, than mere
gratitude. She gave us her unreserved confidence; by which, after careful
sifting, we obtained only the following by no means entirely satisfactory
results:--

Mademoiselle de Tourville and her father had escaped from the Terrorists
of France by the aid of, and in company with, the Chevalier la Houssaye,
with whom M. de Tourville had previously had but very slight
acquaintance. The chevalier soon professed a violent admiration for
Eugenie; and having contrived to lay M. de Tourville under heavy
pecuniary obligations at play--many of them Mademoiselle de Tourville had
only very lately discovered--prevailed upon his debtor to exert his
influence with his daughter to accept La Houssaye's hand in marriage.
After much resistance, Mademoiselle de Tourville, overcome by the
commands, entreaties, prayers of her father, consented, but only on
condition that the marriage should not take place till their return to
France, which it was thought need not be very long delayed, and that no
more money obligations should in the meantime be incurred by her father.
La Houssaye vehemently objected to delay; but finding Eugenie inexorable,
sullenly acquiesced. It was precisely at this time that the engagement
with Mrs. Rushton was accepted. On the previous afternoon Mademoiselle de
Tourville, on leaving Harley Street after the scene with the deceased
lady, went directly home, and there found both her father and the
chevalier in hot contention and excitement. As soon as La Houssaye saw
her, he seized his hat, and rushed out of the apartment and house. Her
father, who was greatly excited, had barely time to say that he had
fortunately discovered the chevalier to be a married man, whose wife, a
woman of property, was still living in Languedoc, when what had always
been predicted would follow any unusual agitation happened: M. de
Tourville suddenly placed his hand on his side, uttered a broken
exclamation, fell into a chair, and expired. It was about two hours after
this melancholy event that Mrs. Rushton arrived. The account before given
of the interview which followed was substantially confirmed by
Mademoiselle de Tourville; who added, that the cordial she had given Mrs.
Rushton was one her father was in the constant habit of taking when in
the slightest degree excited, and that she was about to give him some
when he suddenly fell dead.

We had no doubt, none whatever, that this was the whole, literal truth,
as far as the knowled