ever chapter ix from tne hospitable home of the i made a sudden and almost startling transition to the residence of my most aristocratic perhaps i ought rather to say my acquaintance for mrs had never possessed enough of ttie milk of human kindness to our intercourse into l friendship she was however a very desirable sort of person to keep on good terms with for those who wished to catch now and then a glimpse at what is called good society and were willing to sacrifice the warm comfort of the heart for this uncertain privilege mr was pleased to send his carriage to accommodate me for which i should have been more thankful could he have compelled his coachman o look pleased but there is something in the services which the of the wealthy render to their poor friends and poor relations which makes them to the any thing but agreeable obligations on at the door of my new i was greeted with no kindly welcome a looking woman showed me up stairs to my own room where i was left to myself with the information that the bell would ring for dinner in the course of an hour dinner i had ridden ten miles having of an early tea but there was no need to expose my late i had only to prepare for one of mrs s hot and like many other extreme cases about which so much wonder and alarm is expressed there would be little except in name before an hour had expired mrs was graciously pleased to send her own woman to assist me in performing the duties of my toilet thus conveying the first intimation that she was conscious of my arrival nor was it with gratitude at all to the favour that i accepted the services of mrs james whose sharp eyes seemed to flash and peep about penetrating through my ill wardrobe with most scrutiny to spy out the of the land has this woman come thought i but i submitted myself to the magic of her fingers as the only chance i had of appearing in such a manner as would not make me wish myself up stairs again after i had been seated at table once during this tedious operation i opened my lips and ventured to ask if mrs had any visitors at present staying in the house oh yes replied the woman with a look suited to the importance of her information lady and sir charles have been here some time aching as i was from head to foot with curiosity no less than with the various and of my i still could not bring myself to ask who these illustrious visitors were whether the gentleman was young or old nor whether his relationship to the lady was filial or the woman looked so to my ignorance that i determined to receive no further information from her and drawing down a curl to hide the worst part of my forehead where an was threatening to mar its polished and casting one lingering look of satisfaction towards the mirror i followed her to receive my long expected welcome in the dressing room of mrs only think my dear she exclaimed an embrace which i could well have done without lady and sir charles here well i dare say they will not frighten you away you will find them the best people in the world to do with if you can but be natural and easy with them � so happy together it is really quite to see a mother and son so united i wish would take a lesson of politeness from sir charles there is nothing so in private life i ventured to remark that mr had once been admired for his politeness ah a fiddle way that he has which nobody cares for that is not what i mean i mean something that makes you feel handsome and good humoured and as if every one liked you without a word being said directly to the point and when you know that it is not so sir charles must be very clever no not so clever either in the way of reading or politics or any thing of that kind but just the sort of man to make a woman happy and she sighed all this while my friend was ring in a tall mirror her face her figure her all that could be studied without the upon whom these charms were to be played off sometimes her head was tossed backwards so as to create a sudden trembling and glittering amongst the glossy curls � sometimes a was carefully placed as if in the act of falling or just caught up by the and snowy arm � and sometimes a glance was thrown over the graceful shoulder to ascertain whether the bend of the back was made evident to all admirers i thought my labours at tlie toilet that day had been but they were nothing to those of my friend and she was a married woman what can be the meaning of this of charms thought i the husband has always been represented to me as tne very of and surely married ladies are not to charm elsewhere sir charles young handsome accomplished and graceful was too every one was insignificant when compared with lady she was still beautiful though in the of life her dress was that of a though not of the deepest shade but it needed no peculiar costume to indicate that tlie widow s grief had not her weeds a profusion of light flowing hair mingled with the honours of her brow and when she smiled it was with the gracious condescension of one who is so rich in happiness liberal of that she can dispense them to all without any there was something in her whole appearance so magnificent that when she first entered the room i could not 