ther to advance or retire; but his resolution was soon
made,--he entered and closed the door behind him.

The chamber in which Linton now stood was smaller than the outer one,
and equally shaded from the strong sunlight. His eyes were now, however,
accustomed to the dusky half-light, and he was able to mark the costly
furniture and splendid ornaments of the room. The walls were hung with
rose-colored damask, over which a drapery of white lace was suspended,
looped up at intervals to admit of small brackets of bronze, on which
stood either "statuettes" or vases of rare "Sevres." At a toilet-table
in the middle of the room were laid out the articles of a lady's
dressing-case, but of such costly splendor that they seemed too gorgeous
for use. Trinkets and jewellery of great value were scattered carelessly
over the table, and an immense diamond cross glittered from the
mother-o'-pearl frame of the looking-glass.

The half-open curtains at the end of the room showed a marble bath, into
which the water flowed from a little cascade of imitation rustic,
its tiny ripple murmuring in the still silence of the room. There was
another sound, still softer and more musical than that, there,--the
long-drawn breathing of a young girl, who, with her face upon her arm,
lay asleep upon a sofa. With stealthy step and noiseless gesture, Linton
approached and stood beside her. He was not one to be carried away
by any enthusiasm of admiration, and yet he could not look upon the
faultless symmetry of that form, the placid beauty of that face, on
which a passing dream had left a lingering smile, and not feel deeply
moved. In her speaking moments, her dark and flashing eyes often lent a
character of haughty severity to her handsome features; now their dark
lashes shrouded them, and the expression of the face was angelic in
sweetness. The olive-darkness of her skin, too, was tempered by the
half-light, while the slight tinge of color on her cheek might have vied
with the petal of a rose. Linton drew a chair beside the sofa, and sat
down. With folded arms, and head slightly bent forward, he watched
her, while his fast-hurrying thoughts travelled miles and
miles,--speculating, planning, contriving; meeting difficulties here,
grasping advantages there,--playing over a game of life, and thinking if
an adversary could find a flaw in it.

"She is worthy to be a duchess," said he, as he gazed at her. "A
duchess! and what more?--that is the question. Ah