her life?"

"Not at all, Mrs. Crayford--not at all, ma'am, as you put it. Still it
is a little startling, to a commonplace man like me, to meet a young
lady at a ball who believes in the Second Sight. Does she really profess
to see into the future? Am I to understand that she positively falls
into a trance, and sees people in distant countries, and foretells
events to come? That is the Second Sight, is it not?"

"That is the Second Sight, captain. And that is, really and positively,
what she does."

"The young lady who is dancing opposite to us?"

"The young lady who is dancing opposite to us."

The captain waited a little--letting the new flood of information which
had poured in on him settle itself steadily in his mind. This process
accomplished, the Arctic explorer proceeded resolutely on his way to
further discoveries.

"May I ask, ma'am, if you have ever seen her in a state of trance with
your own eyes?" he inquired.

"My sister and I both saw her in the trance, little more than a month
since," Mrs. Crayford replied. "She had been nervous and irritable all
the morning; and we took her out into the garden to breathe the fresh
air. Suddenly, without any reason for it, the color left her face. She
stood between us, insensible to touch, insensible to sound; motionless
as stone, and cold as death in a moment. The first change we noticed
came after a lapse of some minutes. Her hands began to move slowly, as
if she was groping in the dark. Words dropped one by one from her lips,
in a lost, vacant tone, as if she was talking in her sleep. Whether
what she said referred to past or future I cannot tell you. She spoke of
persons in a foreign country--perfect strangers to my sister and to me.
After a little interval, she suddenly became silent. A momentary color
appeared in her face, and left it again. Her eyes closed--her feet
failed her--and she sank insensible into our arms."

"Sank insensible into your arms," repeated the captain, absorbing his
new information. "Most extraordinary! And--in this state of health--she
goes out to parties, and dances. More extraordinary still!"

"You are entirely mistaken," said Mrs. Crayford. "She is only here
to-night to please me; and she is only dancing to please my husband.
As a rule, she shuns all society. The doctor recommends change and
amusement for her. She won't listen to him. Except on rare occasions
like this, she persists in remaining at home."

Captain Helding bright