n marry Montpellier? But now they're going to waltz, come along."

Thereupon Ayala got up and danced with him for the next ten minutes.
Again and again before the evening was over she danced with him;
and although, in the course of the night, many other partners had
offered themselves, and many had been accepted, she felt that Colonel
Jonathan Stubbs had certainly been the partner of the evening. Why
should he be so hideously ugly? said Ayala to herself, as she wished
him good night before she left the room with the Marchesa and Nina.

"What do you think of my nephew?" said the Marchesa, when they were
in the carriage together.

"Do tell us what you think of Jonathan?" asked Nina.

"I thought he was very good-natured."

"And very handsome?"

"Nina, don't be foolish. Jonathan is one of the most rising officers
in the British service, and luckily he can be that without being
beautiful to look at."

"I declare," said Nina, "sometimes, when he is talking, I think him
perfectly lovely. The fire comes out of his eyes, and he rubs his old
red hairs about till they sparkle. Then he shines all over like a
carbuncle, and every word he says makes me die of laughter."

"I laughed too," said Ayala.

"But you didn't think him beautiful," said Nina.

"No, I did not," said Ayala. "I liked him very much, but I thought
him very ugly. Was it true about the young lady who married Mr.
Montgomery de Montpellier and was thrown out of window a week
afterwards?"

"There is one other thing I must tell you about Jonathan," said Nina.
"You must not believe a word that he says."

"That I deny," said the Marchesa; "but here we are. And now, girls,
get out of the carriage and go up to bed at once."

Ayala, before she went to sleep, and again when she woke in the
morning, thought a great deal about her new friend. As to shining
like a carbuncle,--perhaps he did, but that was not her idea of manly
beauty. And hair ought not to sparkle. She was sure that Colonel
Stubbs was very, very ugly. She was almost disposed to think that he
was the ugliest man she had ever seen. He certainly was a great deal
worse than her cousin Tom, who, after all, was not particularly ugly.
But, nevertheless, she would very much rather dance with Colonel
Stubbs. She was sure of that, even without reference to Tom's
objectionable love-making. Upon the whole she liked dancing with
Colonel Stubbs, ugly as he was. Indeed, she liked him very much. She
had spent a ve