ground, I had an opportunity to admire
Lela's toilette. A born Queen of Fashion, her dresses even when as a
school-girl were my admiration, and her toilette for my birthday showed
the refinement of delicacy and taste: for, not wishing to be the only
lady present in colors, she wore a black grenadine, with black bows and
a black lace hat; her diamond ear-drops and one half-blown deep red
rose alone testifying that her mourning robe was only worn through
sympathy.

We had sat three hours at the table, and were lingering over the ices
and awaiting the coffee and fruit, when a shrill whistle, warning the
guests that the train was nigh, caused a flight more rapid than that of
Cinderella. Farewells were left unspoken, and "French leave" taken in
good earnest, as our friends made a short cut through the garden of
Bischoff, the trainmaster, who lives opposite us. Their departure
could scarcely be said to be graceful, but as they had only three
minutes' time to meet the train, it was obligatory.

Lina had exercised all of her art in preparing the birthday dinner, and
as Ida gave her _carte blanche_ in her most extravagant demands--such
as twenty pounds of beef for gravies, and an entire bottle of Madeira
for the soup, the dinner was very elegant and satisfactory. Lina
would, I fancy, have been much aggrieved, had she known that her
artistic dishes were supposed to have been sent up from Delmonico's.

_July 20_.

A drive to Tarrytown to-day. After two months of inland air, the
change to the exhilarating salt breeze blowing up from the Hudson was
very refreshing, and made us quite regret, during the few hours we
spent there, that Chappaqua could not be occasionally transported to
the seaside.

"I am especially fond," said Ida, "of living by the sea, although I do
not enjoy an ocean voyage; but a cottage at Newport is my ideal home
for the summer."

"Newport air," said mamma, "would, I think, be too strong for me. The
most agreeable sea air that I ever experienced was upon the Isle of
Wight. There the climate was so mild as to be very beneficial to me.
But you must know as much or more than I do about the Isle of Wight
air, for you spent several months there with your mother when last in
Europe, did you not?"

"Yes, we spent a winter and spring at Ventnor," said Ida; "that town,
you know, is especially recommended to people with lung troubles,
although I could never see that it did poor mamma much good."

"Did