The String of Pearls (1850), p. 341

stay you; but I think it will be a great disappointment to Colonel Jeffery not to meet with you to-day."
"Colonel Jeffery?" exclaimed Arabella, while her face became of the colour of a rose-bud; "Colonel Jeffery?"
There was just the ghost of a smile upon the face of Sir Richard Blunt, as he calmly replied—
"Yes; I am on my way to meet that gentleman in the garden of the Temple; and I am sure he would be glad to see you."
"Glad to see me?"
"Yes, as so true a friend of Johanna's, he will be more than glad; he will be delighted."
"Delighted?"
"Do you doubt the Colonel's friendly feeling towards you?"
"Oh no—no. I—no—certainly not."
"Then let me beg of you to come."
"No. Not now; I will go home. It will look particular for me to go to the garden to meet him."
"It will look much more particular to refuse, I think, Miss Wilmot. You are with me, and with your old friend, and Johanna's relative, Mr. a—a—"
"They calls me Ben."
"Mr. Ben; and so you cannot refuse," he said, "to go to meet Colonel Jeffery, you know. Come, come, I pray you come. Indeed, I know the Colonel wishes to speak to you; and as it would be obviously out of order for him to call upon you, I think you ought, seeing that you're not alone, to give him, as a gentleman of wealth and honour, this opportunity of doing so."
"You say, he wishes to speak to me?"
"He does, indeed. What do you say, Mr. Ben? Don't you think Miss Wilmot might as well come with us?"
"Easy does it," said Ben, if and that's my opinion all the world over."
"Then allow me to look upon it that we have prevailed with you, Miss Wilmot. Pray do me the favour to take my arm."
Arabella trembled, but she did take the arm of Sir Richard Blunt, and made no further opposition to proceeding to that Temple Gardens, where already such affecting interviews had taken place between the Colonel and poor Johanna.
The gardens appeared to be empty when they reached it, but from behind some shrubs Colonel Jeffery in a moment made his appearance, for Sir Richard, in consequence of his meeting with Ben and Arabella, was considerably behind his time.

CHAPTER LXXVI.
MRS. LOVETT VISITS THE BANK AND TOOD.

If any one had been looking at the face of Arabella Wilmot at this particular juncture, and if the party so looking had chanced to be learned in reading the various emotions of the heart from the expression of the features, they might have chanced upon some curious revelations. It was only one glance that Arabella gave to the Colonel, but that was sufficient. A word slightly spoken, and in due season, many say more than a volume of preaching; and so one transient glance, fleeting as a sun-beam in an English April, may, with most eloquent meaning, preach a sermon that would puzzle many a divine. But we have become so familiar with the reader, and put ourselves upon such a cordial shake-hands sort of feeling, in particular with you, Miss, who are now reading this passage, that we will whisper a secret in your ear, and the more readily, too, as to whisper we must come particularly close to that soft downy cheek, and almost be able to look askance into those eyes in which the light of Heaven seems dancing,—Arabella Wilmot is in love!