urselves. How beautiful she was!" He leaned his
head on his hand and looked where he had seen her last--so long, such
an eternity, ago.

It must be explained for the benefit of those who do not live in the
little world where an allusion is all that is necessary to put one in
full possession of any drama, domestic or social, that Mr. Horace was
speaking of the wedding-night of madame, when the bridal party stood
as he described under the chandelier; the bride and groom, with each
one's best friend. It may be said that it was the last night or time
that madame had a best friend of her own sex. Social gossip, with
characteristic kindness, had furnished reasons to suit all tastes, why
madame had ceased that night to have a best friend of her own sex. If
gossip had not done so, society would still be left to its imagination
for information, for madame never tolerated the smallest appeal to her
for enlightenment. What the general taste seemed most to relish as a
version was that madame in her marriage had triumphed, not conquered;
and that the night of her wedding she had realized the fact, and, to
be frank, had realized it ever since. In short, madame had played then
to gain at love, as she played now to gain at solitaire; and hearts
were no more than cards to her--and, "Bah! Lose a game for a card!"
must have been always her motto. It is hard to explain it delicately
enough, for these are the most delicate affairs in life; but the image
of Myosotis had passed through monsieur's heart, and Myosotis does
mean "forget me not." And madame well knew that to love monsieur once
was to love him always, in spite of jealousy, doubt, distrust, nay,
unhappiness (for to love him meant all this and more). He was that
kind of man, they said, whom women could love even against conscience.
Madame never forgave that moment. Her friend, at least, she could put
aside out of her intercourse; unfortunately, we cannot put people out
of our lives. God alone can do that, and so far he had interfered in
the matter only by removing monsieur. It was known to notoriety that
since her wedding madame had abandoned, destroyed, all knowledge of
her friend. And the friend? She had disappeared as much as is possible
for one in her position and with her duties.

"What there is in blue eyes, light hair, and a fragile form to impress
one, I cannot tell; but for us men it seems to me it is blue-eyed,
light-haired, and fragile-formed women that are the hardest t