to sway all his actions, to desire the possession of
whatever was unique in life. Those forms or fancies of which nature
stamps but one, and breaks the die, these were a passion with him. To
possess a bluer turquoise than any king or kaiser, to own an arab of
some color never seen before, to have a picture by some artist who never
painted but one; but whether it were a gem, a vase, a weapon, a diamond,
or a dog, its value had but one test, that it had none its exact equal.
Now, Kate Dalton realized these conditions more than any one he had
ever met. Her very beauty was peculiar; combining, with much of feminine
softness and delicacy, a degree of determination and vigor of character
that to Midchekoff smacked of queenly domination. There was a species of
fierte about her that distinguished her among other women. All that he
had seen done by an illustrious title and a diamond tiara, she seemed
capable of effecting in the simplest costume and without an effort. All
these were wonderful attractions to his eyes; and if he did not fall in
love, it was simply because he did not know how. He, however, did what
to him served as substitute for the passion; he coveted an object which
should form one of the greatest rarities of his collection, and the
possession of which would give him another title to that envy, the most
delicious tribute the world could render him.

There were some drawbacks to his admiration; her birth was not
sufficiently illustrious. His own origin was too recent to make an
alliance of this kind desirable, and he wished that she had been a
princess; even de la main, gauche of some royal house. Jekyl had done
his best, by sundry allusions to Irish greatness, and the blood of
various monarchs of Munster and Conuaught, in times past; but the Prince
was incredulous as to Hibernian greatness; probably the remembrance of
an Irish diamond once offered him for sale had tinged his mind with this
sense of disparagement as to all Irish magnificence. Still Kate rose
above every detracting influence, and he thought of the pride in which
he should parade her through Europe as his own.

Had she been a barb or a bracelet, an antique cup or a Sevres jar, he
never would have hesitated about the acquisition. Marriage, however, was
a more solemn engagement; and he did not quite fancy any purchase that
cost more than mere money. Nothing but the possibility of losing her
altogether could have overcome this cautious scruple; and Je