The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom, Complete - Tobias Smollett
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Such a sudden apparition of her brother at any time, or in any place,
after their long separation, would have strongly affected this sensible
young lady; but to find him so abruptly in a place where she thought
herself buried from the knowledge of all her relations, occasioned such
commotions in her spirits as had well-nigh endangered her reason. For it
was not till after a considerable pause, that she could talk to him with
connexion or coherence. However, as those transports subsided, they
entered into a more deliberate and agreeable conversation; in the course
of which, he gradually informed her of what had passed at the castle; and
inexpressible was the pleasure she felt in learning that her mother was
released from captivity, herself restored to freedom, and her brother to
the possession of his inheritance, by the only means to which she had
always prayed these blessings might be owing.
As she had been treated with uncommon humanity by the abbess, she would
not consent to leave the convent until he should be ready to set out for
Presburg; so that they dined together with that good lady, and passed the
afternoon in that mutual communication with which a brother and sister
may be supposed to entertain themselves on such an occasion. She gave
him a detail of the insults and mortifications she had suffered from the
brutality of her father-in-law, and told him, that her confinement in
this monastery was owing to Trebasi having intercepted a letter to her
from Renaldo, signifying his intention to return to the empire, in order
to assert his own right, and redress his grievances. Then turning the
discourse upon the incidents of his peregrinations, she in a particular
manner inquired about that exquisite beauty who had been the innocent
source of all his distresses, and upon whose perfections he had often, in
his letters to his sister, expatiated with indications of rapture and
delight.
This inquiry in a moment blew up that scorching flame which had been
well-nigh stifled by other necessary avocations. His eyes gleamed, his
cheeks glowed and grew pale alternately, and his whole frame underwent an
immediate agitation; which being perceived by Mademoiselle, she concluded
that some new calamity was annexed to the name of Monimia, and, dreading
to rip up a wound which she saw was so ineffectually closed, she for the
present suppressed her curiosity and concern, and industriously
endeavoured to introduce some less affecting subject of conversation. He
saw her aim, approved of her discretion, and, joining her endeavours,
expressed his surprise at her having omitted to signify the least
remembrance of her old favourite, Fathom, whom he had left in England.
He had no sooner pronounced this name, than she suffered some confusion
in her turn; from which, however, recollecting herself, "Brother," said
she, "you must endeavour to forget that wretch, who is altogether
unworthy of retaining the smallest share of your regard."
Astonished, and indeed angry, at this expression, which he considered as
the effect of malicious misrepresentation, he gently chid her for her
credulity in believing the envious aspersion of some person, who repined
at the superior virtue of Fathom, whom he affirmed to be an honour to the
human species.
"Nothing is more easy," replied the young lady, "than to impose upon a
person, who, being himself unconscious of guile, suspects no deceit. You
have been a dupe, dear brother, not to the finesse of Fathom, but to the
sincerity of your own heart. For my own part, I assume no honour to my
own penetration in having comprehended the villany of that impostor,
which was discovered, in more than one instance, by accidents I could not
possibly foresee.
"You must know, that Teresa, who attended me from my childhood, and in
whose honesty I reposed such confidence, having disobliged some of the
inferior servants, was so narrowly watched in all her transactions, as to
be at last detected in the very act of conveying a piece of plate, which
was actually found concealed among her clothes.
"You may guess how much I was astonished when I understood this
circumstance. I could not trust to the evidence of my own senses, and
should have still believed her innocent, in spite of ocular
demonstration, had not she, in the terrors of being tried for felony,
promised to make a very material discovery to the Countess, provided she
would take such measures as would save her life.
"This request being complied with, she, in my hearing, opened up such an
amazing scene of iniquity, baseness, and ingratitude, which had been
acted by her and Fathom, in order to defraud the family to which they
were so much indebted, that I could not have believed the human mind
capable of such degeneracy, or that traitor endowed with such pernicious
cunning and dissimulation, had not her tale been congruous, consistent,
and distinct, and fraught with circumstances that left no room to doubt
the least article of her confession; on consideration of which she was
permitted to go into voluntary exile."
She then explained their combination in all the particulars, as we have
already recounted them in their proper place, and finally observed, that
the opinion she had hence conceived of Fathom's character, was confirmed
by what she had since learned of his perfidious conduct towards that very
nun who had lately taken the veil.
Perceiving her brother struck dumb with astonishment, and gaping with the
most eager attention, she proceeded to relate the incidents of his double
intrigue with the jeweller's wife and daughter, as they were communicated
to her by the nun, who was no other than the individual Wilhelmina.
After those rivals had been forsaken by their gallant, their mutual
animosities and chagrin served to whet the attention and invention of
each; so that in a little time the whole mystery stood disclosed to both.
The mother had discovered the daughter's correspondence with Fathom, as
we have formerly observed, by means of that unfortunate letter which he
unwittingly committed to the charge of the old beldame; and, as soon as
she understood he was without the reach of all solicitation or
prosecution, imparted this billet to her husband, whose fury was so
ungovernable, that he had almost sacrificed Wilhelmina with his own
hands, especially when, terrified by his threats and imprecations, she
owned that she had bestowed the chain on this perfidious lover. However,
this dreadful purpose was prevented, partly by the interposition of his
wife, whose aim was not the death but immurement of his daughter, and
partly by the tears and supplication of the young gentlewoman herself,
who protested, that, although the ceremony of the church had not been
performed, she was contracted to Fathom by the most solemn vows, to
witness which he invoked all the saints in heaven.
The jeweller, upon cooler consideration, was unwilling to lose the last
spark of hope that glittered among the ruins of his despair, and resisted
all the importunities of his wife, who pressed him to consult the welfare
of his daughter's soul, in the fond expectation of finding some expedient
to lure back the chain and its possessor. In the meantime Wilhelmina was
daily and hourly exposed to the mortifying animadversions of her mamma,
who, with all the insolence of virtue, incessantly upbraided her with the
backslidings of her vicious life, and exhorted her to reformation and
repentance. This continual triumph lasted for many months, till at
length, a quarrel happening between the mother and the gossip at whose
house she used to give the rendezvous to her admirers, that incensed
confidante, in the precipitation of her anger, promulgated the history of
those secret meetings; and, among the rest, her interviews with Fathom
were brought to light.
The first people who hear news of this sort are generally those to whom
they are most unwelcome. The German was soon apprised of his wife's
frailty, and considered the two females of his house as a couple of
devils incarnate, sent from hell to exercise his patience. Yet, in the
midst of his displeasure, he found matter of consolation, in being
furnished with a sufficient reason for parting with his helpmate, who had
for many years kept his family in disquiet. He therefore, without
hazarding a personal conference, sent proposals to her by a friend, which
she did not think proper to reject; and seeing himself restored to the
dominion of his own house, exerted his sway so tyrannically, that
Wilhelmina became weary of her life, and had recourse to the comforts of
religion, of which she soon became enamoured, and begged her father's
permission to dedicate the rest of her life to the duties of devotion.
She was accordingly received in this convent, the regulations of which
were so much to her liking, that she performed the task of probation with
pleasure, and voluntarily excluded herself from the vanities of this
life. It was here she had contracted an acquaintance with Mademoiselle
de Melvil, to whom she communicated her complaints of Fathom, on the
supposition that he was related to the Count, as he himself had often
declared.
While the young lady rehearsed the particulars of this detail, Renaldo
sustained a strange vicissitude of different passions. Surprise, sorrow,
fear, hope, and indignation raised a most tumultuous conflict in his
bosom. Monimia rushed upon his imagination in the character of innocence
betrayed by the insinuations of treachery. He with horror viewed her at
the mercy of a villain, who had broken all the ties of gratitude and
honour.
Affrighted at the prospect, he started from his seat, exclaiming, in the
most unconnected strain of distraction and despair, "Have I then
nourished a serpent in my bosom! Have I listened to the voice of a
traitor, who hath murdered my peace! who hath torn my heart-strings
asunder, and perhaps ruined the pattern of all earthly perfection. It
cannot be. Heaven would not suffer such infernal artifice to take
effect. The thunder would be levelled against the head of the accursed
projector."
From this transport, compared with his agitation when he mentioned
Monimia, his sister judged that Fathom had been the occasion of a breach
between the two lovers; and this conjecture being confirmed by the
disjointed answers he made to her interrogations upon the affair, she
endeavoured to calm his apprehensions, by representing that he would soon
have an opportunity of returning to England, where the misunderstanding
might be easily cleared up; and that, in the meantime, he had nothing to
fear on account of the person of his mistress, in a country where
individuals were so well protected by the laws and constitution of the
realm. At length he suffered himself to be flattered with the fond hope
of seeing Monimia's character triumph in the inquiry, of retrieving that
lost jewel, and of renewing that ravishing intercourse and exalted
expectation which had been so cruelly cut off. He now wished to find
Fathom as black as he had been exhibited, that Monimia's apostasy might
be numbered among the misrepresentations of his treachery and fraud.
His love, which was alike generous and ardent, espoused the cause, and he
no longer doubted her constancy and virtue. But when he reflected how
her tender heart must have been wrung with anguish at his unkindness and
cruelty, in leaving her destitute in a foreign land; how her sensibility
must have been tortured in finding herself altogether dependent upon a
ruffian, who certainly harboured the most baleful designs upon her
honour; how her life must be endangered both by his barbarity and her own
despair--I say, when he reflected on these circumstances, he shuddered
with horror and dismay; and that very night despatched a letter to his
friend the Jew, entreating him, in the most pressing manner, to employ
all his intelligence in learning the situation of the fair orphan, that
she might be protected from the villany of Fathom, until his return to
England.
CHAPTER SIXTY
HE RECOMPENSES THE ATTACHMENT OF HIS FRIEND; AND RECEIVES A LETTER THAT
REDUCES HIM TO THE VERGE OF DEATH AND DISTRACTION.
This step being taken, his mind in some measure retrieved its former
tranquillity. He soothed himself with the prospect of a happy
reconciliation with the divine Monimia, and his fancy was decoyed from
every disagreeable presage by the entertaining conversation of his
sister, with whom in two days he set out for Presburg, attended by his
friend the Major, who had never quitted him since their meeting at
Brussels. Here they found Count Trebasi entirely rid of the fever which
had been occasioned by his wound, and in a fair way of doing well; a
circumstance that afforded unspeakable pleasure to Melvil, whose manner
of thinking was such, as would have made him unhappy, could he have
charged himself with the death of his mother's husband, howsoever
criminal he might have been.
The Count's ferocity did not return with his health. His eyes were
opened by the danger he had incurred, and his sentiments turned in a new
channel. He heartily asked pardon of Mademoiselle for the rigorous usage
she had suffered from the violence of his temper; thanked Renaldo for the
seasonable lesson he had administered to him; and not only insisted upon
being removed from the castle to a house of his own in Presburg, but
proffered to make immediate restitution of all the rents which he had
unjustly converted to his own use.
These things being settled in the most amicable manner, to the entire
satisfaction of the parties concerned, as well as of the neighbouring
noblesse, among whom the house of Melvil was in universal esteem, Renaldo
resolved to solicit leave at the Imperial court to return to England, in
order to investigate that affair of Monimia, which was more interesting
than all the points he had hitherto adjusted. But, before he quitted
Presburg, his friend Farrel taking him aside one day, "Count," said he,
"will you give me leave to ask, if, by my zeal and attachment for you, I
have had the good fortune to acquire your esteem?" "To doubt that
esteem," replied Renaldo, "were to suspect my gratitude and honour, of
which I must be utterly destitute before I lose the sense of those
obligations I owe to your gallantry and friendship--obligations which I
long for a proper occasion to repay."
"Well then," resumed the Major, "I will deal with you like a downright
Swiss, and point out a method by which you may shift the load of
obligation from your own shoulders to mine. You know my birth, rank, and
expectations in the service; but perhaps you do not know, that, as my
expense has always unavoidably exceeded my income, I find myself a little
out at elbows in my circumstances, and want to piece them up by
matrimony. Of those ladies with whom I think I have any chance of
succeeding, Mademoiselle de Melvil seems the best qualified to render my
situation happy in all respects. Her fortune is more than sufficient to
disembarrass my affairs; her good sense will be a seasonable check upon
my vivacity; her agreeable accomplishments will engage a continuation of
affection and regard. I know my own disposition well enough to think I
shall become a most dutiful and tractable husband; and shall deem myself
highly honoured in being more closely united to my dear Count de Melvil,
the son and representative of that worthy officer under whom my youth was
formed. If you will therefore sanction my claim, I will forthwith begin
my approaches, and doubt not, under your auspices, to bring the place to
a capitulation."
Renaldo was pleased with the frankness of this declaration, approved of
his demand, and desired him to depend upon his good offices with his
sister, whom he sounded that same evening upon the subject, recommending
the Major to her favour, as a gentleman well worthy of her choice.
Mademoiselle, who had never been exercised in the coquetries of her sex,
and was now arrived at those years when the vanity of youth ought to
yield to discretion, considered the proposal as a philosopher, and after
due deliberation candidly owned she had no objection to the match.
Farrel was accordingly introduced in the character of a lover, after the
permission of the Countess had been obtained; and he carried on his
addresses in the usual form, so much to the satisfaction of all concerned
in the event, that a day was appointed for the celebration of his
nuptials, when he entered into peaceable possession of his prize.
A few days after this joyful occasion, while Renaldo was at Vienna, where
he had been indulged with leave of absence for six months, and employed
in making preparations for his journey to Britain, he was one evening
presented by his servant with a package from London, which he no sooner
opened, than he found enclosed a letter directed to him, in the
handwriting of Monimia. He was so much affected at sight of those
well-known characters, that he stood motionless as a statue, eager to
know the contents, yet afraid to peruse the billet. While he hesitated
in this suspense, he chanced to cast his eye on the inside of the cover,
and perceived the name of his Jewish friend at the bottom of a few lines,
importing, that the enclosed was delivered to him by a physician of his
acquaintance, who had recommended it in a particular manner to his care.
This intimation served only to increase the mystery, and whet his
impatience; and as he had the explanation in his hand, he summoned all
his resolution to his aid, and, breaking the seal, began to read these
words: "Renaldo will not suppose that this address proceeds from
interested motives, when he learns, that, before it can be presented to
his view, the unfortunate Monimia will be no more."
Here the light forsook Renaldo's eyes, his knees knocked together, and he
fell at full length insensible on the floor. His valet, hearing the
noise, ran into the apartment, lifted him upon a couch, and despatched a
messenger for proper assistance, while he himself endeavoured to recall
his spirits by such applications as chance afforded. But before the
Count exhibited any signs of life, his brother-in-law entered his chamber
by accident, and as soon as he recollected himself from the extreme
confusion and concern produced by this melancholy spectacle, he perceived
the fatal epistle, which Melvil, though insensible, still kept within his
grasp; justly suspecting this to be the cause of that severe paroxysm, he
drew near the couch, and with difficulty read what is above rehearsed,
and the sequel, to this effect:--
"Yes, I have taken such measures as will prevent it from falling into
your hands, until after I shall have been released from a being
embittered with inexpressible misery and anguish. It is not my
intention, once loved, and ah! still too fondly remembered youth, to
upbraid you as the source of that unceasing woe which hath been so long
the sole inhabitant of my lonely bosom. I will not call you inconstant
or unkind. I dare not think you base or dishonourable; yet I was
abruptly sacrificed to a triumphant rival, before I had learned to bear
such mortification; before I had overcome the prejudices which I had
imbibed in my father's house. I was all at once abandoned to despair, to
indigence, and distress, to the vile practices of a villain, who, I fear,
hath betrayed us both. What have not I suffered from the insults and
vicious designs of that wretch, whom you cherished in your bosom! Yet
to these I owe this near approach to that goal of peace, where the
canker-worm of sorrow will expire. Beware of that artful traitor; and,
oh! endeavour to overcome that levity of disposition, which, if indulged,
will not only stain your reputation, but also debauch the good qualities
of your heart. I release you, in the sight of Heaven, from all
obligations. If I have been injured, let not my wrongs be visited on the
head of Renaldo, for whom shall be offered up the last fervent prayers of
the hapless Monimia."
This letter was a clue to the labyrinth of Melvil's distress. Though the
Major had never heard him mention the name of this beauty, he had
received such hints from his own wife, as enabled him to comprehend the
whole of the Count's disaster. By the administration of stimulating
medicines, Renaldo recovered his perception; but this was a cruel
alternative, considering the situation of his thoughts. The first word
he pronounced was Monimia, with all the emphasis of the most violent
despair. He perused the letter, and poured forth incoherent execrations
against Fathom and himself. He exclaimed, in a frantic tone, "She is
lost for ever! murdered by my unkindness! We are both undone by the
infernal arts of Fathom! execrable monster! Restore her to my arms. If
thou art not a fiend in reality, I will tear out thy false heart."
So saying, he sprung upon his valet, who would have fallen a sacrifice to
his undistinguishing fury, had not he been saved by the interposition of
Farrel and the family, who disengaged him from his master's gripe by dint
of force; yet, notwithstanding their joint endeavours, he broke from this
restraint, leaped upon the floor, and seizing his sword, attempted to
plunge it in his own breast. When he was once more overcome by numbers,
he cursed himself, and all those who withheld him; swore he would not
survive the fair victim who had perished by his credulity and
indiscretion; and the agitation of his spirits increased to such a
degree, that he was seized with strong convulsions, which nature was
scarce able to sustain. Every medical expedient was used to quiet his
perturbation, which at length yielded so far as to subside into a
continual fever and confirmed delirium, during which he ceased not to
pour forth the most pathetic complaints, touching his ruined love, and to
rave about the ill-starred Monimia. The Major, half distracted by the
calamity of his friend, would have concealed it from the knowledge of his
family, had not the physician, by despairing of his life, laid him under
the necessity of making them acquainted with his condition.
The Countess and Mrs. Farrel were no sooner informed of his case than
they hastened to the melancholy scene, where they found Renaldo deprived
of his senses, panting under the rage of an exasperated disease. They
saw his face distorted, and his eyes glaring with frenzy; they heard him
invoke the name of Monimia with a tenderness of accent which even the
impulse of madness could not destroy. Then, with a sudden transition of
tone and gesture, he denounced vengeance against her betrayer, and called
upon the north wind to cool the fervour of his brain. His hair hung in
dishevelled parcels, his cheeks were wan, his looks ghastly, his vigour
was fled, and all the glory of his youth faded; the physician hung his
head in silence, the attendants wrung their hands in despair, and the
countenance of his friend was bathed in tears.
Such a picture would have moved the most obdurate heart; what impression
then must it have made upon a parent and sister, melting with all the
enthusiasm of affection! The mother was struck dumb, and stupefied with
grief; the sister threw herself on the bed in a transport of sorrow,
caught her loved Renaldo in her arms, and was, with great difficulty,
torn from his embrace. Such was the dismal reverse that overtook the
late so happy family of Melvil; such was the extremity to which the
treachery of Fathom had reduced his best benefactor!
Three days did nature struggle with surprising efforts, and then the
constitution seemed to sink under the victorious fever; yet, as his
strength diminished, his delirium abated, and on the fifth morning he
looked round, and recognised his weeping friends. Though now exhausted
to the lowest ebb of life, he retained the perfect use of speech, and his
reason being quite unclouded, spoke to each with equal kindness and
composure; he congratulated himself upon the sight of shore after the
horrors of such a tempest; called upon the Countess and his sister, who
were not permitted to see him at such a conjuncture; and being apprised
by the Major of his reason for excluding them from his presence, he
applauded his concern, bequeathed them to his future care, and took leave
of that gentleman with a cordial embrace. Then he desired to be left in
private with a certain clergyman, who regulated the concerns of his soul,
and he being dismissed, turned his face from the light, in expectation of
his final discharge. In a few minutes all was still and dreary, he was
no longer heard to breathe, no more the stream of life was perceived to
circulate, he was supposed to be absolved from all his cares, and an
universal groan from the bystanders announced the decease of the gallant,
generous, and tender-hearted Renaldo.
"Come hither, ye whom the pride of youth and health, of birth and
affluence inflames, who tread the flowery maze of pleasure, trusting to
the fruition of ever-circling joys; ye who glory in your accomplishments,
who indulge the views of ambition, and lay schemes for future happiness
and grandeur, contemplate here the vanity of life! behold how low this
excellent young man is laid! mowed down even in the blossom of his youth,
when fortune seemed to open all her treasures to his worth!"