But the youth eyed her
with a cool and deliberate glance, stepping aside carelessly as he
passed by. She seemed to writhe with some concealed anguish; yet her lip
curled proudly, and her bosom heaved, as though striving to throw off,
with one last and desperate struggle, the oppression that she endured.
In this disturbed and unquiet frame did Kate pass on to her orisons.
It may be needful to pause for a brief space in our narrative, whilst we
give some account of this goodly spark who had so unexpectedly, as it
might seem, unfitted the lady for the due exercise of her morning
devotions.
His dress was elegant and becoming, and of the most costly materials.
His hat was high and tapering, encircled by a rich band of gold and rare
stones. It was further ornamented by a black feather, drooping gently
towards the left shoulder. The brim was rather narrow; but then a
profusion of curls fell from beneath, partly hiding his lace collar of
beautiful workmanship and of the newest device. His beard was small and
pointed; and his whiskers displayed that graceful wave peculiar to the
high-bred gallants of the age. His neck was long, and the elegant
disposal of his head would have turned giddy the heads of half the dames
in the Queen's court.
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