iew of "la reine du bal."

Overlooked, humiliated, silent, and dejected, Petrea withdrew into
another room. The scenes of the evening passed in review before her
soul, and appeared now quite in an altered light. The mirror which a few
hours before had flattered her with the notion that she might be called
_la plus belle_, now showed her her face red and unsightly; she thought
herself the most ridiculous and unfortunate of human beings. She felt at
this moment a kind of hostility against herself. She thought on
something which she was preparing for Sara, and which was to be an
agreeable surprise to her, and which was to be made known to her in a
few days--she thought of this, and in that moment of trouble the thought
of it, like a sunbeam on dark clouds, brightened the night in her soul.
The thought of gratifying one, who on this evening had so deeply
wounded her, gave a mild and beneficial turn to her mind.

After supper, a balcony in the saloon adjoining the ball-room was
opened, in order somewhat to cool the heated atmosphere of the room.

Two persons, a lady and gentleman, stepped into the balcony; a light
white shawl was thrown over the lady's shoulders; stars garlanded her
dark hair; stars flashed in her black eyes, which glanced fiercely
around into free space.

There lay over the landscape the deliciously mysterious half-darkness of
a May-night, a magical veil which half hides and half reveals its
beauty, and which calls forth mysterious forebodings. A mighty and
entrancing revelation of the gloriousness of life seemed to sing in the
wind, which passed tranquilly murmuring through space, shone in the
stars, and wandered high above earth.

"Ah, life! life!" exclaimed she, and stretched forth her arms towards
space, as if she would embrace it.

"Enchanting girl!" said he, while he seized her hand, "my life belongs
to you!"

"Conduct me forth into free, fresh life," said she, without withdrawing
her hand, and looking haughtily at him all the while, "and my hand
belongs to you! But remember you this, that I will be free--free as the
wind which now kisses your forehead, and lifts those topmost branches of
the tree! I love freedom, power, and honour! Conduct me to these, help
me to obtain these, and my gratitude will secure to you my love; will
fetter me to you with stronger bonds than those of ceremony and
prejudice, to which I only submit out of regard to those who otherwise
would weep over me, and whom I wou