, in the handwriting of one 
 who had acted a generous part towards her. 
 
 " Mrs. G D presents her compliments to Mrs. 
 
 Rix, and should poor Miss G lose her mother, begs Mrs. 
 
 R. will not allow her to buy mourning, as she can be sup- 
 plied. Mrs. G D -takes the liberty of addressing 
 
 Mrs. Rix, as she cannot write upon so delicate a subject to 
 
 Miss G . Mrs. G D is leaving Manchester for 
 
 a day, but will be glad to know when the sad event takes 
 
 place, by note either from Miss G or Mrs. Rix. 
 
 "April 13th." 
 
 Much to the surprise of Mr. Eix and the inmates of 
 his house, Mary returned from Southport in the dusk 
 of the second evening of her absence. That she had 
 gone thither and had seen her mother, who happily 
 had rallied in strength, there could be no doubt. She 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OP PLACE. 1*5 
 
 brought evidence of her having been there in the 
 small basket of fresh shrimps she carried in her hand. 
 To account for her speedy return, she stated that she 
 had had one of her old attacks, and that one of the 
 resident surgeons had been called in ; but as her case 
 appeared to be very complex, he advised her to re- 
 turn forthwith to the gentleman in Manchester, who 
 was familiar with its different phases, and who could 
 readily apply the remedies which had been service- 
 able. 
 
 On the Saturday before Easter Sunday, April 22d, 
 Mary mentioned to Mrs. Eix, that, during her short 
 absence, a boy had brought a small basket, containing 
 salmon, game, &c, with an enclosure from the grand- 
 mother of her former pupils. But a system of con- 
 tinuous studied fraud must have its finis, and the day 
 was fast approaching for the unmasking of Mary's 
 real character. 
 
 7 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE CONTINUED. 
 
 On Thursday, April 27th, according to the custom 
 of the house, the servant was busy in sweeping the 
 rooms of the upper floor. In removing the upper 
 mattress of the bedstead used by Miss Gr , she dis- 
 covered under it a large number of letters and bills. 
 Amazed at this mass of papers, the maid asked her 
 mistress to step up stairs, and to look at them with 
 her own eyes. This, however, she declined to do, as 
 it would be a violation of common civility. Having 
 no such delicacy about the matter, and having a strong 
 antipathy to Mary, the servant-maid pursued the 
 search, and found, wrapped up with the letters, a phial 
 containing nameless ingredients. On this fresh dis- 
 closure, she hastened again to her mistress, reiterating 
 the fears she had often expressed — that their lodger 
 was a consummate impostor. This mysterious bottle 
 seemed now to warrant a deviation from the ordinary 
 rule of hospitality ; and in further turning over this 
 medley of letters, Mrs. Rix found one addressed by 
 a personal friend to Mary, upbraiding her for her 
 falsehood and treachery. One sentence was very sig- 
 nificative — "Poor deluded Mrs. Eix !" 
 
 Very soon after this detection, Mary returned from 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. ' 147 
 
 a long walk. On entering her room she at once per- 
 ceived that her papers had been deranged ; and on 
 calling in the house-maid, she turned the key and anx- 
 iously questioned her whether or not her mistress had 
 been perusing them. What answer was given it is of 
 little moment to ascertain. Mary could not but feel 
 that her game was nearly up : and Mrs. Eix felt that 
 immediate measures must be adopted to guard them- 
 selves against the possibility of further fraud. So 
 soon, therefore, as her husband came back from some 
 of his professional duties, she went to him in a very 
 agitated state, and said : " "We have a swindler in our 
 house. I am certain that Mary Gr has been du- 
 ping us all the time she has been our inmate." 
 
 After some deliberation, it was resolved that Mrs. 
 Eix should go that afternoon to the counting-house of 
 the gentleman, who, they were led to believe, had rec- 
 ommended her in the first instance, and present him 
 
 with the bill for Miss Gr 's maintenance, &c. Mr. 
 
 , as one might infer, received Mrs. Eix very 
 
 coldly. He had an idea that he had heard of such a 
 person as Miss G , holding the situation of gover- 
 ness in a relative's family, but as to his having become 
 responsible for her expenditure, the thing was con- 
 trary to his ordinary practice. Besides he could give 
 Mrs. Eix his word of honor that he knew nothing of 
 the recommendatory letter, which purported to be 
 from his hand. He should, however, look a little 
 more into the affair. 
 
 In the eyes of Mrs. Eix, things were assuming a 
 very black appearance. " Had they, during the last 
 two months, been the victims of a heartless cheat? 
 
148 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 Was all their kindness requited by such base ingrati- 
 tude?" 
 
 After reporting the unsatisfactory nature of the in- 
 terview she had had with , Esq., Mr. Kix stepped 
 
 across for her aunt and for another witness, on whose 
 arrival Mary was requested to come down into the 
 parlor, as some friends wished to see her. In a short 
 time she appeared ; and though, by the presence of so 
 many individuals, she must have suspected the object,, 
 there was. not the least confusion betrayed in her con- 
 duct l^ot a blush rose on her cheek. Not a muscle 
 moved. All bespoke her calmness, collectedness, in- 
 nocence. For some minutes, neither Mr. nor Mrs. Eix 
 could unseal their lips. At length the latter, muster- 
 ing up courage, broke the silence. "Miss G ," 
 
 said she, "I have seen a letter addressed to yourself 
 
 by Miss . Here it is. In it she charges you 
 
 with deception and falsehood, especially with the im- 
 position you have been practising upon us." Mary 
 continued unmoved. The only word she uttered was 
 " Well." " I have also felt it due to myself and hus- 
 band," continued Mrs. Eix, "in consequence of the 
 insinuations it contains, to call on Mr. . He dis- 
 claims acquaintance with you, and, moreover, denies 
 the authorship of the letter which reached us bearing 
 his signature. You must have forged it." Yet no 
 feature underwent a change. She denied having for- 
 ged his name ; but on being further pressed respecting 
 this and other letters, admitted that they had been 
 penned at her wish, and under her dictation, by cer- 
 tain shpp-keepers, whose names she subsequently left 
 on a, slip of paper. 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 149 
 
 To clear up any farther obscurity, this may b'6 the 
 most appropriate place to mention that the letter, pur- 
 porting to be from Esq., proved to be the pen- 
 manship of a shop-keeper ; who, when threatened with 
 legal proceedings for a forgery, acknowledged that a 
 young lady, a customer, had called on him one morn- 
 ing with her right hand tied up in a handkerchief, and 
 had requested him, in consequence of her incapacity 
 to handle a quill, to write a letter according to her 
 dictation ; but that it was far from his thoughts that 
 he was abetting a fraud. 
 
 The note afterwards received by Mr. and Mrs. RiXj 
 
 prohibiting their attendance at Mr. L 's evening 
 
 party, was also composed by Mary herself. Among 
 the few papers preserved from destruction is its rough, 
 and unfinished original. 
 
 The supposed gifts of fish, game, &c, it turned out, 
 from bills afterwards presented, had been ordered of 
 a neighboring fishmonger : and of the splendid gift 
 from a baronet, time has told that it was ordered by 
 Mary herself from a highly respectable bookseller in 
 Manchester, to whom, on the discovery of the circum- 
 stances, it was restored. 
 
 At the close of the interview which led to these rev- 
 elations, Mrs. Rix ordered Mary to go up to her bed- 
 room, whither she and her aunt would proceed to 
 search her box. This was soon done ; for her clothes 
 were few, and those few very threadbare and dirty. 
 Five shillings might have purchased the whole stock. 
 Her purse and her letters she must have secreted else- 
 where. 
 
 Having finished the search, Mrs. Eix said, " I shall 
 
150 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 order a fire to be lighted, and insist upon your keep- 
 ing within your room, until we know what farther 
 steps shall be taken." After the lapse of two or three 
 hours, on returning to Mary's room, she found to her 
 amazement an immense heap of papers on the fire, 
 which were unfortunately too far consumed to be saved. 
 She also found a fluid liquid resembling blood in the 
 basin ; and, with indignation, she at once challenged 
 
 Miss Gr with a new attempt at deception. This 
 
 she positively denied. But as Mrs. Eix was certain 
 that it was so, she once more opened the lid of her 
 small trunk, and shook out all its contents. Amongst 
 these, there dropped out an old pocket, which con- 
 tained a bottle of bullock's blood. Before hastening 
 out of the room, Mrs. Rix turned to Mary and said, " I 
 shall take this with me, and we shall see whether there 
 will be any more vomiting of blood." 
 
 By that evening's post Mr. Rix communicated to 
 her brother at Southport, the painful news of Mary's 
 fraudulent conduct, and urged him at once to see her. 
 
 " As your sister is detained here under very suspicious 
 circumstances, which cannot he explained by letter, I write 
 to urge your immediate presence. But lest you should fail 
 to come at once, I am sorry to say measures will be forth- 
 with instituted against her, over which the influence of all 
 her friends and relatives can have no control. 
 "April 21th." 
 
 In answer to this note, the brother arrived in Man- 
 chester late on Saturday evening, when he was con- 
 fronted with his sister. He was exceedingly distress- 
 ed at her conduct, and said that it was not the first 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 151 
 
 time that she had played a like triok. To prevent 
 legal measures being taken against his relative, he 
 signed an agreement, in the presence of witnesses, to 
 the effect that he would be answerable for the amount 
 which was due to Mr. Rix. - He also insisted that his 
 sister should there and then write a confession of her 
 base conduct to her kind friends. It is as follows : — 
 
 " I solemnly promise never in any ,way to speak or act 
 disrespectfully towards Mr. and Mrs. Rix, or at any time to 
 bring trouble upon them. I acknowledge I have deeply and 
 basely injured them, for which I feel most truly and heartily 
 penitent. I trust to God to protect me from again falling 
 into so great a sin. I desire to acknowledge my ungrateful- 
 ness towards them and others. 
 
 "- Mary G- . 
 
 "April 29th, 1848." 
 
 From the inconvenience attendant on her removal 
 at so late an hour that night, it was mutually arranged 
 that she should remain over the Sabbath under the 
 same roof, and depart with her brother George early 
 on Monday morning. It was, however, stipulated 
 that Mary should not leave the room. 
 
 All the following day she continued in bed, but 
 must have been up at dawn next morning, as she then 
 penned the long epistle which shall be immediately 
 given. 
 
 A little after daybreak the servants of the house 
 rose to wash. While they were engaged in their work, 
 they heard the footsteps of some one coming down 
 stairs. The street door was at once opened, and the 
 person, whoever it might be, escaped. Imagining 
 
152 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 that Mary was the individual, they went to her room, 
 and ascertained the truth of their suspicions. She 
 had decamped, it appeared, without bonnet or shawl. 
 
 The alarm was conveyed to their master and mis- 
 tress, and, being fearful lest she should attempt self- 
 destruction, Mrs. Eix at once dressed herself, and sent 
 a messenger across to her aunt, who, in turn, commu- 
 nicated it to Mary's brother. 
 
 While he was traversing the neighborhood in quest 
 of her, Mrs. Eix happened to go into the parlor, and 
 found on the table the letter above named. 
 
 " When you read this I shall be on my way home. My 
 motive in going off so clandestinely is not from fear of man, 
 but purely that I cannot face those I have so grossly de- 
 ceived ; and I could not bring my mind to parting personally 
 with you. None need be uneasy about me, fur I shall make 
 my way home direct. If I can borrow from a friend I know 
 sufficient to take mo by the packet, I shall and will leave a 
 note to be sent, stating if I did so, that G-eorge may pay it. 
 If not, I am determined upon walking it, be the consequences 
 what they may. I deserve to suffer punishment, so that will 
 not be too cruel a task for me to perform. Perhaps you 
 may think from my being so ... . * that I am not 
 penitent, but this time believe me when I say that it could not 
 be possible for mortal to feel more deeply or repent more 
 truly than I do. If it were possible to shed tears of blood, 
 I could. I feel that I am, in the sight of God, the most sin- 
 ful and ungrateful of his creatures. I shall first seek forgive- 
 ness from him, who will then soften the hearts, of those I 
 have so basely injured to forgive me. Forgot it never can 
 be, neither by man or myself. Would to God it could ! It 
 
 * Word illegible. 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 153 
 
 will go down to the grave with me, a stain of' the deepest 
 hue. I leave you with this hope, that after this is over I 
 shall still be pitied, and that my name will only be mention- 
 ed in sympathy. It is myself that will for life be the great- 
 est sufferer. I trust God will extend his mercy towards me, 
 and then take me to himself. I leave you with the galling 
 remembrance of your kindness, and shall ever think of you 
 with the greatest respect. Indeed I cannot thank you 
 enough ; but my future actions must speak what I now feel. 
 I hope what is past will be forgiven, and let this letter testify 
 against me, if ever I knowingly and wilfully offend again for 
 the future. You have dear children of your own. They 
 may possibly offend, though I pray they never will, as I 
 have done, yet you wish they might meet with pardon rather 
 than reprobation. My making or ruin, I am sensible, for 
 the future lies with you. If you forgive, you may save a 
 soul as well as a body from misery ; and I hope you will 
 weigh this with your usual goodness and consideration. 
 What is now past I cannot help, but for what is to come, I 
 do promise, if God gives me health and power and grace, 
 that my actions shall testify for me how much I bewail my 
 past offences. I think George had better remain Monday 
 over, so that all be fully settled. If I am wanted, I shall 
 be found at home. I cannot close this letter without again 
 saying how truly sorry I am for the trouble I have given 
 you, and again beg and crave your pardon. 
 " I am, dear sir and madam, 
 
 " Your humble and repentant servant, 
 
 " Mary G ." 
 
 [The Italics are her own.] 
 
 On her flight from Mr. Eix's house, Mary wandered 
 about the streets of the vicinity in a very forlorn 
 
 state ; until, wearied with her peregrinations, and no 
 
 7 * 
 
154 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 doubt suffering from the sharp morning frosts of 
 spring, she retreated for an asylum to the dwelling of 
 a distant relative. There, after many inquiries, her 
 brother found her, and, to all appearance, she was al- 
 ready contented and at home. He would not, how- 
 ever, allow her to remain any longer in Manchester, 
 and took her under his own escort to Southport. Be- 
 fore tracing her thither, a few additional particulars 
 which sprang out of her connection with the family 
 of Mr. Eix, may be supplied. 
 
 While Mary was a patient under his care, she made 
 
 frequent mention of a medical gentleman in F 
 
 shire, as one who had paid special attention to her 
 case. To test her truthfulness, Mr. Rix wrote, on the 
 day of her departure, to the latter in these terms : 
 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " The purport of my note is to ascertain if you remem- 
 ber having a patient under your care of the name of Miss 
 
 Mary Cr , a governess at Mrs. 's ; and if so, whether 
 
 you would be kind enough to inform me, so far as you may 
 remember, for what disease or diseases she was treated by 
 you. She has been under my care for about three months, 
 and as her disease is very obscure to me, I trust you will 
 excuse the liberty I have taken in writing to you relative to 
 her case. Did she, whilst under your care, vomit blood fre- 
 quently 1 Say once, twice, or thrice a-week ? If so, did you 
 ever examine the blood particularly, so as to be able to say 
 that it was at all times blood 1 I make these inquiries, as I 
 have reason to suppose some little deception has been at- 
 tempted to be practised upon me." 
 
 ** 
 
 As the answer was confidential, it would be a breach 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 155 
 
 of that confidence to give it in detail. It may be 
 mentioned that, having her under his eye for two 
 years, Mr. A. was in a position to substantiate Mr. 
 Kix's opinion respecting her. There was undoubtedly 
 at that period more or less congestion in the chest, 
 also considerable enlargement of the liver, with other 
 symptoms, not easily classified. Spite of all these 
 threatening indications, she always had a vorarious 
 appetite for the dainties of the table. In fact he" cor- 
 roborated Mr. R.'s conclusion, that, " altogether, she 
 was one of the most extraordinary persons he had met 
 with in his experience as a practitioner." 
 
 How it fared with Mary, Mr. and Mrs. Rix could 
 not obtain definite information for many months. But 
 early in January, 1849, a letter reached them from 
 the medical gentleman to whom reference had been 
 made. It was couched in this language : 
 
 " If the name of G- be not to you quite odious and 
 
 intolerable, I would be glad once more to trespass upon your 
 time and impatience. My object is this, to ascertain the ad- 
 dress of the lady in question, so as to elicit, if possible, what 
 information she may possess, if any, relative to a note of 
 hand for £50, bearing the name of the late Mr. , sus- 
 pected to be the hand-writing of a female, and the female no 
 
 other than Miss G- . The document 'was a joint note, 
 
 bearing two names, the former of the two being Mr. 's, 
 
 and affecting to be passed for money lent to him ; the other 
 name in the note is that of a person I presume quite un- 
 known to you, but familiarly acquainted with Miss G . 
 
 " Knowing, as I do, the principal parties implicated in the 
 note, and feeling a sincere regard for the welfare of Mr. 
 's orphan children (whose interests must eventually suf- 
 
150 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 fer : if the validity of the note be established), I feel most 
 desirous to procure what information I can in the matter. 
 
 " The executors of Mr. are now called on to pay the 
 
 amount of the note, but very properly dispute its payment. 
 They are therefore called on to defend an action at law, .and 
 on this account it is desirable to put their counsel in full 
 possession of all the information that can be had touching 
 the real characters of some of the parties." 
 
 But it is time to track the footsteps of " The Spy- 
 in the Family " to Southport. In answer to inquiries 
 from the friend who has- supplied this information, a 
 gentleman, now resident in that watering-place, and in 
 every way worthy of credit, replied to our informant 
 thus : 
 
 " Southpobt, Ternary 14th, 1852. 
 
 " My dear Sir, 
 
 " I returned home yesterday and found a letter of 
 
 inquiries from you respecting Miss G . I believe it is 
 
 pretty well known here that she is the person that is meant. 
 It came out in this manner : on the first appearance of ' The 
 Female Jesuit,' a lady procured the book, and was beginning 
 to cut open its leaves, when a friend standing by hor said — 
 ' Allow me to look at the portrait ;' and on examining it she 
 
 exclaimed — ' Why ! that is Mary G .' It is thought to 
 
 be a good likeness, but rather flattered. 
 
 " She bears the character in Southport of being a great 
 talker and full of craftiness. The epithets employed by those 
 who know her, to express her cunning, are very strange and 
 emphatic. "While in this neighborhood she was ostensibly 
 with her brother George, who for some time followed his 
 father's occupation at Church Town. About two years since 
 
 he removed to , where, I am told his wife's parents 
 
 reside. Mr. G bears the character of being an honest 
 
INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 157 
 
 man, is a Baptist of hyper-Calvinistic sentiments, and during 
 his stay in the vicinity of Southport, was very zealous in 
 propagating his peculiar tenets. 
 
 " Their mother, if my informants have not misled me, was 
 professedly a Protestant by education and in creed. She had 
 evidently some good points in her moral character ; but with 
 regard to religion, she wanted fixedness of principle. She 
 seemed very much inclined to fall in with Wesleyans, Inde- 
 pendents, Episcopalians, Protestants, or Romanists, as self- 
 interest might dictate. She died about four years ago. It 
 is currently believed that her death was accelerated by the 
 misconduct of her daughter, especially some fraudulent trans- 
 actions in Manchester, which pressed heavily upon the 
 mother's mind. 
 
 l: Miss G- was in Southport and its neighborhood two 
 
 or three months before her parents' death, and about six 
 months subsequent to it. She greatly harassed both her 
 mother and brother by the debts she contracted. 
 
 " Rumor says that Miss M — — -, an accomplished lady 
 and a staunch Romanist, was the individual who succeeded 
 
 in converting Mary G- to the doctrines of the Papal 
 
 Church. Whether this version be correct or not, I cannot 
 say positively ; but it is notorious, that after forming ac- 
 quaintance with that lady, she associated chiefly with mem- 
 bers of the Romanist community, and that through the in- 
 fluence of his sister, Mr. Gr on several occasions called 
 
 in the priest for his advice, when bailiffs were in his house 
 for debts incurred by the former. 
 
 " Whither she went after her disappearance in Southport, 
 no one can tell me." 
 
 But by comparing the dates named by my friend 
 with those furnished in your book, it is certain that 
 the interval between her leaving Southport and her 
 
158 INCIDENTS OUT OF PLACE. 
 
 introduction to Mr. Luke's house must have been very- 
 brief. 
 
 " Out of this strange history," concludes our infor- 
 mant, " many important inquiries arise. I can but sug- 
 gest one. How far is Mary's duplicity traceable to pa- 
 rental influence ? If the information supplied by my 
 Southport friend be trustworthy — and of this I cannot 
 
 entertain a doubt — Mrs. G , though possessing- 
 
 many excellent properties, vacillated in her religious 
 views ; now coalescing with Eomanism, now with Prot- 
 estantism ; in fact, taking the hues of those who would 
 be most profitable to her in worldly things. Now, by 
 all accounts, Mary is thoroughly Protean ; learned or 
 unlearned, clever or stupid, devout or undevout, a 
 Komanist or a Protestant, according to the social in- 
 fluences by which she is surrounded. If Mary her- 
 self can be relied on, parental instruction has had much 
 to do with her hypocrisy. On overhearing Mrs. Eix 
 rebuke her child for something which appeared eva- 
 sive, Mary turned to her and emphatically said, ' That 
 is the right plan. / was taught by my mother to lie be- 
 tween her and my father.'' " 
 
 The reader must bear in mind that this is Marie's 
 statement, and receive it with reserve. She who has 
 slandered the living, is little likely to have done jus- 
 tice to the dead. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 It is not one bold outline which will convey an 
 adequate idea of the extraordinary being whose char- 
 acter remains to be dissected. It is true that there is 
 one feature so monstrous, that in sketching it alone 
 the likeness cannot fail to be recognized; but there 
 are many careful touches necessary to complete the 
 finished portrait. It is desirable to analyze her char- 
 acter in parts before presenting it as a whole-, or at- 
 tempting to arrive at any conclusion respecting it. 
 One master passion, one mainspring of actif °\may be 
 observed originating the whole current <? s ) in Y'Jfe; 
 but other and subsidiary springs may be deleted con- 
 tinually falling in with and strengthening it,, as with 
 torrent-like force it hurries her on her fearful way. 
 
 To avoid trespassing on Mr. C. Seager's narrative, 
 the illustrations of this assertion must be taken from 
 former periods of her life, and the lighter indications 
 will be first presented. 
 
 Marie has always been, by her own account, an 
 almost universal genius. On introducing herself to 
 Mr. Luke, she laid claim to the knowledge of four 
 languages. German, she said, had been in a sense her 
 mother tongue, having been the native- language of 
 
160 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 her father, and well understood by her mother ; 
 French she had learned during her long residence in 
 French convents^ and Italian during two years she 
 spent at Nice. Latin she had been taught for its use 
 in the services of the Church ; and so perfectly as sub- 
 sequently to speak of going to confession in Latin at 
 Cologne. 
 
 As to music, she had' been taught the piano-forte, 
 guitar and organ. She had learned thorough bass and 
 singing, and had been accustomed to sing in parts with 
 her mamma and uncle, till the rupture of a blood-ves- 
 sel had imposed an interdict on this delightful ex- 
 ercise. 
 
 In drawing, she professed, while in London, to excel 
 in one style only, that of large crayon heads ; and 
 she frequently talked of buying a set of crayon pen- 
 cils in-order to teach Elizabeth. Botanical drawings 
 werf ~& A "V.d to her list of acquisitions while at Brus- 
 
 aelt ^2 h 
 
 He^Mary for poetry she of course inherited from 
 her motWr, who, according to her own account, had 
 produce/i some of the most beautiful hymns sung at 
 s the Bomah Catholic festivals. This taste had been 
 continually repressed during Marie's convent life, and 
 had not arrived at that perfection which might have 
 been expected, had her natural gift been allowed full 
 P^y. 
 
 Within the wide range of fancy work, there was 
 nothing which she had not done or could not do. At 
 knitting and crotchet it was evident that she did excel, 
 but this was a very small fraction of her accomplish- 
 ments. She had learned the secret and difficult art of 
 
LINEAMENTS OP MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 161 
 
 making point lace, from the nuns on the Continent. 
 She had embroidered robes and scapulas in gold from 
 designs by Pugin, and had assisted in the decorations 
 of the altar at St. George's Cathedral. Wax flowers 
 and muslin flowers she could make to perfection ; in 
 worsted work of all kinds she was quite at home ; and 
 by her own account nothing came amiss to her, from 
 the costly pallium of a cardinal-archbishop down to 
 alum baskets or imitation bird's nests. 
 
 Her adroitness in extricating herself from the diffi- 
 culties into which her boastful pretensions had brought 
 her, was not less remarkable than the temerity with 
 which she advanced them. In many cases she would 
 skilfully avoid the opportunity of being tested ; but 
 where this was impossible, she would have some other 
 scheme ready. Her management of the " uncle" let- 
 ters for some time countenanced her statement regard- 
 ing her acquaintance with French. She usually has- 
 tened with them to her room, as if anxious to enjoy 
 the first reading alone ; and having, doiibtless, in soli- 
 tude refreshed her recollection of the English original. 
 would return to read them off correctly and readily. , 
 "When she received the letters in presence of the 
 family, she would affect too much agitation to read 
 them alone, and would call Mrs. Luke or Elizabeth to 
 her assistance ; at times when they hesitated, offering 
 a more fluent rendering than the one which they 
 could supply. It was not till after her return from 
 Mr. Spalding's, that, on undertaking to give Lilly 
 a French lesson, she was observed to mis-match the 
 gender of a noun and adjective ; and later still, the 
 superscription on a letter to her uncle of " Poste res- 
 
162 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 taurante" originating in some unlucky combination of 
 restaurant and restante, respecting which Elizabeth 
 never failed to rally her, led her to draw in her pre- 
 tensions to acquaintance with French literature, and 
 she avoided all subsequent reference to the unfortu- 
 nate subject. 
 
 She had promised to give Elizabeth some lessons 
 on the organ, but illness and misadventures frequently 
 prevented her from carrying out her intention. One 
 fine afternoon, in the summer of 1849, they were 
 actually prepared to go to Orange Street Chapel, 
 and practice on the organ there,, when a cry was heard 
 in the kitchen. Marie had upset the kettle and 
 scalded her hand. There was a great stir, and a call- 
 ing for cold water, flour, scraped potatoes, rag, &c, 
 &c, and at length the hand, which merely showed a 
 little redness, was bound up. "With unabated eager- 
 ness, she insisted on accompanying Elizabeth to the 
 chapel, and went through the first exhibition of her 
 musical skill with one hand. There is no doubt that 
 she could play a little on the organ, but this was prob- 
 ably a ruse to avoid being taxed beyond her powers, 
 or appearing to come short ttf the proficiency to be 
 expected from one who had played in the cathedral 
 at Amiens ; while her performance with one hand 
 showed that she could play, and left full scope for im- 
 agination as to what she might have done, had both 
 hands been at libery. 
 
 She was frequently urged to sketch some illustra- 
 tions for her auto-biography, and often promised to do 
 so, but as often found some excuse. Two or. three 
 months before her departure from Cromwell Terrace, 
 
LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 163 
 
 some great secret was in band between ber and 
 Lilly, and tbe latter was often summoned into Marie's 
 room, and tbe door locked. At lengtb it slipped out 
 tbat Lilly was learning to draw. "Wben Marie bad 
 finally left, Lilly brougbt out the results of ber draw- 
 ing lessons. " Tbese consisted of the water-mark in 
 the paper, a nondescript animal dignified by the name 
 of a duck, and scores of little crosses like the number 
 X. There was not even the attempt to give the child 
 the simplest copy ; and she merely took this step to 
 re-assure her friends that she was indeed conversant 
 with this accomplishment. 
 
 Her poetical vein had as little reality as her other 
 imaginary accomplishments, the discovery of tbe little 
 volume of poems at Bonn having proved that the 
 verses to which she laid claim were written by another 
 hand ; yet never was any stratagem more adroitly 
 managed. She selected for appropriation no poetry 
 of elevated and original character, but simple girl- 
 like verses, suited to her standard of knowledge and 
 intellect. Many were the copies written and re-writ- 
 ten, with corrections and interlineations, which she 
 left loosely in her open desk or about her room. Of- 
 ten would she bring a copy of verses, with one line 
 too long and another too short, with a word wanting 
 here and a rhyme defective there, and request a sug- 
 gestion from her friends to enable her to finish them. 
 At length a complete and fairly written copy would 
 be produced ; and who could suppose the result of 
 so much care and pains to be tbe composition of an- 
 other. 
 
 Her skill in feigning diseases rivalled ber preten- 
 
164 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 sions to literature. She is known to have imposed on 
 eight medical men, and she may have imposed upon 
 as many more. Threatened brain fever and delirium, 
 apoplexy, inflammation of the lungs, and palpitation 
 of the heart, were all tried in turn. During her stay 
 at Mr. Spalding's, she manage^ an attack of " genuine 
 Asiatic cholera ;" the cramp, the limbs drawn up, the 
 livid swollen features, the blackened lips were there; 
 in the pauses of apparently agonizing pain, she faintly 
 asked why Mrs. Luke did not come, and the medical 
 attendant intimated to the terrified household that it 
 was useless to disturb Mrs. Luke at that hour of the 
 night, as two hours would decide the case. But the 
 chef d'wuvre of her acting in this line was doubtless 
 the rupture of blood-vessels, and all the symptoms of 
 consumption, in which she deceived so many skilful 
 and upright men. 
 
 Her ability in counterfeiting emotion could scarcely 
 be surpassed. Sorrow, indignation, surprise, joy, 
 affection, gratitude, were all acted to perfection. Pale 
 or flushed cheeks, raised or softened tones, tears or 
 smiles, nervous tremor or exulting confidence, were 
 all at command as occasion called for them. It may 
 be observed, however, that she seems to have needed 
 the sympathy of her auditors for the full expression 
 of her counterfeit emotions ; and hence during the 
 last fortnight at Cromwell Terrace, the tears and sobs 
 which she endeavored to call forth on the occasion of 
 her uncle's illness, could not as formerly be produced. 
 
 Her expertness in letter writing, and her skill in 
 keeping up her different characters, is extraordinary. 
 As a Jesuit uncle ; as a frivolous French girl under 
 
LINEAMENTS OF MAKIE'S POETRAIT. 165 
 
 the name of "Julia K. D'Orsay ;" as a young convert 
 to the religion of the Bible, half instructed and earn- 
 est as " Lucy Grantham Gardiner ;" or as the lively 
 "Elizabeth" of Cromwell Terrace, she maintained 
 throughout the character she assumed. The letters 
 she wrote did in each instance impose on those for 
 whom they were written, and the talent of the writer 
 was proved by her success. 
 
 The ingenuity of her fictions, even in matters of 
 comparatively trifling detail, was most extraordinary. 
 The reader has already had opportunities of remarkfhg 
 this feature, and as an illustration in point, one addi- 
 tional incident may suffice. 
 
 On one occasion, before leaving Mr. Spalding's 
 family, Marie requested a holiday, and permission to 
 remain absent till the next morning. She had, she 
 said, received a letter from Mrs. Luke, conveying an 
 invitation to dine at the Hon. Arthur Kinnaird's. 
 The Duke of Argyle was to be there, and he wished 
 to see her before consenting to write a preface to her 
 book. She was to go to Mrs. Luke's afterwards, as it 
 would be too late to return that night. Permission 
 was given. She went, and returned to Kentish Town 
 the next day. SKe described the dinner, the company, 
 the dresses ; but above all, the courteous manner and 
 Christian deportment of the Duke. She particularized 
 the way in which she was introduced, and the words 
 which passed ; and how, having led her to a seat, he 
 entered into conversation respecting her former life, 
 and all the subjects in which she was most deeply in- 
 terested, and soon made her feel as much at her ease as 
 if her rank and intelligence had been equal to his own. 
 
166 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 As may be supposed, she had never been to Mrs. 
 Kinnaird's, nor had she met the Duke of Argyle, nor 
 had he received any application to write a preface for 
 her book. She had not even been to Mr. Luke's 
 house. How she disposed of herself during that in- 
 terval, is unknown to this day. 
 
 The way in which, by petty slanders and insinua- 
 tions so far founded on truth as to bear the impress 
 of credibility, and of just such a nature as would be 
 particularly repellent to the feelings of the opposite 
 party, she could keep at a distance individuals whose 
 proximity might have led to her detection — was match- 
 less in skill as in wickedness, though examples of this 
 practice would be too lengthy and too personal to re- 
 cord. The way in which, as in the case of Mrs. Eix 
 and her female visitor (see page 142), she could play 
 off one person against another, and bring two indi- 
 viduals, both her dupes, and to whom she told op- 
 posite stories, into the same room, and not only avoid 
 detection, but make them carry out her own ends, is 
 surely unrivalled. 
 
 Equally well could she feign the passion which her 
 late friends have as yet obtained no evidence that she 
 ever really felt. Her references to the imaginary 
 " Wynne," in Mrs. Jobson's letters, though brief and 
 suited to the character she assumed, as well as to the 
 party whom she addressed, are full of meaning, and in- 
 tended to indicate a struggle of no ordinary kind. 
 Her engagement with "Eustace" extended over a 
 much longer period, and was conducted in altogether 
 a different style. And a third variety, an affair of the 
 heart which she confided to Mrs. Luke while at Crom- 
 
LINEAMENTS OP MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 167 
 
 well Terrace, was managed with so much ingenuity 
 as to afford a striking illustration of her mode of 
 acting. 
 
 With much hesitation, and at different intervals, 
 she communicated to Mrs. Luke that during her holi- 
 days in 1849, she had seen much of a family known 
 to both. That one of the sons had paid her attentions 
 which she could not misunderstand, and that his 
 mother had given her frequent hints not less intelligi- 
 ble. That his amount of information and intelligence, 
 his filial deportment, his agreeable manners, and his 
 preference for herself, had made an impression far too 
 deep for her own peace ; and an ample income, equal 
 to all her wishes, added strength to the temptation. 
 Fresh from the nunnery, where she had lived in entire 
 ignorance of such emotions, " it was her first attach- 
 ment," and therefore the more difficult to surmount ! 
 The absence of any pretensions to elevated birth on 
 the part of the young man, would, however, in her 
 uncle's view be an insurmountable obstacle to his 
 union with one who had sprung from so old and dis- 
 tinguished a family as the Cliffords ; and his religious 
 principles, not being in her view sufficiently decided, 
 she considered it her duty to reject his overtures, and 
 put an extinguisher on the tender flame which had 
 been kindled in her own heart. The young man went 
 abroad, and despite her heroic resolves, her thoughts 
 often wandered after him. Months passed, and illness 
 followed. One evening, at the period when the " chest 
 symptoms" had alarmingly progressed, on the return 
 of Mrs. Luke from some service at the chapel, Marie 
 called her into the room, closed the door, and in an 
 
168 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 apparently distressed and excited state began as fol- 
 lows: — 
 
 " Oh ! Mrs. Luke, I have had a letter from Mrs. 
 
 . She says that her son is much distressed about 
 
 my illness, and that he is going to write to me !" 
 
 " Well, why should you be alarmed at that ?" 
 
 " Oh ! she makes it quite plain what he is going to 
 write to me about, and I am afraid he will be coming 
 over before there is time to prevent it. I have been 
 so agitated ever since the note came. Do tell me what 
 I can do." 
 
 Mrs. Luke suggested, that in all. probability Mrs. 
 
 would wait her reply before writing again to her 
 
 son, and that there would be time to prevent his com- 
 ing, and gently to discourage any correspondence be- 
 fore it went farther. 
 
 " But what can I say ? I never had anything of the 
 sort beforei I have not the least idea what kind of 
 letter to write. Do tell me," pursued Marie. " I can- 
 not misunderstand her letter : it is impossible : and 
 yet she has been so kind to me, I can't bear to offend 
 her." 
 
 Mrs. L. recommended her to postpone a matter re- 
 quiring so much consideration till the next day, merely 
 suggesting that it would be easy to decline the corres- 
 pondence on the score of her failing health. 
 
 That night Marie ruptured a blood-vessel, the result 
 doubtless of a renewed reference to so agitating a sub- 
 ject. The next day, propped up with pillows, she 
 
 must write to Mrs. , and she entreated Mrs. Luke 
 
 to take compassion on her ignorance and simplicity, 
 and tell her what to say. It was her wish to be very 
 
LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S POETEAIT. 169 
 
 decided, and yet not to seem to understand so fully as 
 she really did, lest she should give pain. Mrs. Luke 
 recommended her to write on ordinary topics first, and 
 bring in the principal subject incidentally. She wrote 
 accordingly, and having filled nearly two sheets, again 
 turned to Mrs. Luke, and begged to be told the very 
 words. Thus urged, the latter dictated a paragraph 
 to the following effect t — 
 
 "I feel most grateful to yourself and Mr. (the 
 
 gentleman in question) and to all your kind circle for 
 their interest and sympathy, and beg you to assure 
 them how much I feel indebted to them all. I do not, 
 
 however, wish Mr." to write to me, for though he 
 
 might intend it merely as a friend, I am afraid of 
 having any other thoughts or feelings suggested to my 
 own mind beyond those which ought to occupy me in 
 my present state of health. You are aware, dear Mrs. 
 
 , how very uncertain my life is, and how little 
 
 prospect I have of its extension for any lengthened 
 period, and will I am sure forgive this frankness." 
 
 Mrs. L. thought this quite sufficient, and that Marie 
 might revert to other subjects. The letter was finish- 
 ed, sealed, and directed, and nothing more was said 
 of the matter till she was again able to go out ; and 
 knowing that she should meet Mrs. , she ex- 
 pressed her fear lest this kind friend should meet her 
 
 less cordially than formerly. They met. Mrs. 
 
 spoke kindly as usual, but Marie cast her eyes down, 
 and lost her fluency, and Mrs. Luke took up the con- 
 versation to relieve her embarrassment. Marie after- 
 wards expressed her pleasure at the unchanged" man- 
 ner of her former friend. After her departure from 
 
170 LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 Cromwell Terrace, it was ascertained that Mrs. ■ • 
 
 had never written such a letter to Marie; that her son 
 had never felt the slightest interest in her ; and that 
 Marie's reply never went. She, indeed, wrote a letter 
 to Mrs. — — , but it was one of an altogether different 
 character. The pretended attachment and discourage- 
 ment were only a scheme to increase the sympathy 
 of her protectors, and to deepen their confidence in 
 her strength of principle. 
 
 The whole range of her fictions tended to self-ag- 
 grandizement. Her birth, though never allied to no- 
 bility, or fixed beyond the bounds of credibility, was 
 always of some good family ; her lovers, her delicate 
 health, her property, accomplishments, ardor and 
 generosity of disposition, all tended to advance her 
 own importance, and to concentrate attention upon 
 herself. 
 
 It must be observed, that all those qualities in whieh 
 she professed to excel, were the opposites of her true 
 character. The apparent artlessness which she as- 
 sumed, proved to be consummate art : the affection 
 and gratitude to which she laid special claim, were 
 qualities of which it does not appear that she possess- 
 ed a particle : of the intense filial affection which she 
 at all times put forward as a prominent characteristic, 
 there is sad evidence that she was altogether destitute : 
 she feigned excitability, though in her own proper 
 character she was cool and self-possessed almost be- 
 yond belief: she affected to be careless and thoughtless, 
 while better acquaintance has proved that this was to 
 disguise her care and craft : and she assumed the mask 
 of extreme generosity and kindness of disposition, 
 
LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S PORTRAIT. 171 
 
 when her heartlessness and selfishness were painful to 
 a degree. 
 
 In proof of the last assertion, one instance only need 
 be adduced. It may be remembered that in " The 
 Female Jesuit," mention is made of a servant out of 
 place and out of health, whom it was supposed that 
 Marie had embarrassed herself to support. She in- 
 duced this poor girl to leave the neighborhood of her 
 former friends and take a lodging near her, speaking 
 largely of what she would do for her when her uncle 
 came. She intimated to her friends at Cromwell 
 Terrace, that she had given this poor girl from three 
 to four shillings a week out of her own purse, and 
 while she led them to admire her generosity, prevent- 
 ed the exercise of their benevolence. On the other 
 
 hand, she told Eliza that her former friends in 
 
 Kentish Town had taken a dislike to her, and had re- 
 fused to aid her, thus adding a keener pang to the 
 near anticipation of absolute want. 
 
 Happily and unexpectedly, when on the verge of 
 
 starvation, Eliza obtained a situation in a family, 
 
 and not till after the publication of " The Female Jes- 
 uit," was it known that Marie had never given her 
 anything from her own resources ; that she had never 
 paid her for a large quantity of needlework done to 
 her order, and that of nearly £2 intrusted to her by 
 Eliza's former friends, she had given her one solitary 
 sixpence. 
 
 Falsehood and deception were by no means the only 
 dark features in Marie's character, though the former 
 were more strongly indicated than any or than all be- 
 sides. Of her surpassing skill in her hateful art, it 
 
172 LINEAMENTS OP MAKIE'S PORTRAIT. 
 
 need only be cited, in conclusion, that she was equally 
 successful in practising upon doctors and lawyers, 
 tradesmen and professors, benevolent ladies and astute 
 men of business, Protestant divines and Eoman Cath- 
 olic priests, and almost every imaginable class of so- 
 ciety, from the simple servant girl up to the wily 
 Cardinal. 
 
 Other impostors may have shown equal skill in 
 some one plot, with one object in view ; but taken as 
 a whole, acting as she did under, the immediate roofs 
 and daily observation of her victims, shifting about 
 into classes of the community of opposite habits and 
 sentiments, and adapting herself with equal facility to 
 all, it must surely be admitted, that such a character 
 never before appeared, and that 'she is emphatically 
 " her own parallel." 
 
 A considerable amount of misplaced sympathy has 
 in some quarters been bestowed on Marie, to be traced 
 chiefly to the advantage of her age, sex, and personal 
 appearance. Far be it from us to forbid the extension 
 of Christian compassion to her, in common with all 
 the guilty and the wretched. All that we protest 
 against is, the exercise of any peculiar sympathy to- 
 wards her, on account of her personal attractions. 
 She who has robbed the poor, has slandered some of 
 her best benefactors, and has brought her mother to 
 the grave, possesses little claim to such sympathy. 
 Satan, when transformed into an angel of light, is 
 Satan still ; and no measure of personal beauty should 
 lessen our disgust at the ugliness of sin. 
 
 Still less ought any admiration of her talent in 
 her hateful art, to diminish the horror and loathing 
 
LINEAMENTS OF MARIE'S POBTBAIT. 173 
 
 which, such falsehood should inspire. Strange was it 
 to hear that the judge at her trial, complimented her 
 on her ability. Stranger still, that one young man, 
 morally and religiously educated, should have been so 
 fascinated by her talent, as to say that he should like 
 her for a wife I 
 
 Nor must it be forgotten, that she did not show 
 equal ability in other departments. Though vanity 
 and self-interest equally prompted her to the attain- 
 ment of various female accomplishments, and she 
 took lessons in them, it, was with little success. She 
 made scarcely any progress in music, French or Ger- 
 man, and never finished reading a book requiring 
 thought. She might, indeed, have succeeded in these, 
 but she wanted the power to apply. Her mind was 
 occupied elsewhere. Her abilities were not much 
 above the average; but her attention and energies 
 were all concentrated on one infamous pursuit, and 
 so far she is an instance of what the whole devotion 
 of the mind to one chosen object may, without any 
 extraordinary mental powers, accomplish. 
 
GEAPTER XXL 
 
 PUBLIC INCREDULITY. 
 
 Familiar with all the details contained in " The 
 Female Jesuit," and aware that they could be well at- 
 tested by a large circle of friends, the family whom 
 she had deceived, were unprepared for the measure of 
 incredulity with which the book was received. From 
 booksellers and librarians in town and country, they 
 heard but one statement, that the work was every- 
 where regarded as a fiction, and that not one in ten 
 received it as a narrative of facts. Seldom, without, 
 the knowledge of the parties, has the story obtained 
 credence, yet never, perhaps, was a narrative penned 
 with more scrupulous attention to truth than in this 
 instance. Destitute of many of the usual character- 
 istics of a fictitious tale, having neither the plot nor 
 the point, the commencement nor the conclusion, of 
 the finished novel ; and crowded with circumstances, 
 which, apart from their truth, would have possessed 
 but little interest, it was imagined that internal evi- 
 dence would have enabled the reader to credit the 
 assertion of the preface, that the whole narrative was 
 strictly and literally true. 
 
 Many courteous letters of inquiry from strangers 
 have reached the persons interested, of which the fol- 
 
PUBLIC INCREDULITY. 175 
 
 lowing are specimens. The first is from a much re- 
 spected member of the Society of Friends. 
 
 " S. M. presents her respects to Mrs. L., and begs to 
 apologize for the liberty she has taken in addressing her, but 
 she has, with her family, taken great interest in a book, the 
 veracity of which they themselves do not doubt, entitled 
 ' The Female Jesuit ; or, The Spy in the Family.' Many 
 of their friends, .however, 'cannot be convinced of the truth 
 of the narrative ; and hearing that Mrs. L. is the authoress, 
 she is anxious- to ascertain from herself whether the history 
 of Marie L. G.'s deception is a true one. She would not 
 trouble Mrs. L., but she is anxious to remove any doubts 
 from the minds. of her friends, and to convince them that 
 the deception is possible. If Mrs. L. would only favor her 
 with one line in reply, she would feel very much obliged ; 
 and she trusts to her kindness to excuse a somewhat unrea- 
 sonable and singular request." 
 
 . The only name and. address given in, " The Female 
 Jesuit" was that of Messrs. Cameron and Viall. The 
 following letter was addressed to them : — 
 
 " Oct. 22d, 1861. 
 
 "Sirs, 
 
 " I trust you will pardon the liberty I take in re- 
 questing your kindness to inform me- if the remarkable work 
 lately published — ' The Female Jesuit ; or, the Spy in the 
 Family,' is true. I am most anxious to ascertain it ; and as the 
 parties concerned only give their initials, I am inclined to 
 inquire of you, your names being mentioned in the book. If 
 it is allowable to ask any farther questions, I am very de- 
 sirous to know the real name of Mr. L , and the church 
 
 in which he officiates ; but I shall be contented simply to be 
 informed that the book is genuine, doubts having been 
 thrown upon it. 
 
176 PUBLIC INCREDULITY. 
 
 " With many apologies for the trouble an entire stranger 
 is giving, &e. 
 
 " To Messrs. Cameron and Viall, 
 " 50, Oxford Street." 
 
 The annexed was addressed to the author through 
 
 the publisher. 
 
 " Jan. 3d, 1852. 
 
 " Mrs. M. presents her compliments to the editor of 
 
 ' The Female Jesuit,' and having taken much interest in its 
 
 perusal, ventures to trouble the editor by inquiring for some 
 
 references as to tracing the truth of the story. Not to 
 
 satisfy Mrs. M., as she cannot doubt the editor's assertion 
 
 of his tale being ' literally true,' but to satisfy several of her 
 
 friends who do not believe that such events could have taken 
 
 place." 
 
 So frequently have anecdotes in proof of this gene- 
 ral skepticism entertained the family circle, that it has 
 become an every-day occurrence, and they have never 
 thought of recording what might by this time have 
 furnished an amusing list of incidents. Among the 
 circumstances still fresh in their recollection, is one 
 communicated by Mrs. Praed, whose misfortune in 
 the matter of the wax head is mentioned in the former 
 volume. Having removed from Westbourne Green to 
 Eichmond Eoad, Westbourne Grove, she one day re- 
 ceived a call from a lady who had with some difficulty 
 sought her out. This lady resided in the country, 
 and had come to that neighborhood, as Mrs. P. under- 
 stood, for the sole purpose of ascertaining the truth of " 
 "The Female Jesuit," the interest in her mind being 
 so intense that she could not rest without being satis- 
 fied. " The Lock Chapel" and " C Terrace" fur- 
 
PUBLIC INCREDULITY. 177 
 
 nished a guide to the neighborhood, and Mrs. P.'s 
 initials with a clue to an individual. Mrs. Praed 
 turned to her book, and showed the lady the entry of 
 Marie's debts, and the receipt from an Italian artiste for 
 the remodelling of the identical wax head, and fur- 
 nished the lady with many additional particulars re- 
 specting the object of her inquiry. Fully convinced, 
 and well pleased that her journey had not been in 
 vain, the visitor said that she should now return to 
 her country home, and assure all the doubters in that 
 neighborhood that the tale was true. 
 
 On the first appearance of the book, Mrs. Luke sent 
 a copy to a well-known and admired writer of the 
 present day, reiterating in an accompanying note the 
 assurance of its truth. He did not acknowledge the 
 receipt of the volume, and the information has recent- 
 ly been supplied that he threw it aside as a made-up 
 tale. That one himself so distinguished as a writer 
 of fiction, could not discriminate between truth and 
 fancy in this case, must be regarded as a singular evi- 
 dence of the marvellous character of the heroine and 
 of her plots. Some eight months afterwards, his sister 
 received from Bonn, a letter confirmatory of the en- 
 tire story, and adding a new chapter to the whole. 
 The sister rose from her seat, and with the open 
 letter in hand, one step took her to her brother's 
 
 study. " C , it is true !" she exclaimed ; and read 
 
 what her letter contained. "Then we will read it 
 again," he said: and with altered impressions they 
 took up the book, while he desired his sister to write 
 again to her correspondent, and obtain all the new 
 particulars of which she was in possession. 
 
178 PUBLIC INCREDULITY. 
 
 To satisfy the public and to vindicate themselves 
 from the suspicion of falsehood, the names have been 
 given in the present sequel. To authenticate the 
 facts, strange and romantic as they may have appear- 
 ed, is easy ; but to come to any definite and satisfac- 
 tory conclusion respecting the extraordinary character 
 to whom they refer, is in some points of view almost 
 as difficult as before. 
 
CHAPTBE XXII. 
 
 IS SHE A JESUIT? 
 
 Farther acquaintance with Marie's early history 
 has removed the impression which her unaccountable 
 stratagems had conveyed, and which appear to her 
 friends to admit of no other solution than the one 
 which they offered — that she was connected with the 
 Jesuits. Her early propensity for trickery, her man- 
 agement of all her tricks alone and unaided, her al- 
 ternate profession of Popery and Protestantism, as 
 her own convenience dictated, her imposition upon 
 Eoman Catholics, and above all upon Cardinal Wise- 
 man himself, have convinced her former friends that 
 this theory cannot be sustained, and they feel bound 
 in all frankness to avow their altered convictions. 
 Truth can never be sustained upon false premises, and 
 they would be the last to wish to be guilty of unfair- 
 ness even to the Jesuits. 
 
 It must be borne in mind, however, by those who 
 object to the title of " The Female Jesuit," that it was 
 one which Marie had herself adopted. She stated that 
 she had come from a society of Female Jesuits, and 
 that she had been one of them ; and however incorrect 
 the theory founded on her statement may have been, 
 in the conventional use of the term, as an embodiment 
 
180 IS SHE A JESUIT? 
 
 of the spirit of intrigue, none can even now deny its 
 appropriaten ess. 
 
 And while yielding — cheerfully and unhesitatingly 
 yielding — all that truth demands, they feel the more 
 anxious to concede nothing beyond the truth. They 
 would not for one instant countenance the conclusion 
 that "because Marie may be no Jesuit," "therefore 
 there are no female Jesuits." The employment of 
 female agency by the Jesuits is a fact of far more im- 
 portance to the public than Marie's individual case ; 
 and it has been in the face of much difficulty, and with 
 no little pains and effort, that the statements of Mi- 
 chelet and Liguori on this point have been investigated 
 and substantiated. 
 
 How far Marie's descriptions of the " Faithful Com- 
 panions of Jesus" are correct, has been but partially 
 ascertained. She described them, not as connected 
 with the " Society of Jesus," but rather as being them- 
 selves a Society of Female Jesuits, instituted in imi- 
 tation of the original order, for similar objects, and 
 with a constitution and mechanism essentially the 
 same. The circumstances which Marie adduced in 
 illustration of this similarity, have, on inquiry, been 
 confirmed in several important particulars ; and false 
 as her assertions in regard to her own history have 
 proved, no discrepancy has as yet been detected in her 
 general statements respecting the Order with which 
 she was for a short time associated. 
 
 A friend acquainted with two ladies who joined 
 that Order, and who had successively resided in the 
 convents of Amiens, Isleworth and Liverpool, has 
 elicited the following facts, confirmatory of Marie's 
 
IS SHE A JESUIT? 181 
 
 statements. One of these ladies was, after two years' 
 residence, rejected, because she failed in obedience to 
 the Keverend Mother ; the other is now a professed 
 nun. 
 
 "There is a boarding school connected with the 
 convents, and the nuns being occupied in teaching, 
 their time is not so exclusively given up to devotional 
 exercises as among some other religieuses." Compare 
 this with Marie's statement in " The Female Jesuit," 
 p. 19. 
 
 " It is customary to remove the members suddenly, 
 and without any consultation of their feelings, to an- 
 other convent of the same Order." — p. 18, 95. 
 
 " You may rest fully assured of the implicit obedi- 
 ence enjoined in this Order, as well as of the custom 
 .of removi ng the inmates in utter disregard of their own 
 personal wish. In fact, that they did not desire it 
 would rather be an inducement than otherwise." — p. 
 19, 64. 
 
 " Neither are they allowed to form any attachment 
 in the convent. If it were noticed that two nuns ev- 
 idenced any special friendship for each other, this 
 would be considered an occasion for the removal of 
 one of them. This is 'mortification,' ' penance,' 'obe- 
 dience.' "—p. 19. 
 
 "They rise at five in the morning, and the first 
 half-hour is spent silently in a darkened room. This is 
 called ' meditation.' Their patron-saint is Saint Aloy- 
 sius, a young Jesuit, who was noted for his extreme 
 sanctity, and died during his novitiate." — See p. 87. 
 
 " I venture to express a hope," concludes the intelli- 
 gent writer of the letter from which these passages 
 
182 IS SHE A JESUIT? 
 
 are extracted, " that you will not be prevailed upon 
 to publish any doubt as to the correctness of Marie's 
 statements respecting ' the Faithful Companions of 
 Jesus.' I believe them to be perfectly true, espeoially 
 as it regards ' the implicit obedience required,' ' the 
 check put upon the natural feelings, &c, &c.' " 
 
 Surely it was not without reason that Marie insti- 
 tuted a comparison between this system and that of 
 Ignatius Loyola. 
 
 The verification of Marie's statements regarding 
 this particular Order has not been considered a point 
 of so much importance, as the discovery of how far 
 other Orders of nuns and other classes of female so- 
 ciety, are under the control or guidance of the Jesuits. 
 
 The assertion of Michelet, as quoted in the former 
 volume, is, that "Loyola's law, forbidding the em- 
 ployment of female agency, has been expressly rer 
 pealed, and that some Orders of nuns are available 
 for Jesuit purposes." The ladies of the Order of the 
 " Sacre - Coeur, in particular, are ' said to be' not only 
 directed and governed by the Jesuits, but, since 1823, 
 to have had the same rules." 
 
 In support of the correctness of this assertion, the 
 following communication has been received from one 
 formerly high in office in the Eoman Catholic Church. 
 
 " I believe Michelet to be a wfell-informed and truth- 
 ful writer. The Jesuits, with the art they possess of 
 working secretly, manage to conceal the connection 
 they have with institutions of sisters, and therefore 
 deny that the many institutions founded by them, have 
 anything to do with their Order. It should be known, 
 that wherever the Jesuits are able to carry on their 
 
IS SHE A JESUIT? 183 
 
 work themselves these institutions do not exist, or are 
 of little importance ; as is the case in Italy, where the 
 greater number of these female establishments are not 
 known. The Sisters of Charity, for example, who are 
 found in several cities of Italy, have little to do with 
 the Jesuits ; and in some parts of that country may be 
 found some who are opposed to the Jesuits. It is 
 well known that their Order was founded by Vincenzo 
 di Paoli, who was not a Jesuit at all. 
 
 " But out of Italy, I know that different Orders of 
 Sisters are in league with the Jesuits, who direct their 
 movements, and employ them as agents and spies. 
 The Sisters of 'the Holy Heart,' those of ' the Infant 
 Jesus,' and ' the Faithful Companions of Jesus,' are all 
 institutions of Jesuits, under their orders, verbal or 
 written, and so faithful and attached to the society 
 that they offer themselves for any service whatever, 
 and are ready to make any sacrifice. They receive 
 secret instructions, 'Secreta Monita,' which are not 
 made known to the whole sisterhood ; and those who 
 are acquainted with them cannot reveal them even to 
 their spiritual director, if he be not a Jesuit. 
 
 "I may here repeat that in Italy, excepting the 
 ' Sisters of Charity,' and of ' the Sacred Heart,' Orders 
 of females either do not exist or are unknown. 'But 
 instead of them, there are in the Eoman States Maestri 
 Pie, an Order of Sisters, founded in the time when the 
 Jesuits were yet suppressed. 'These take upon them- 
 selves the education of the young. These are appa- 
 rently directed by the priests and bishops, but secretly 
 as well by the Jesuits. There are also in Italy, several 
 societies of ladies called by various names, such as 
 
184 IS SHE A JESUIT* 
 
 'L'Oratorio del Caravita' in Eome, the 'Pia Unione' 
 in Naples, &c., the object of which is to hold meetings-, 
 at least once a month, among the Jesuits, in order to 
 discuss spiritual matters. It is incredible how devoted 
 the ladies attending these meetings become to the 
 Jesuits, bestow their riches upon them, and do all they 
 desire. In these meetings, marriages are arranged or 
 broken off, wills are prepared, &c. It is certain that 
 the Jesuits, in order to obtain "their end, and to win 
 the affections of persons, particularly of ladies, dex- 
 terously second their desires, even so far as to become 
 mediators in cases of broken-off friendships. It is 
 difficult for a woman who has received the education 
 of a bigot, not to be attached to the sweet and spiritual 
 manner of the Jesuits. 
 
 " I know that there are many Jesuitesses in England, 
 especially among French governesses, and this is one 
 of the branches of the Mission of the Propaganda of 
 Eome. The Sisters of ' the Infant Jesus,' and ' the 
 Faithful Companions of Jesus,' are to be regarded as 
 Jesuits. Unhappily, when I hear the blessed name 
 of Jesus given as a title to any Eoman Catholic insti- 
 tution, I am assured that it is a Jesuit work." 
 
 And lest the testimony of a convert to Protestantism 
 should be disputed, it may be stated in conclusion, 
 from incontrovertible evidence, on high Jesuit authority, 
 that there are " Confraternities 1 '' of ladies of various ages 
 and ranks in society, directed by the Jesuit fathers, and 
 extending themselves over the United Kingdom ; and that 
 there are also various convents under the direction of the 
 Jesuits scattered over the country. It may be mentioned, 
 for example, that the ladies of New Hall in Essex, of 
 
IS SHE A JESUIT? 185 
 
 the Order of " the Infant Jesus," have a Jesuit superior ; 
 and how far this is the case with all others of the. same 
 Order, as well as with " the laithful Companions," 
 and "the Sacred Heart," we leave to the public to 
 ascertain. The fact alone is stated. It takes few 
 words to utter, but it involves much, and is prophetic 
 of more. If Jesuits alone have, at different intervals, 
 deranged the constitution of society, what may they 
 not do when aided by influential and well-organized 
 female agency ? Let not our countrymen deem the 
 subject unworthy of their investigation. 
 
CHAPTER XXTTI. 
 
 WHAT IS SHE? 
 
 To this question it is difficult even now to give a 
 decided and satisfactory answer, having to consider a 
 case which, as far as we know, has had no parallel, 
 and to which no ordinary rules can be applied. Many 
 opinions have been expressed in correspondence, and 
 from these, before offering any additional remarks, we 
 select three. The first is from an eminent minister 
 of the Free Church of Scotland. 
 
 " The character and motives of this Marie are cer- 
 tainly a puzzle. I do not think, however, that her 
 tricks were intended directly to promote the objects of 
 Jesuits. I am rather inclined to count it a case of 
 idiosyncrasy peculiar to the person. There are per- 
 sons with a great deal of wit and ingenuity, altogether 
 destitute of skill, who cannot live without having their 
 wits exercised. You remark that she could gain her 
 livelihood by teaching with less labor and no danger. 
 But I think that does not prove the existence of a 
 Jesuit object. Two boys have a journey of a few 
 miles to perform under the direction of a nurse. They 
 leap into a ditch here, and over a wall there, and climb 
 a tree yonder. The nurse lectures, and proves that 
 they can more easily accomplish the journey by walk- 
 
WHAT IS SHE? 187 
 
 ing along the road as she does. True, but the boys 
 have light heels, and elastic muscles, and they take a 
 pleasure in having them exercised. I have known a 
 man, a common laborer, who told stories to his com- 
 panions every day, all his life ; all lies ; utterly use- 
 less to himself: but he liked the exhilaration of the 
 chase, although he caught nothing. However there 
 are two suppositions, on either of which it is possible 
 that the conduct of Marie was indirectly a result of 
 Jesuitism. First, discipline, acquiring and proving the 
 capacity for some difficult mission at another time ; 
 or, secondly, it might be done in order to produce a 
 case of Protestants being deceived by lying stories 
 about an escaped nun, and to throw discredit on the 
 cases that are real." 
 
 A valued and beloved friend of Mr. Luke's, also in 
 the ministry, after describing the excitement which 
 the book has occasioned in his family, writes, " Every- 
 body in our house has a separate theory. Mine is that 
 the whole springs from a Gigantic Egotism, which 
 could not live without being. the object of attention, 
 interest, and sympathy ; which would set fire to houses, 
 bleed with leeches, write folios all about her mental 
 peculiarities and pecuniary prospects, in order to be- 
 come the object of attention, which she would not 
 divide with an innocent child." 
 
 The third is from a lady of title and high intelli- 
 gence, who wrote as a stranger. " I have just, finished 
 reading 'The Female Jesuit,' which interested me 
 much. On relating the outline and chief incidents of 
 the work to my husband, he at once suggested an ex- 
 planation of the entire phenomena, which so greatly 
 
188 WHAT IS SHE? 
 
 puzzled and distressed you, namely, that the whole 
 deception was suggested and carried through by Marie 
 under the influence of ' Simulative Hysteria,' and not 
 at the bidding of the Jesuits or of any other persons. 
 
 " I have seen some very singular cases of this dis- 
 ease, in which a course of deception nearly as extra- 
 ordinary has been carried on for a series of years, to 
 the great delight of the person practising it, and the 
 mystification, grief, and misery of others ; and this not 
 alone in the educated and intellectual, but in the igno- 
 rant and apparently half-witted. 
 
 " A case in which stealing and an inordinate appe- 
 tite for dry grain, such as sago, &c, came not long 
 since under my notice. In this the actress was a maid 
 of all work, and wrote most romantic letters, well ex- 
 pressed and spelt. She stole books from her employ- 
 ers, and wrote long inscriptions in them, as if they had 
 been presented to her by various persons. Though 
 barely sixteen, she had a lover with whom she corres- 
 ponded, and whom she induced to steal postage stamps 
 and paper from his employer. She had been brought 
 up in a Sunday-school, and had a remarkable knowl- 
 edge of Scripture, and great readiness in replying to 
 questions on religious subjects. Many persons who 
 saw her remarked, what a consummate actress she 
 would make. 
 
 "I might fill a volume with cases which I have 
 either seen, or of which I have had intimate knowledge 
 through others, in which spasmodic action of various 
 kinds, vomiting of blood, St. Vitus's dance, hydropho- 
 bia, blindness, inability to walk, and other deceptions, 
 have been carried on during months, or even years, so 
 
WHAT IS SHE? 189 
 
 as even to deceive skilful surgeons and physicians. 
 Persons possessing these tendencies are often seized 
 upon by mesmerists, either as accomplices in clairvoy- 
 ance, &c, or to show the curative powers of mesme- 
 rism. 
 
 " Persons under the influence of simulative hysteria, 
 feel none of the loneliness and isolation in the carrying 
 out of their plots, which a natural state of mind would 
 induce in one who was simply deceiving for an object. 
 In the midst of the family circle they are alone, yet 
 not lonely. They will go on, year after year, carrying 
 on plot after plot, and intrigue after intrigue, passing 
 from hospital to hospital, if poor, or from house to 
 house ; ever acting, and ever pleased with their own 
 success in mystifying others ; professing to love or to 
 hate as it suits them, going through the most horrible 
 operations, tortures, degradation, — and all for no ap- 
 parent end but their own gratification." 
 
 These extracts will suffice as specimens of the cor- 
 respondence to which Marie's story has given rise. It 
 is not possible to record the varied opinions, and shades 
 of opinion, which her case has elicited. Men of busi- 
 ness pronounce her a swindler ; medical men look 
 upon it as an instance of " simulative hysteria ;" liter- 
 ary men as an example of idiosyncrasy or monomania ; 
 many of the clergy believe her to be a Jesuit still ; 
 some pious persons consider it a case of Satanic pos- 
 session ; and it is interesting to observe how the track 
 of thought which each class has been accustomed to 
 pursue, directs or modifies the decision of Marie's 
 case. 
 
 No one theory appears to meet all the difficulties 
 
190 WHAT IS SHE? 
 
 of the subject. That she was a mere swindler, driven 
 to this course for a home and a livelihood, is dis- 
 proved by the double fact that she had a comfort- 
 able home with her aunt, and that she did not make 
 the most of her advantages in defrauding others, when 
 ample opportunities were presented. 
 
 Neither, if an unprofessional person may be allowed 
 to venture an opinion, does the theory of hysteria 
 meet all the complexities of the case. There was no 
 evidence of hysteric disease in the usual collateral 
 symptoms. She never in any one instance, according 
 to the vulgar phrase, " went into hysterics ;" and the 
 few artificial sobs which she called up on the occasion 
 of her aunt's pretended death, were not worthy of 
 being called hysterical. 
 
 The supposition of idiosyncrasy, closely allied to the 
 hysteric hypothesis, does not in all respects tally with 
 Marie's case ; for though there is one propensity strong- 
 er than all besides, there are other indications stand- 
 ing out also in bold relief which do not permit the one 
 propensity alone to account for all her movements. 
 Her selfishness, vanity, egotism, ingratitude, revenge, 
 and destitution of all natural affection, are painfully 
 distinct. Nor has she yet brought herself to that 
 pitch at which she would come to believe her own 
 fancies, or succeeded in utterly silencing the voice of 
 conscience, or ceased to be responsible for her actions. 
 The burning blush of shame has been seen to cover 
 her cheek when detected in an evasion ; no one has a 
 clearer perception of what is right and wrong than 
 she has ; and no one can answer more truthfully, when 
 she finds it will not answer her purpose to tell lies. 
 
WHAT IS SHE? 191 
 
 These indications call for some other explanation of 
 her case than that of single-featured madness. 
 
 That Marie had naturally a strong propensity to de- 
 ception cannot be doubted, and how far parental in- 
 fluence may have fostered rather than checked that 
 tendency, has not been fully ascertained. The most 
 simple explanation which we can attempt to offer is, 
 that hers is a wicked propensity, to which habitual 
 indulgence has added perpetually increasing strength, 
 and which has been not only unchecked, but exulted 
 and rioted in, till it has brought her to the verge of 
 madness. 
 
 That there is moral as well as mental madness, per- 
 haps none will dispute. When the drunkard, sur- 
 rounded by his starving family, and with all the hor- 
 rors of " delirium tremens" thick about him, knowing 
 that he is hastening to a madhouse or a grave, still 
 grasps the fatal cup and carries it eagerly to his lips, 
 who will deny that it is moral madness ? When any 
 dominant passion to which the accumulated force of 
 long-indulged habit has given uncontrollable power, 
 holds its infatuated victim under its sway, in defiance 
 of all considerations of self-interest, it is moral mad- 
 ness. 
 
 Seldom, in this world, do we see so full an illustra- 
 tion of the influence of reiterated acts in forming the 
 character, for seldom is the guilty perpetrator of a 
 series of wicked acts allowed to continue his course so 
 long unchecked. The thief speedily finds himself in 
 prison, or, involving himself in violence, comes to an 
 untimely end ; — the ambitious man is soon buried 
 beneath the falling ruins of his lofty schemes ; and 
 
192 WHAT IS SHE? 
 
 the drunkard dies a martyr to self-indulgence ; but, 
 in this case, we see the result of twenty years' indul- 
 gence in one besetting sin, and can better form an idea 
 of that depth of wickedness, in which lost spirits, for- 
 ever sinning, must forever sink ; or, to look on the 
 brighter side, of that confirmation in holiness, that 
 progress " from glory to glory," which follows its con- 
 stant exercise in the pure spirits above ! 
 
 That Marie has, to an unexampled extent, trifled 
 with religion, renders it the more easy to understand 
 the overpowering mastery which her sinful propen- 
 sity has obtained. Not only has she refused to call in 
 that assistance which aloae could have been sufficient 
 to aid her, but she has turned it into a mockery, 
 and courted the guidance of another spirit, by whom 
 she is now " led captive at his will." 
 
 Here we leave the task of elucidating Marie's charac- 
 ter to a more qualified hand, and are well pleased to 
 add a few concluding pages from the pen of one in 
 whom we trust the readers of these volumes will have 
 begun to share with us some little interest. 
 
 (BY THE EEV. S. LUKE.) 
 
 There is one other point of view in which the in- 
 terests of truth seem to demand that Marie's character 
 should be considered — its moral and religious aspect. 
 That she was not in the ordinary use of the term an 
 
WHAT IS SHE? 193 
 
 impostor — one simply living by her wits, and with no 
 object beyond — that money was not her object, and 
 that swindling was not her profession, is a legitimate 
 conclusion from her whole course. 
 
 The extraordinary talent evinced in her plots, and 
 especially in the composition of the feigned Uncle 
 Clifford's letters in the former volume, would alone 
 place her beyond the circle of ordinary impostors, even 
 were it admitted that her personal advantage was her 
 only motive to intrigue. The "Princess Caraboo," 
 and Miss Smith, of Earl Ferrars' notoriety, to whom 
 it has been suggested that she bears some resemblance, 
 had each a distinct object in view, to be obtained in 
 no other way. Their talent at intrigue was limited 
 to one bold and simply constructed plan ; the intrigues 
 of Marie are diversified, and often have no personal 
 advantage in view. 
 
 It is necessary then to seek for some other, if not 
 higher, yet stronger, principle of action to account for 
 her varied movements. " One, cannot fail to strike 
 every reflecting reader of her history — an intense de- 
 light in scheming. To her it was no laborious toiling 
 for bread or a home : it was a pastime, an enjoyment. 
 When other schemers would have had a brow clouded 
 by anxiety, or a face pale with fear, Marie was easy, 
 smiling, and exulting. Difficulties which would have 
 unnerved other actors, only roused her to new efforts. 
 She attempted her enterprise, not as the rider who 
 braves the fence to gain money, but as the huntsman, 
 finding amusement in his daring experiment, and 
 pleased with his own achievements. Hers was not the 
 nightly plotting of the poacher to gain his livelihood, 
 
 9 
 
194 WHAT IS SHE? 
 
 but the buoyant device of the sportsman, proud of his 
 own success. 
 
 It will be seen by the preceding chapter that phy- 
 siologists, whose inquiries are directed particularly to 
 the relations of physiology and mjnd, regard her as a 
 study: — presenting a case of ordinary occurrence, as 
 in instances of theft without the temptation of gain, 
 but carried out to a length unparalleled in their ex- 
 perience. It is not the province of a minister of re- 
 ligion to dispute or canvass the theories technically 
 described by the phrase " simulative hysteria ;" but, 
 if admitted, he sees the development of a natural law 
 wisely permitted by God, in order that man's sin may 
 bring its own punishment. 
 
 It is probable, as in the case of different passions in 
 other persons, that there was in Marie a strong ten- 
 dency to cunning and intrigue ; but she has lived in 
 the midst of knowledge and influences which ought to 
 have taught her to correct it. She has not even the 
 plea of those who have been taught from childhood, 
 "that dishonesty is innocent, and that success in it is a 
 virtue. Instead of resistance, her early passion ha3 
 been nurtured by indulgence, until its accumulative 
 strength has made it harder to resist. She has been 
 " accustomed to do evil," until she " cannot do well." 
 
 There is, however, no evidence that Marie has ever 
 yet set herself to overcome her passion. Her profes- 
 sions of repentance and resolutions of amendment have 
 not simply failed her: — they were so obviously insin- 
 cere as to insure, their failure. What, then, the phy- 
 siologist ascribes to physical temperament, the Chris- 
 tian will refer to a sinful nature ; while he attributes 
 
WHAT IS SHE? 195 
 
 its augmented power to her wilful, deliberate, and 
 lengthened indulgence. It is a law of our nature, as 
 well as a retributive law of God, that an evil passion 
 indulged shall become its own scourge, and an inter- 
 position of his mercy and grace can alone set aside 
 this consequence. The muscles of the human body 
 do not more naturally strengthen by exercise, than do 
 the tendencies of the mind strengthen by action. 
 
 But a graver question arises. How is it that the 
 religious influences with which Marie has been brought 
 in such close contact, have failed to check her? As 
 if to demonstrate the ineflicacy of religious associations 
 alone, she has proved them in the simple services of 
 Episcopalian, Wesleyan, and Independent Protestant- 
 ism, and in the more impressive forms of Eomish ritu- 
 alism, and amidst the sombre influences of the Eomish 
 confessional. It should be observed, in justice to re- 
 ligion generally, that Marie has never been under its 
 influence ; she has never been even a sincere professor. 
 Her only relations to religion have been those of con- 
 summate hypocrisy. The baptism of the chapel, and 
 the baptism of the Eomish cathedral — the conversa- 
 tions with the Protestant pastor, and the confessions 
 to the Eomish Priest — the pious utterances of her let- 
 ters, the apparent solicitude to decide the wavering or 
 to counsel the afflicted, and the frequent appeals to 
 God on detection, were all assumed and therefore un- 
 felt. No candid mind will charge her duplicity upon 
 religion. It were surely as unfair and ungenerous, to 
 attribute the acts of the swindler to the class of gen- 
 tlemen or clergy whose garb he had assumed for his 
 own base purposes. Eeligion stands clear from the 
 
196 WHAT IS SHE? 
 
 dishonor of Marie's doings, on the obvious "grounds 
 that she was a religious hypocrite. 
 
 That her religious associations failed to influence 
 her, can be easily understood. There is an opinion, 
 that to keep the mind in contact with religious truth, 
 must necesgarily restrain even where no change of 
 heart results from it. This is true, but only up to a 
 certain point. Conscience will check, though the 
 heart be unsanctified ; but when conscience itself be- 
 comes seared, even the restraints of religion lose their 
 power. Forms kept up without feeling fail to influ- 
 ence. When the mind has advanced so far as to trifle 
 with religion, a re-action takes place. The trifler 
 suffers actual deterioration in his soul. He who has 
 come to trifle with God and His truth, has broken 
 away from all restraints. Another man fears : he has 
 lost all fear, and heeds not even those unusual flashes 
 of truth which, like lightning,, appal the sinner. The 
 child trembles at the lightning's flash ; but when the 
 familiarity of the man and the philosopher has dissi- 
 pated his childish terror, although he knows more of 
 its real danger, he plays with it until it strikes him. 
 That Marie has long been a deliberate trifler with the 
 Bible, and devotion, and God, solves every mystery 
 in her unparalleled combination of vice with religious 
 associations. Her history will not be in vain, if it 
 act as a beacon-light to warn alike the trifler and 
 the hypocrite. 
 
 Makie's term of imprisonment is nearly expired, 
 and arrangements have been made, at her own request, 
 
CONCLUSION. 197 
 
 by a lady in Bonn, for her temporary admission into 
 a Convent Penitentiary. Fuller information on this 
 point will be given by Mr. C. Seager. 
 
 The conclusion of her history is hidden in the pages 
 of futurity. Imagination shrinks from the effort to 
 pry into the future destiny of this singular being. 
 Are there darker chapters yet to come, chapters which 
 few would wish to read ? Is there before her a pro- 
 longed existence of soul-consuming agony, of remorse, 
 or madness? Is she to live on as & beacon, warning 
 all of the dangerous rocks among which she has wan- 
 tonly and wilfully chosen her way ? Is she to come 
 to some fearful catastrophe, more sudden and more 
 startling? like the burning ship in its ocean loneli- 
 ness, beneath a midnight sky : and, after many a pro- 
 phetic jet of flame, with one signal burst of conflagra- 
 tion, to go out in utter darkness ? 
 
 Or is she, after having sinned almost beyond the ex- 
 tent of human compassion, — after having dived into 
 the depths of guilt, — and cast aside the feelings of 
 humanity, — and trifled with all holy . things, 1 — yet to 
 be spared, and changed, and saved ; and to be a 
 living witness of the might and magnitude of Mercy- 
 boundless and Divine? 
 
 Who that contemplates the fearful alternative for 
 guilt like hers will not breathe a wish for such a 
 result ? 
 
 THE END. 
 
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