, wishes, and capabilities, and by some means
or other contrived to bring Luciana to a new kind of exhibition, which
was perfectly suited to her.

"I see here," he said, "a number of persons with fine figures, who would
surely be able to imitate pictorial emotions and postures. Suppose they
were to try, if the thing is new to them, to represent some real and
well-known picture. An imitation of this kind, if it requires some labor
in arrangement, has an inconceivably charming effect."

Luciana was quick enough in perceiving that here she was on her own
ground entirely. Her fine shape, her well-rounded form, the regularity
and yet expressiveness of her features, her light-brown braided hair,
her long neck--she ran them all over in her mind, and calculated on
their pictorial effects, and if she had only known that her beauty
showed to more advantage when she was still than when she was in motion,
because in the last case certain ungracefulness continually escaped her,
she would have entered even more eagerly than she did into this natural
picture-making.

They looked out the engravings of celebrated pictures, and the first
which they chose was Van Dyk's Belisarius. A large well-proportioned
man, somewhat advanced in years, was to represent the seated, blind
general. The Architect was to be the affectionate soldier standing
sorrowing before him, there really being some resemblance between them.
Luciana, half from modesty, had chosen the part of the young woman in
the background, counting out some large alms into the palm of his hand,
while an old woman beside her is trying to prevent her, and representing
that she is giving too much. Another woman who is in the act of giving
him something, was not forgotten. Into this and other pictures they
threw themselves with all earnestness. The Count gave the Architect a
few hints as to the best style of arrangement, and he at once set up a
kind of theatre, all necessary pains being taken for the proper lighting
of it. They were already deep in the midst of their preparations, before
they observed how large an outlay what they were undertaking would
require, and that in the country, in the middle of winter, many things
which they required it would be difficult to procure; consequently, to
prevent a stoppage, Luciana had nearly her whole wardrobe cut in pieces,
to supply the various costumes which the original artist had arbitrarily
selected.

The appointed evening came, and the ex