, 1881-08-07
TEE LAST OF a DEyOTEE.
THE EARLY yASlTIEs OF j. CONVERT SOLD
1f-fvrION.

y NJ
London LITTER to Dublin tree,uans Journal.
The sale Of Lord Hcaconsfield's effects at
Christie IL A1anson's was followed by that Of
the wardrobe, jewels, and laces of the late
Miss Helen Gladstone. The world had al
most forgotten her. She had once been
greatly admired in society, and, in possession
Of 4 goodly fortune as well as great beauty,
her hand was sought after by many suitors.
Suddenly and without previous warning Miss
Helen Gladstone disappeared from the world :;
and, before rumor had time to frame
one Of her Improbable stories, it was
announced that she had turned Cath
olic and entered convent. It
was simply the teaching of one Of our most
eloquent and pious Catholic preachers which
had caused her to turn thus suddenly from
the empty and perishab1e joys Of tllis world
to those which never fail and never decay.
She wisely left England ut once, and retired
to Il convent near Paris; but after while
went to tile Sisters Of Coblentz. where she
died about three months ago. She lad lived
fur years in religious seclusion, following the
rules Of the convent she had chosen, but had
never taken the veil in consequence OF the
strong prejudices Of her elder brother, Sir
Thomas Gladstone, to whom she was tender
ly attached. and who had to the very lust in
dulged secret hope that his sister would
and priyatlons peculiar to convent life. and
would return to the easy path Of salvation
followed by Protestant ladies Of family and
fortune
But the change in this instance as in every
other Of the like nature was waited for i'll
vain. Helen Gladstone lived and died in the
faith she had chosen, not from caprice or
WEAKNESS of the worlds pleasures, but from
conviction of the utter worthesncss Of any
SoSn o ~ns saven mas Gs FL s
it really WIS /: difficult task for Helen
Gladstone to continue, as it were. i'll the OBJ
seryance Of only half the sacrifice, while her
soul entirely devoted to Goodwill ac-
leading the life OF i reeluse, and having put
away the world and all its va1ltles,
she Still retained possession of her jewels,
laces, and yaluables, which,, as 4. rule,
become the property Of the religious
community when the noyice takes the
veil. That she had once been Il woman
Of the worid--delighting in its frivoities and
expending much taste upon the triiles which
for her had formed in early life the sum Of
human tfings--waS;. evident enough in the
trimmings and 1aces with which She had
loved to adorn herself in former times. The
laces were all of exquisit beauty, aud were
sold at immense prices. There had evldent-
for the Jewels, although carefully preserved
in boxes Of scented wood and wrapped Ill
perfulncd cotton, were all evidently souye-
Mrs Of friendship or perhaps Of loye,-gifts
neither TO be worn nor yet neglected. The
secret of such me1nent0s is buried with their
owner, and no survivor has the key to the
mystery which caused them to be kept with
such tender care.
The great prizes in the sale were the
beautiful pieces of point d'Alencon, older
than the edict OF Nantes, which dispersed
the lace-makers of Alencon, and caused the
loss Of a great portion Of the particular stitch
which once made t!lis lace the finest in the
world. The stitch was woven over hair
from the lace-making head, and cannot be
undonc to give to modern artists the secret
Of its cunning. All went we'll up to this
portion of the sale, but the mournfui iMpres-
sion upon the mind OF the spectator began
with the disposal of the wardrobe. There is
something lndescribably painful in witness
ing the tossing about, the pulling over, and
1ne hauling to and fro of the garments once
worn with such dainty pride by the delicate
owner now no more; and ut the sale OF Miss
Helen Gladstone'S wardrobe the scene was
rendered yet more painful still by the IT.
reyerent jokes and vulgar depreciation Of
the dealers at sight OF the quaint, old
fashioned cut Of the dresses which had lain
unheedel and unseen ever since her retire
ment from the world and her remuneration Of
its pomps and empty vanities.