ied at the solicitation of his friends. 'Marry her, marry
her,' they incessantly repeated; 'if Love has the start of
Death, Lucile is safe.' Lucile suffered herself to be married
with the resignation of an angel, foreseeing that the marriage
would not be of long duration. She suffered herself to be
married to one of those artists of the worst order, who have
neither the religion of art nor the fire of genius, and who
have still less heart, for the heart is the home of genius. The
poor Lucile saw at a glance the desert to which her family had
exiled her. She consoled herself with a harp and a harpsichord;
but her husband, who had been brought up like a slave, cruelly
took delight, with a coward's vengeance, in making her feel all
the chains of Hymen. She would have died, like Jenny, on her
father's bosom, amidst her loving family, after having sung her
farewell song; but thanks to this barbarous fellow, she died in
his presence, that is to say, alone. At the hour of her death,
'Bring me my harp!' said she, raising herself a little. 'The
doctor has forbidden it,' said this savage. She cast a bitter,
yet a suppliant look upon him. 'But as I am dying!' said she.
'You will die very well without that.' She fell back on her
pillow. 'My poor father,' murmured she, 'I wished to bid you
adieu on my harp; but here I am not free except to die!'
Lucile, it is the nurse who related the scene, suddenly
extended her arms, called Jenny with a broken voice, and fell
asleep like her for ever.

"Antoinette was sixteen. She was fair and smiling like the
morn, but she was fated to die like the others. Gretry prayed
and wept, as he saw her growing pale; but death was not stopped
so easily. _Cruel that he is, he stops his ears, there is no
use to pray to him!_ Gretry, however, still hoped. 'God,' said
he, 'will be touched by my thrice bitter tears.' He almost
abandoned music, in order to have more time to consecrate to
his dear Antoinette. He anticipated all her fancies, dresses,
and ornaments, books and excursions,--in a word, she enjoyed to
her heart's desire every pleasure the world could afford. At
each new toy she smiled with that divine smile which seems
formed for heaven. Gretry succeeded in deceiving himself; but
she one day revealed to him all her ill-