Year: 1868

comfort, especially att night, was avery
handsome Austrian officer, exceedingly
happy with his pretty and newly unmarried
wife, Venetian. He had served at the
siege of Venice, and declared that he had
captured her there, but. she laughingly
denied it, and asserted that she had taken
him prisoner. He was fond of affecting
great fear lest she should be seized as con-
traband goods from Italy,,sin fact, he was
SO Joyous that he was all day long invent
ing some fun in order to keep himself at
all in hand. There were few merry
girls, chiefly. Venetians, and they were
going to Bucharest, for which free and
easy place their manners seemed tolerably
well fitted, and they much Lscandalized
some American ladies by marked f1irta


tions, in which there was far more noise
than meaning Their mirth eontrasted
with the sadness of a feeble-minded old
courier, who almost cried when any one
spoke to him, his grief being that en-
ployers did not pay him as they used to
do, and that he made nothing by his trips.
1t was very kind of the American family
to whom he was attached to pay him at
all, for he was not of the least use, and
left them to manage everything for them
selves. There was pleasant faced Dane,
with a pretty sister. He had been form
erly in the Sultan's service, in the ship
building department, but had left it be-
cause his pay was reduced. He was going
to Odessa, but we lost him at Galatz be-
cause his sisters pass had not arrived and
although he had resided at Odessa for two
years, he was not allowedto vouch for the
poor little things harmlessness to the
throne of the great Nicholas the First,
An American lady called her f1eshy
girl, but the charge was not true, nor was
the epithet gracious. A splendid Alba
nian came on board with some Turks,
and lighted up the whole deck with his
glory He was stuck all over with fire.
arms but they did not seem very service-
able. The Turks said their prayers in
their usual attitude, which made some
illbred, addressed, ill-washed Frenchmen
grin; but afterwards, when the chief of
the Mohammedans had some coffee made,
and kindly sent cups to several Of us, and
it was found to be deliciously unlike the
dingy mess we got in the cabin, there
was no federation for the scoffers, who
were a good deal. snubbed when they at
tempted new sarcasm There was a fine
looking Hungarian, who spoke no language
that knew except Latin, which we bar
barized fearfully together, my English
pronunciation thereof not helping me to
his comprehension but we rot on sOme7
how.


l just mention these people because 1t
appears that we are in no particular hurry,
and you may like general idea of the
company on board the Danube boats,
was the only Englishman rs~


During the voyage, which occupied many
days, owing to the difficulty of navigation,
our occasional transfer into abominable
barges, and the exceeding Incidence of the
rowers and apathy of the captain--bya, the
way, one of the Americans had fully made
up his mind he said, to shoot that officer
for mooring us at places where we could
get no fOod-I told him | thought he had
better not but was almost sorry when he
consented to stay execution. During the
voyage, say, talked to every body who
could or would talk to me, and | flattered
myself that was becoming very accom-
plished cosmopolitan Among those whom
I specially honored in this way was ayoung
lady who was travelling with her husband,
a man much older than herself They had
come from London. She was Polish, he
was an Italian and | need not say that to
an Englishman they ventured remarks
about oppressed nationalities, and their
being drawn together by a common mis-
fortune. Both spoke English very fairly,
and it was'a relief to me to converse with
them after my conscientious but painful
efforts to deliver my sentiments in French
Everybody should learn to talk French,
even at the cost Of cOnfOunding Pindari
with Pindar of Wakefield and the latter
with the Vicar. The husband was tall, ),
thin and gray, and rather shabbily dressed,|
long and rusty great-coat, and fur
cared cap, being the principal features in
his costume. He had worn earrings, for L
saw the holes, but the rings were gone j
perhaps he had been compelled to part.
with them. His face was rather handsome.
for foreigners, and his eyes were dark
and fine He always spoke in melan-
choly voice, which fact set down to exile
and trouble.


The lady was what i suppose should
now call prettyish-at that time thought
her very pretty indeed Plenty of light
hair, large blue eyes, and a mouth that
seemed always inclined to laugh, but
which was restrained, and made to substi-
tute pensive half-smile-those are my
recollections of the face as | first saw it,
and as / saw it until the time l am going
to speak Of do not know that it mat
ters, but Imay as well add that she was
rather tau, and wore a closely fitting dark
cloth dress, which showed that her figure
was good but slight. Her hands and feet
were not good--she hid the feet as much
as she could, but the hands she could not
help showing, at dinner-time particularly.
1t was at that meal that ] first spoke to
her. 1t was not a romantic introduction,
- Ii <>f
on my side; for | observed that the vile
wine which her husband had ordered--the
best he could afford-was distasteful to her,
and | ventured to offer them some OF mine.
Englishman like, | had, of course, selected
the most expensive thing to be had, and
that was bad enough. They seemed sur
prised, but accepted the offer with ready
good breeding, and we became travelling
friends. / sat near them good deal on
deck, lent the young wife my rugs and
wraps-her own appointments of that
kind were scant-and we grew very con-
fidential. 1t was not flirtation-let me
say that / was an engaged man at the
time--but they, or at least she, interested
me, and suppose she was pleased witbmy
interest. The husband was more fond of


going forward and smoking a huge pipe


than of joining in our conversation, but
he was always very civil and melancholy,
and accepted my cigars without any fuss
or undue gratitude. v sea9E W


Permit me to say that see what you
have made up your minds to hear. The
vain young Englishman made love to the
lady, and the husband resented it, and there
was scene. Nothing of the sort. Iwish
that had been the course of events. We
could not have fought with deadly