to
raise his hat and gaze at her through his eye-glass until some trees hid
her from sight.

"'Pon my word, that's a pretty girl!" said he, at length. "I wonder who
she can be! However, I shall soon find out. Have another weed, Fred?"

There was to be a ball that night at the Assembly Rooms, which we were
assured only the "_best_ families" would attend for Layton was a very
exclusive little town in its way. Some of us who were going were
standing about the mess-room, recalling the many good balls and pretty
girls of our late quarters, when Fane, who had declined to go, as he
said he had a horror of "bad dancing, bad perfumes, bad ventilation, and
bad champagne, and really could not stand the concentration of all of
them, which he foresaw that night," to our surprise declared his
intention of accompanying us.

"I suppose, Fane, you hope to see your heroine of the donkey again?"
asked Sydney.

"Precisely," was Fane's reply; "or if not, to find out who she is. But
here comes Ennuye, got up no end to fascinate the belles of Layton!"

"The Aspedens are home; I saw 'em to-day," were the words of the
honorable cornet, as he lounged into the room. "My uncle seems rather a
brick, and hopes to make the acquaintance of all of you. He will mess
with us to-morrow."

"Have you any _belles cousines_?"--"Are they going to-night?" we
inquired.

"Yaas, I saw one; she's rather pretty," said L'Estrange.

"Dark eyes--golden hair--about eighteen?" demanded Fane, eagerly.

"Not a bit of it," replied the cornet, curling his moustache, and
contemplating himself in the glass with very great satisfaction; "hair's
as dark as mine, and eyes--y'ally I forget. But, let's have loo or
whist, or something; we need not go for ages!" So down we sat, and soon
nothing was heard but "Two by honors and the trick!" "Game and game!"
&c., until about twelve, when we rose and adjourned to the ball-room.

No sooner had we entered the room than Fane exclaimed, "There's my
houri, by all that's glorious! and looking lovelier than ever. By Jove!
that girl's too good for a country ball-room!" And there, in truth,
waltzing like a sylph, was, as Sydney called her, the "heroine of the
donkey." The dance over, we saw her join a party at the top of the room,
consisting of a handsome but _passee_ woman, a lovely Hebe-like girl
with dancing eyes, and a number of gentlemen, with whom they seemed to
be keeping up an animated conversation.

"Ennuye is with them--h