At length, after passing
five-and-twenty years in Bengal, the trunk returned again to
Southampton, as one among some dozen others which made up the
baggage of the gallant Colonel H-----, now rich in laurels and rupees.
The old trunk had even the honorable duty assigned it of carrying its
master's trophies, doubtless the most precious portion of the
colonel's possessions, though at the same time the lightest; as for
the rupees, the old worn-out box would have proved quite unequal to
transporting a single bag of them, for it was now sadly unfit for
service, thanks to the ravages of time and the white ants; and,
indeed, owed its preservation and return to its native soil solely to
the letter pasted in the lid, which, in the eyes of Colonel H-----, was
a memento of home, and the eccentric character of a deceased
parent.
{cornet = the lowest officer rank in a British cavalry regiment, below
that of Lieutenant; now obsolete}
The time had now come, however, when the Lumley autograph was
about to emerge forever from obscurity, and receive the full homage
of collectors; the hour of triumph was at hand, the neglect of a
century was to be fully repaid by the highest honors of fame. The
eye of beauty was about to kindle as it rested on the Lumley
autograph; jeweled fingers were to be raised, eager to snatch the
treasure from each other; busy literati stood ready armed for a war
of controversy in its behalf.
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