Year: 1875

The next evening she was taken to the
theatre; the next, to q concert the next, to
some other place of entertainment. In the
daytime she was driven out in handsome
carriage, and enjoyed the pleasure of shopping
with Mrs. Anthony, who allowed her time to
inspect and admire everything, and presented
her, besides, with books, trinkets and bon
bons-a host of treasures as it seemed to the
child. for which she could not be sufficiently
grateful.


Thus the week passed swiftly away. AS
the time approached for the answer to her let
ter to arrive, Nita began to look forward to
it with an anxiety which was not wholly
pleasurable. Mingled with. her desire to see
her uncle and friends again, was scarcely
defined reluctance to return to her former
life. The occupation which had hitherto
seemed such congenial one had become, in a
measure, distasteful to her imagination. She
felt herself capable of more ennobling pursuits,
and had become alive to the many disadvan-
tages which had always encompassed her, and
was now desirous of improving her mind, and
becoming acquainted with the habits and
manners of refined society. This change could
never have been wrought in her feelings by
intercourse with Mrs. Anthony alone. 1t was
Mr.. Lasselle's society which had effected it;
nor was it any wonder that it should be so,
seeing that he had devoted his attention to
pleasing and fattering her, and to making her
time pass in the most delightful manner. AS
his sister had said, no one could be more fas-
cinating than he, when he chose to and he
now bent all his powers to the task of making
favorable impression, in order to attain the
object he had in view.


He admired Nita sincerely, and was charm
ed by her simplicity and artlessness, and by
the native refinement which her rude educa'
ton, much to his wonderment, had so little i'm
paired. Genuine as was his admiration, how
ever, the thought of marrying her never en-
tered his mind but to be Immediately discard
ed as an impracticable one. He had horror
of matrimony. Libertine though he was, be
had sense of the sacredness of the marriage
VOW, and had always vowed that he would
never trammel himself with yoke from
which he knew he would ere long be dying to
break loose. But to have this beautiful girl
with him as his companion, his friend-to
make her the pet and plaything of his life,
was what he desired ; and his aim was now to
accomplish this object in such a manner as,
while slowly and surely making himself mas
ter of her heart, and moulding her by gentle
arts to his will, would not terrify her delicacy
or alarm her pride.


Poor Nita, utterly unconscious of the snares
and pitfalls which encompassed her, was fast
yielding to the influence which he so we'll
knew how to establish over her. No suspi.
cion of dishonor entered her mind. In her
thoug she had already invested this new
friend with all the noblest attributes of man.
hood, chivalry and truth. and believed that
she could do no better than to follow his
''ua u1Fec1lon' a pang crossed her
ieaIt, uluu Vic u,Ivusuv


Cured to her. She felt, independently of the
actual loss of his panionship, that it would
be almost degradation to her to descend
from the height to which he had elevated her
into the obscure daily routine, the gaud and
glitter and mock 6nery of her former life,
which had gradually assumed such an ignoble
aspect in her eyes.


The week was past, and no letter from uncle
Dan was forthcoming. Two, three, more days
elapsed, and Nita wrote again, and yet again,
and waited, and waited, but with the same
result. 1t is needless to say that these letters
met with the same fate as the former one /;
but even had they reached their destination,
they would not have found the individual to
whom they were addressed, as Mr.. Foley's
troupe had by this time removed to another
city, aud uncle Dan, though now separated
from them, had also left the place, and was
using every effort to discover elsewhere some
traces of his lost darling.