rous of receiving an invitation to
Madame de Fleury's ball. The marchioness has left her out on purpose.
Mrs. Gilmer has made numerous efforts, but, thus far, unsuccessful ones,
to obtain this invitation; if I could secure it for her she would gladly
repay me by inducing her husband to vote as you desire."

"Bravo! Bravo! we shall succeed; for you can surely obtain the
invitation. Madame de Fleury herself said that she was enchanted at the
opportunity of obliging you,--that she could not do too much to show her
great consideration."

"Yes; but you can scarcely comprehend the difficulty of persuading her
to consent to invite Mrs. Gilmer. She mortally detests her, and I could
offer few petitions which she would be less likely to grant. Still, I
will use strong arguments,--powerful inducements. I will endeavor to
think of some temptation which she cannot resist."

"That is just what I believed you would do, my dear Madeleine," said the
count, taking her hand.

Madeleine withdrew it, though not too abruptly. The contact gave her,
magnetically, as it were, a painful impression.

"But how," she asked, "is Mr. Rutledge to be reached?"

"Through you,--through _you_ again, my kind, good Madeleine," answered
the count, hilariously.

"Through _me_? I do not know him except by name. He is a bachelor;
therefore there is no wife who can be induced to become a mediator."

"No, there is no wife, to be sure, but there is a lady-love whom he
hopes to make his wife, and she, also, is one of your patrons; it is the
sister of Lord Linden; you might solicit her, or you might obtain her
influence through his lordship."

"Through his lordship? That is not possible," replied Madeleine,
decisively.

"Surely it may be," remarked the count, "since you are acquainted with
him, and I have faith in your powers of persuasion."

Madeleine looked very much astonished as she answered, "What has made
you imagine that I have any acquaintance with Lord Linden?"

"I saw him upstairs in one of your _salons_, sitting in a comfortable
arm-chair, as though he were very much at home, reading a book."

Madeleine looked confounded.

"Lord Linden?"

"Yes; you will therefore admit that it was quite natural for me to
suppose that he had the _entree_ here?"

"I did not know that he was in the house!" returned Madeleine,
ingenuously. "He has never been here before to my knowledge. I once was
thrown in contact with him in travelling from New York to W