ptote to
her own. How earnestly she now lamented an escape, for which she had
formerly exhausted language in expressing her gratitude; and how much
better it would have been if she could mourn him as dead, instead of
jealously watching him,--living without a thought of her.

All the girlish sweetness and freshness of her nature passed away, and
an intolerable weariness and disappointment usurped its place. Since
her acquaintance with Dr. Grey, he had been her sole _Melek Taous_,
adored with Yezidi fervor; but to-day she overturned, and strove to
revile and desecrate the idol, to whose vacant pedestal she lifted a
colossal vanity. Her bruised, numb heart, seemed incapable of loving
any one, or anything, and a hatred and contempt of her race took
possession of her.

The changing hues of Muriel's tell-tale face when Mr. Granville
arrived, and the excessive happiness that could not be masked, had not
escaped Salome's lynx vision; and very accurately she conjectured the
real condition of affairs, relative to which Dr. Grey had never
uttered a syllable. Bent upon mischief, she had, malice prepense,
dressed herself with unusual care, and arranged her hair in a new
style of coiffure, which proved very becoming.

Now, as the hum of conversation mingled with the sound of Muriel's
low, soft laugh, reached her from the parlor, her chatoyant eyes
kindled, and she hastily went in to join the merry circle.

"Come here, child, and sit by me," said Miss Jane, making room on the
sofa, as her _protegee_ entered.

"Thank you, I prefer a seat near the window."

Dr. Grey sat in a large chair in the centre of the floor, with Muriel
on an ottoman close to him, and Mr. Granville leaned over the back of
the chair, while Miss Dexter shared Miss Jane's old-fashioned ample
sofa. In full view of the whole party, Salome seated herself at a
little distance, and, with admirably assumed nonchalance, began to
enclose and sew up the geranium-seeds, in some pretty, colored paper
bags, prepared for the purpose.

After a few minutes Mr. Granville sauntered across the room, looked at
the cuckoo clock, and finally went over to the window, where he leaned
against the facing and watched Salome's slender white fingers.

She was dressed in a delicate muslin, striped with narrow pink lines,
and flounced at the bottom of the skirt, and wore a ribbon sash of the
same color; while in the broad braids of hair raised high on her head,
she had fastened a superb