"Trembling with indignation I used to drink in every word of these conversations, and I could not but admire, from the very depth of my soul, those men, who, free to live a life of wealth and honour in their own land, yet chose to pass their existence in deadly climes, facing all dangers, bearing every ill, that they might lend a helping hand to the progress of science, and interest the world in the sacred cause of the victims of oppression."
Here Madame de Guéran paused to sip her tea, whilst her hearers, completely under the charm of her winning eloquence and moving tones, kept an almost religious silence. They were learning, and for the first time, to know her. Living in the world of Paris, they had recognised in her a woman distinguished for her intelligence, her beauty, and her manner, and they had fallen in love with her, attracted by the refinement of her features, the grace of her smile, and the vivacity of her wit. But now, all suddenly, that countenance was resplendent with a novel brilliancy, those eyes shone with renewed light, the mind unfolded itself with unexpected rapidity, and the heart was beating with a sympathy which made itself felt.
"It will scarcely astonish you," resumed the Baroness, in a calmer voice, "to learn that I, brought up, as I have been, amongst the men whom I have mentioned to you, have become a sharer both in their ideas and their enthusiasm. Neither will it surprise you, I am sure, that I should have given my love to one of my father's most frequent guests. The Baron de Guéran was a Frenchman, and was descended from that fearless René Caillet, the first European who attempted the perilous journey from Sierra-Leone to Tangier, and, it may be, effected an entrance into Timbuctoo. Although he had not reached his thirtieth year when I saw him for the first time, M. de Guéran had already journeyed in central Africa, and had there made some important discoveries. If his name is not familiar to you as a geographer or an explorer, it is simply because he would not publish any of his notes until all were complete. Alas! he has not been able to finish his work.
"My father raised many objections to my union with the Baron. As a colleague, he both loved and esteemed him—as a son-in-law he had his doubts. So soon as I had to enter into his calculations, his admiration for travels and travellers cooled down considerably. He was never tired of saying to me—'Take care; the love of remote exploration and discovery—I speak from experience—absorbs all other love, and would make the best of men utterly oblivious of his family duties. Be not too confident; your husband, whilst adoring you, may still accustom himself to worship you from a distance. You will be proud to belong to him, but you will rarely be happy at his side, for your life will wear away in fear and apprehension.' And then I would reply—'Have no fear; I will answer for M. de Guéran.' 'What? You imagine that he will sacrifice all his ideas for your sake, and will live ever by your side?' 'Nothing of the sort, my dear father; I should not wish it for a moment, but I will go with him. I am determined to share all his dangers, and I will say to him, as our friend Lady Baker did to her husband—whither thou goest I will go; where thou diest will I die, and there will I be buried.'
"However, he had to give way and consent to the marriage, and I came to reside in Paris with M. de Guéran. For two years the fears of my father appeared groundless; the Baron did not seem to be troubled with any desire to travel. He wandered in Elysian fields only, and I was only too happy in wandering there with him. The awakening was terrible. 'I am off to Africa,' said he to me one day. For two years I had forgotten Africa, the slave-trade, slavery, science, everything but love. And you might well suppose that, starting up thus suddenly, as it were, out of my sleep, I called to mind, and whispered in the ear of my husband Lady Baker's, or, to speak more correctly, Ruth's touching words. Nothing of the kind! Thenceforth, I had but one thought—and that was to preserve my mode of life unaltered, not to risk my happiness in any one way, to leave nothing to chance or contingency. I devoted all my energy to the task of trying to persuade M. de Guéran that the tribes of Africa had no claim whatsoever on him, that the Geographical Society could well dispense with any information from him, and that science would still march onward without his aid. My efforts were unavailing, and I failed to convince him, so that, taking advantage of my absence in England on a visit, he rushed off to Marseilles, and embarked without even letting me know the exact destination of his fresh expedition. 'You would be wanting to follow me,' he wrote. 'I cannot take advantage of your devotion; but, take courage, my absence will be of but short duration.' At first, I waited, for where was I to go? And I always hoped that he would not delay his return, but would keep his promise to me. Tired of waiting, at last I made up my mind to start, when the French Consul, at Cairo, sent me word that the Baron de Guéran was dead.
"Such has been my life. Gentlemen, you know me now, and, doubtless, you have come to the conclusion that I have devoted too much time to myself. Let me relieve your minds by telling you that, what more I have to say refers solely to you. Let me give you all another cup of tea, and then I will commence my peroration."
CHAPTER III.
"And now, gentlemen," resumed the Baroness after a momentary pause, and in a tone of great vivacity, "you are fully informed, as far as I am concerned. You have a thorough knowledge of the antecedents of the defendant, but you are apparently undismayed, and you continue to prefer your suit. Be it so! Then do not complain, if, after exposing myself, I expose you in turn."
The three aspirants made a simultaneous effort to interrupt her.
"One moment, please," said she quickly, "I ask for no confessions from you, seeing that they would be superfluous. For the last six months I have been gaining information about you, I have been studying you, and now I know you. That sounds flattering, does it not? Do not let yourselves be prematurely inflated with pride, for you are very, very far from divining either the thought which has actuated me, or the object of my inquiries. First of all I will consider you generally, in the aggregate, if you prefer it. You are, each of you, from thirty to thirty-five years of age, the best age for marriage; on that point I profess myself satisfied. You are neither," continued she laughing, "too prepossessing nor too plain; you can all of you boast that golden mien, as far as appearances are concerned, which every sensible woman would desire in the man whom she intends to acknowledge as her lord. Each of you is in the enjoyment of a fortune sufficiently large to secure independence, and to divest marriage with a rich woman of even a suspicion of mercenary motives. You have your faults, no doubt; who, indeed, has not? But those persons from whom I have gained my information assure me that you have no vices, and that is sufficient for me. Moreover, during the siege of Paris, which in some degree was a standard by which to test the men of our time, you all of you bore yourselves as good men and true. Lastly, you have shown yourselves, capable of creating occupations for yourselves and you have the great merit, which I gladly acknowledge, of being neither idlers nor useless members of society. I have thus, as I promised, described you generally, and now I will sum you up individually.