Lady Tinemouth for having made the proposal.

Miss Egerton laughed at the scrape into which Lady Tinemouth had brought his good nature; and declared, that she would tell him next day, at dinner, what a mulish pair of misses he had presumed to manage.

It was the youngest of these misses that excited Lady Sara's displeasure. Euphemia Dundas was very pretty; she had a large fortune at her disposal; and what might not such united temptations effect on the mind of her favourite? Torn with jealousy, she caught at the mention of his coming to dinner on the morrow; and offering to be one of the party, resolved to put on all her charms, that she might make one more essay, on the hitherto insensible soul of Thaddeus, before she beheld him enter scenes so likely to extinguish her hopes.-Hopes of what? she never allowed herself to inquire. She

knew

knew that she never had loved her husband, that now she hated him, and was devoted to another. To be assured of a reciprocal passion from that other, she believed was the extent of her wish. Thinking that she held her husband's honour safe as her life, she determined to do what she liked with her heart. Her former admirers were now neglected; and, to the astonishment and admiration of the graver part of her acquaintance, she relinquished all those dissipated assemblies, in which she had so recently been the brightest attraction, to seclude herself, whole evenings, by the domestic fire-side of the countess of Tinemouth.

Thus, whilst the world were admiring a conduct, which they supposed would give a lasting happiness to herself and to her husband, she was cherishing a passion, which might prove the destruction of both.

On Sunday evening, the Count Sobieski entered Lady Tinemouth's drawing-room, just as Miss Egerton seated

herself

herself before the tea equipage. At the sight of him, she nodded her head, and called him to sit by her. Lady Tinemouth returned the grateful pressure of his hand. Lady Sara received him with a palpitating heart; and stooped her head to remove something that seemed to incommode her foot; but this was only a feint, to hide the blushes which were burning on her cheek. No one observed her confusion; so common it is, for those who are the constant witnesses of our actions to be the most ignorant of their expression and tendency.

१

Thaddeus could not be so uninformed. The frequent falling of her eye, when it met his; the unequivocal intonation of her voice, and sometimes the framing of her speech, often made him shiver. He gladly obeyed a second summons from the gay Maria, and drew his chair close to her's.

Lady Sara observed his motion with a jealous pang which she could not conceal;

and,

and, pulling her seat, as far on the opposite side as possible, began in silence to sip her tea.

"Ye powers of gallantry !" suddenly exclaimed Miss Egerton, pushing away the table, and lifting her eye-glass to her eye, "I declare I have conquered! Look, Lady Tinemouth; look, Lady Sara! If Mr. Constantine does not better become this English dress, than his Polish horribles, drown me for a false prophetess !"

"You see I have obeyed you, madam,” returned Thaddeus, bowing.

"Ah! you are in the right. Most men do it cheerfully, when they know that they will gain by the bargain. Now, you look like a christian: before, you always reminded me of some stalking hero in tragedy."

"Yes," cried Lady Sara, forcing a smile, and ready to weep with mortification, "yes, and now he exhibits a striking resemblance to George Barnwell." Maria, who did not perceive the anger

and

and sarcasm couched under this remark, good humouredly replied.

"True, Lady Sara; but I don't care for his being in black: obedience was the thing I wanted, and I have it in his present appearance."

"Pray, Lady Tinemouth," asked her ladyship, seeking to revenge herself on his alacrity to obey Miss Egerton, the cause of which her jealousy misapprehended, "what o'clock is it? I have promised to be at Lady Sarum's concert by nine."

"It is not eight," returned the countess; "besides this is the first time I have heard of your engagement. I hoped your ladyship would have spent all this evening with us?"

"No," answered Lady Sara, “I cannot." And ringing the bell, she rose. "Bless me, Lady Sara!" cried Miss Egerton, " you are not going? Don't you hear that it is only eight o'clock?” Lady Sara, busying herself about tying

her