She is introduced in a gruesome scene, which
recalls the fate of Agnes in Lewis's _Monk_, to her supposed
mother, Lady Hysterica Belamour, whose memoirs, under the title
_Il Castello di Grimgothico_, are inserted, after the manner of
Mrs. Radcliffe and M.G. Lewis, who love an inset tale, into the
midst of the heroine's adventures. Cherubina determines to live
in an abandoned castle, and gathers a band of vassals. These
include Jerry, the lively retainer, inherited from a long line of
comic servants, of whom Sancho Panza is a famous example, and
Higginson, a struggling poet, who in virtue of his office of
minstrel, addresses the mob, beginning his harangue with the
time-honoured apology: "Unaccustomed as I am to public speaking."
The story ends with the return of Cherubina to real life, where
she is eventually restored to her father and to Stuart. The
incidents, which follow one another in rapid succession, are
foolish and extravagant, but the reminiscences they awaken lend
them piquancy. The trappings and furniture of a dozen Gothic
castles are here accumulated in generous profusion. Mouldering
manuscripts, antique beds of decayed damask, a four-horsed
barouche, and fluttering tapestry rejoice the heart of Cherubina,
for each item in this curious medley revives moving associations
in a mind nourished on the Radcliffe school.
Pages:
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196