Edward Morrel

“ Maximilian sprang down the staircase, and threw his arms round his father’s neck; but suddenly he recoiled, and placed his right hand on Morrel’s breast.
“Father,” he exclaimed, turning pale as death, “what are you going to do with that brace of pistols under your coat?”
“Oh, this is what I feared!” said Morrel.
“Father, father, in Heaven’s name,” exclaimed the young man, “what are these weapons for?”
“Maximilian,” replied Morrel, looking fixedly at his son, “you are a man, and a man of honor. Come, and I will explain to you.” ”

“ Then extending his hand towards one of the pistols, he said, “There is one for you and one for me—thanks!”
Morrel caught his hand. “Your mother—your sister! Who will support them?”
A shudder ran through the young man’s frame. “Father,” he said, “do you reflect that you are bidding me to live?”
“Yes, I do so bid you,” answered Morrel, “it is your duty. You have a calm, strong mind, Maximilian. Maximilian, you are no ordinary man. ”

“ I will live." Morrel was about to cast himself on his knees before his son, but Maximilian caught him in his arms, and those two noble hearts were pressed against each other for a moment. "You know it is not my fault," said Morrel. Maximilian smiled. "I know, father, you are the most honorable man I have ever known." ”

“ I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must retire politely and honestly; that is, with a bow, and our debts of honor paid.”
“That is to the purpose. Have you brought your arms?”
“I?—what for? I hope these gentlemen have theirs.”
“I will inquire,” said Morrel.
“Do; but make no treaty—you understand me?”
“You need not fear.” Morrel advanced towards Beauchamp and Château-Renaud, who, seeing his intention, came to meet him. The three young men bowed to each other courteously, if not affably.
“Excuse me, gentlemen,” said Morrel, “but I do not see M. de Morcerf.” ”

“ The two men remained opposite one another, Morrel trembling in every limb, the stranger gazing at him with an air of profound pity. The noise had ceased; but it seemed that Morrel expected something — something had occasioned the noise, and something must follow. The stranger fancied he heard footsteps on the stairs; and that the footsteps, which were those of several persons, stopped at the door. A key was inserted in the lock of the first door, and the creaking of hinges was audible.
"There are only two persons who have the key to that door," murmured Morrel, "Cocles and Julie." ”

“ Sometimes, of course, she was not in the right mood or condition, or whatever it is; and the phenomena were trivial; sometimes we got mere trickery, and that poorly done. Like most other mediums, public or even private, if real phenomena did not come, Mrs. Morrel would do her best to produce imitations. Sometimes she would quite deliberately use trickery rather than endure the exhaustion and nausea which always followed the genuine exercise of her powers.
But often at her séances I had seen phenomena which I did not believe to have been produced by trickery. ”

“ I said. “But if the door was opened, why didn’t the light from the hall lamp fall into the room? It was burning brightly.”
“Oh, it was turned down, and then up again,” he said confidently.
“It might have been,” said I; and for the next twenty yards he said nothing.
Then he broke out:
“It was a splendid fake—splendid! I never saw a better! What accomplices! It was first-rate acting—absolutely first-rate!”
“Yes; acting that turned the lady’s hands icy.And accomplices? An accomplice of Mrs. Morrel’s in a two-thousand-pound sable cloak! That is a bit hard to swallow,” I said. ”

“ Oh, my dear friend, if this be the case, -- if you can no longer weep, if your frozen heart be dead, if you put all your trust in God, then, Maximilian, you are consoled -- do not complain."
"Count," said Morrel, in a firm and at the same time soft voice, "listen to me, as to a man whose thoughts are raised to heaven, though he remains on earth; I come to die in the arms of a friend. Certainly, there are people whom I love. I love my sister Julie, -- I love her husband Emmanuel; but I require a strong mind to smile on my last moments. ”

“ I have always seen the best phenomena when the circle has been composed of three men and two women.
Last of all came two strangers, who, I gathered, had never sat with Mrs. Morrel, or with anyone else—a Mr. and Mrs. Longridge. Longridge was a man of about forty-five, of a short, square, stout figure, clean-shaven, with a heavy, masterful jaw, thin lips, and keen black eyes, deep-set under projecting brows. He looked a man of uncommon force of character; and I hoped that Mrs. Morrel would keep off trickery, for he was the very man, if he detected it, to make a row. ”

“ Morell Brooding by His Father's Grave. "He remained there fourteen years, Morrel," said the count, placing his hand on the young man's shoulder. Maximilian shuddered.
"Fourteen years!" he muttered.
"Fourteen years!" repeated the count. "During that time he had many moments of despair. He also, Morrel, like you, considered himself the unhappiest of men."
"Well?" asked Morrel.
"Well! at the height of his despair God assisted him through human means. At first, perhaps, he did not recognize the infinite mercy of the Lord, but at last he took patience and waited. ”

“ Morrel took the head of his son between his two hands, drew him forward, and kissing his forehead several times said, "Oh, yes, yes, I bless you in my own name, and in the name of three generations of irreproachable men, who say through me, `The edifice which misfortune has destroyed, providence may build up again.' On seeing me die such a death, the most inexorable will have pity on you. To you, perhaps, they will accord the time they have refused to me. Then do your best to keep our name free from dishonor. Go to work, labor, young man, struggle ardently and courageously ”

“ The conversation had now turned upon a topic so pleasing to Morrel, that he was ready to accede to anything that Valentine thought fit to propose, and he likewise felt that a piece of intelligence such as he just heard ought to be more than sufficient to content him for one day. ”

“ ILLEFORT rose, half-ashamed of being surprised in such a paroxysm of grief. The terrible office he had held for twenty-five years had succeeded in making him more or less than man. His glance, at first wandering, fixed itself upon
Morrel. "Who are you, sir," he asked, "that forget that this is not the manner to enter a house stricken with death? Go, sir, go!"
But Morrel remained motionless; he could not detach his eyes from that disordered bed, and the pale corpse of the young girl who was lying on it.
"Go!—do you hear?" said Villefort, while d'Avrigny advanced to lead Morrel out. ”

“ Then you must not pay us; we can scud, like the Pharaon, under bare poles."
"Enough, enough!" cried Morrel, almost overpowered; "leave me, I pray you; we shall meet again in a happier time. Emmanuel, go with them, and see that my orders are executed."
"At least, we shall see each other again, M. Morrel?" asked Penelon.
"Yes; I hope so, at least. Now go." He made a sign to Cocles, who went first; the seamen followed him and Emmanuel brought up the rear. "Now," said the owner to his wife and daughter, "leave me; I wish to speak with this gentleman." ”

“ While Albert was lashing the front of his carriage in the same manner that he had the newspapers which were the innocent agents of his discomfiture, as he was crossing the barrier he perceived Morrel, who was walking with a quick step and a bright eye. He was passing the Chinese Baths, and appeared to have come from the direction of the Porte Saint-Martin, and to be going towards the Madeleine.
“Ah,” said Morcerf, “there goes a happy man!” And it so happened Albert was not mistaken in his opinion.
Chapter 79. The Lemonade Morrel was, in fact, very happy. ”

“ Morrell in full evening dress, showing her neck and shoulders, which were her best points, for she was full bosomed and rounded without losing firmness of flesh. Nan was a trifle taken back at this gorgeousness, for she had not dressed. Keith, with his usual directness, made no secret of pretending to be utterly overwhelmed.
"I didn't know we were expected to dress for a real concert with flowers!" he cried, laughing.
Mrs. Morrell shrugged her fine shoulders indifferently.
"This old rag!" she said. "Don't let that bother you. I always like to put on something cool for the evening. ”

“ Morland and the delighted Caroline stopped at Princeton to be present at the annual commencement, and had the happiness of seeing their beloved Edward receive his diploma as bachelor of arts; after hearing him deliver, with great applause, an oration on the beauties of the American character. College youths are very prone to treat on subjects that imply great experience of the world. But Edward Morland was full of kind feeling for everything and everybody; and his views of life had hitherto been tinted with a perpetual rose-color. ”

“ Morrell went hastily.
Keith slammed his papers into a drawer, locked it and his office door, and went directly to the office of the Bulletin. There, seated in all the chairs, perched on the tables and window ledges, he found a representative group. He recognized most of them, including James King of William, Coleman, Hossfros, Isaac Bluxome, Talbot Ward, and others. A dead silence greeted his appearance. He stopped by the door. ”

“ Morrel took the purse, and started as he did so, for a vague remembrance reminded him that it once belonged to himself. At one end was the receipted bill for the 287,000 francs, and at the other was a diamond as large as a hazel-nut, with these words on a small slip of parchment: — Julie's Dowry.
Morrel passed his hand over his brow; it seemed to him a dream. At this moment the clock struck eleven. He felt as if each stroke of the hammer fell upon his heart. "Explain, my child," he said, "Explain, my child," he said, "explain — where did you find this purse?" ”

“ Two inches an hour does not seem much, but in twelve hours that makes two feet, and three we had before, that makes five. `Come,' said the captain, `we have done all in our power, and M. Morrel will have nothing to reproach us with, we have tried to save the ship, let us now save ourselves. To the boats, my lads, as quick as you can.' Now," continued Penelon, "you see, M. Morrel, a sailor is attached to his ship, but still more to his life, so we did not wait to be told twice ”

“ The moon had just then escaped from behind the cloud which had concealed it, and Morrel saw Villefort come out upon the steps, followed by a gentleman in black. They descended, and advanced towards the clump of trees, and Morrel soon recognized the other gentleman as Doctor d’Avrigny.
The young man, seeing them approach, drew back mechanically, until he found himself stopped by a sycamore-tree in the centre of the clump; there he was compelled to remain. Soon the two gentlemen stopped also.
“Ah, my dear doctor,” said the procureur, “Heaven declares itself against my house! ”

“ Morrel smiled sadly.
“Count,” he said, “I swear to you my soul is no longer my own.”
“Maximilian, you know I have no relation in the world. I have accustomed myself to regard you as my son: well, then, to save my son, I will sacrifice my life, nay, even my fortune.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, that you wish to quit life because you do not understand all the enjoyments which are the fruits of a large fortune. Morrel, I possess nearly a hundred millions and I give them to you; with such a fortune you can attain every wish. Are you ambitious? Every career is open to you. ”

“ Then I saw that the curtain was half-drawn, a thing which had never happened at one of Mrs. Morrel’s séances before, and I could see dimly the figure of Mrs. Morrel on her chair in the cabinet.
The child came straight to Mrs. Longridge. Mrs. Longridge sank back in her chair, gasping painfully, and her nerveless hand would have slipped from mine had I not held it firmly.
The child stood before her, and said in a faint, shrill voice: “Oh, Mummy!”
Mrs. Longridge burst out sobbing, tried vainly to tear her hand from mine, and cried wildly: “Oh, Maisie! Maisie!” ”

“ It was notorious.”
“This is very interesting, Mr Morrel; but would you mind giving me my sister’s fringe-nets?”
“One moment, Miss Norah, if you please. You continue to regard me with a scorn which blights. An artist’s is a sensitive soul. I implore you not to flash the arrows of your disdain in the tender target of my heart!”
“I shall tell mamma, Mr Morrel, if you talk to me like that. Will you give me my sister’s fringe-nets?”
“I will; certainly I will. After all, I am a man of business. ”

“ Across the deck, one who had run forward for a handspike swept it down on young Dick Morrel’s brown head. Morrell dodged, but the blow cracked his shoulder and swept him to the deck. The man who had fought beside him spraddled the prostrate body, and jerked an iron from the boat on the davits at his back and held it like a lance, to keep all men at a distance. A sheath knife sped, and twisted in 195 the air, and struck him butt first above the eye, so that he fell limply and lay still....
Mark Shore had been forced against the rail near where Jim Finch was pinned. ”

“ With Keith imminent, hirelings would have been arranged for. With Keith safety away, Morrell saw no reason why he should not enjoy the situation himself. Therefore he had arranged a little supper party. Teeny McFarlane and Jimmy Ware were his first thought. Then he added Pop McFarlane. If he wanted Teeny as a witness, the party must be respectable!
At the sound of wheels outside Morrell arose and slipped out the back door of the parlour.
"Now, remember!" he told Sansome from the doorway. "Now's the chance of your life! You've got her love, and you must keep her. She'll cut up rough at first. ”