betray
him, and as she was not revengeful, she pardoned him, after enjoying his
terror for a time, and promised him that she would hold her tongue, as
long as he did nothing contrary to the laws.

"First of all, I must beg you not to gamble."

"You have only to command; and we do not know each other in future?"

"I must certainly insist on that," she said maliciously.

The Exotic Prince had, however, made the conquest of the charming
daughter of a wealthy Austrian Count, and had cut out an excellent young
officer who was wooing her; and he, in his despair began to make love to
Frau von Chabert, and at last told her he loved her, but she only
laughed at him.

"You are very cruel," he stammered in confusion.

"I? What are you thinking about?" Wanda replied, still smiling; "all I
mean is, that you have directed your love to the wrong address, for
Countess...."

"Do not speak of her; she is engaged to another man."

"As long as I choose to permit it," she said; "but what will you do, if
I bring her back to your arms? Will you still call me cruel?"

"Can you do this?" the young officer asked, in great excitement.

"Well, supposing I can do it, what shall I be then?"

"An angel, whom I shall thank on my knees."

A few days later, the rivals met at a coffee house; the Greek prince
began to lie and boast, and the Austrian officer gave him the lie
direct, and in consequence, it was arranged that they should fight a
duel with pistols next morning in a wood close to Baden. But as the
officer was leaving the house with his second the next morning, a Police
Commissary came up to him and begged him not to trouble himself any
further about the matter, but another time to be more careful before
accepting a challenge.

"What does it mean?" the officer asked, in some surprise.

"It means that this Maurokordatos is a dangerous swindler and
adventurer, whom we have just taken into custody."

"He is not a prince?"

"No; a circus rider."

An hour later the officer received a letter from the charming Countess,
in which she humbly begged for pardon; the happy lover set off to go and
see her immediately, but on the way a sudden thought struck him, and so
he turned back in order to thank beautiful Wanda, as he had promised, on
his knees.

VIRTUE IN THE BALLET

It is a strange feeling of pleasure that the writer about the stage and
the characters of the theatrical feels, when he occasionally discovers a
good, hone