New Orleans daily crescent., 1860-12-25


ever, he resigned her, without an apparent desire
to monopolze her time, to other aspirants, ant
slowly, and with many graceful bows and words o
high-bred courtesy, separated bimself from thu
thick clustering groups of dancers.
As fingered on the outskirts of the room 4 saw
him pause as If struck, when his eyes fell upon 8
young girl who, clad with austere planness, seem
ed solitary among the crowd.
What was 1t that made me feel like could PLAN
dagger al his heart with willing hand, when the
! look Of pleased surprise deepened into warmes
admiration and tho full red lips wreathed into q
smile where treachery mingled with its winning
4 ness?
After moments hesitation he turned away
4 with the apparent intention of seeking some one
and as my glance then wandered to the person who
had fixed his attention. Tfelt her power to win the
hearts of men, though she was but an humble New
England sewing girl, the daughter Of widowed
mother who, with pious aspirations for her future,
had bestowed upon her at the baptismal font the
sweet but, alas as 1t proved, misapplied name OF
| Ghristana. She was apart, unsonght and uncared
for, and yet did not seem conscious of any neglect
butwith proud head erect and beautiful face aglow
with appreciation of the element of the beautiful in
the scene before her. she stood marvel Of perfec-
ton, all palpitating with life-the life and fierce
splendor of the halftamed leopardess.
At this moment the young hostess, followed by
the stranger guest, emerged from the crowd and
Joined her.
The costly robe of the fair heiress glittered with
jewels, wherewith parental love delighted to adorn
her, and that Of her companion was guitless Of
aught to its white simplicity, yet the one might
have been imagined simple peasant who was
masquerading, and the other supposed a Cleopatra
| who had but laid aside the regal diadem.
4 few whispered words between the two girls,
and the gentleman was presented
Christiana turned to greet him with the air of
naughty Indifference which characterized her gem
eral manner, a dover, as it seemed, from nature,
but as she met the deferential salutation and
caught the fixed, expressive gaze, her large, di-
lating eyes sank beneath their lids and she fell into
tremor of timid confusion NV she who was SO
dariugy self fpossessed, or so coldly reserved.
dance with me?' Mr.. Conyngsby asked, as
Miss Hall turned away with some laughing remark,
and in his tone there came the soft, wooing inhec
ton, which made the simple request prayer.
81 have never danced at party in my life, !" was
the frank reply.
e You can, though, and well. Your soul beats
rythm to the music. Come?i
Without waiting for words of consent, he took
her finely moulded hand in his, examined it for an
instant with critical eye, and plaeedit on his arm.
AT his touch spasm of indignant defiance
passed over her face, and words Of refusal rose to
her lips, but an involuntary glance upward caught
the willfnl mastery Of bis eyes, and with bilowy
swell Of hitherto unknown emotions she yielded to
their spell.
Ifau oil baorr unf
her face and form, a murmur of scarcely sup
pressed admiration rose among the dancers when
she glided in her midst.
Fierceness and GOODNESS both were gone.
sense Of being appreciated, a new light of
happiness, softened yet irradiated the magnificent
creature, and she was the impersonation of wo-
manly beauty.
Each time that she wandered back from the fig
ure Of the set, her companion drew her to his side
with something in touch, and glance, and low
breathed word, which, though imperceptible to
others, conveyed to her Enthusiastically a message
Of new born devotion, and prideful satisfaction in
having her near him.
1t was the first incense offered at the shrine Of
her beauty, and it came with dangerous and intoxi-
eating effect, not as outwardly manifested, but to
her SOUL to her heart, to her Senses setting them
al -thIll Wllh rosy ueAlghI, ana waking Ia Lnefn
perceptions which had never dawned to them be-
fore.
1t was fairy evening, and the stranger who had
strayed within the circle of her life yielded the
enchanters wand.
No thought wandered to the past or went out to
the future, but the sum of existence seemed con-
centrated in the present-that present which had
let in the first sunfash of light whose radiance it
seemed could never dim, whose overwhelming
glory come to her as foretaste Of the blissful
light Of the celestial home where there is no night
and the brightness fades not away.
No PRESENCE Of shadow to come--alas and alas!
As occurs so often in the midst of crowd, this
heart-change, which reyoutonized an entire being,
was unnoted by those around, and so unobservant
were they, that the unanimous decision, when the
merry. makers separated, would have been that the
burden Of Richard Conyngsby's devotions had,
during the entire evening been laid at the feet of
the guileess Abbie-she herself, perhaps, being the
blindest among the blind.
n II . IlT n p 7