out a torrent of adoration, calling me his love, his life, the star of his destiny-in short, his affianced wife.

For this I was certainly not prepared, and I believe I shewed on the occasion a little more "dignity" than had been expected from me. Nevertheless, the man had fascinated me; and I know not to what depths of imprudence I might have been lured, had not some small circumstance aroused the suspicion of faithful old Gibson, who took upon himself to tell my father all he had dis

covered.

'Can I ever forget the morning when I was sent for, and confronted with Madame Barvillier, who had been summoned from the school-room half an hour previously, and forbidden to leave the library till I had been questioned in her presence! My dear mother, who alone was seated, seemed drowned in tears; while my father, white with anger, white with the suppressed passion of a man accustomed to exercise self-control, stood leaning on both hands at one end of a long table; while Madame Barvillier, at the other end, knelt on a footstool-on which, perhaps, she had dropped for some sort of support, rather than exactly in supplication.

'I was arraigned, and pleaded guilty to the charge of meeting secretly and holding converse with a stranger, and of deliberately concealing from my parents every transaction connected with the acquaintanceship. Good old Gibson had already been my counsel for the defence, and, as I long afterwards discovered, had pleaded every extenuating circumstance, which, after all, could be only one-namely, that I had acted by the advice of my governess.

'I was ordered to fetch the verses which had so turned my head; and I did so, carrying them in a little blue silk bag in which I had kept them. At the bottom of the bag was the ring; and when my father drew it forth, I covered my face with my hands, and wept for very shame.

"What is this?" said my father, "Be pleased to explain."

"To my surprise, Madame was silent. I wondered that she left me to narrate the history of the precious jewel. But hardly had I mentioned the royal lady who was said to have once possessed it, than my father burst into a bitter laugh; and carrying the ring nearer to the window, he gazed at it for half a minute; then, by sheer strength, his fingers snapped it in two, as he exclaimed: "Base metal and green glass! I see there was really a plot. Daughter, ask your mother to pardon you; and lead her away, while I deal with this woman."

'I felt I did not dare to touch my mother's hand; but ever obedient to my father's slightest wish, she instantly rose; and I, holding open the door for her to pass, then mutely followed her out of the

room.

'When we were alone, I sat down penitently and poured out the whole story of my regret and shame. So little given to, demonstration as my mother herself was, I think my vehemence almost frightened her. But I know that at last she yielded to my entreaty, and putting her hand lightly on my shoulder, kissed me on my forehead. But though that kiss of forgiveness soothed my sorrow, peace and self-reconcilement were long in coming. Nor did my father ratify his forgiveness quite so speedily as my mother had done. Those were bitter nights, when I was dismissed by him without the

accustomed benediction-and mournful days, when I received only a frigid morning recognition. 'As for Madame Barvillier-she was allowed one hour to pack up, and then a post-chaise conveyed her to the next town. What became of her and her associate, the pretended duke, I never knew with any degree of certainty. But twenty years later there was a cause célèbre, in which an old Frenchwoman appeared and a foreigner, accused of swindling and forgery, the description of whom singularly tallied with that of the impostor in question.'

There was a pause; and it was Mrs Dudley who broke the silence, saying, with evident emotion : 'Mother, it was kind and generous of you to give the girls the benefit of this story. Once you told it me in my girlhood, and I think it was like a chart laid down, that warned me from listening to flattery, or indulging idle dreams about romantic admirers. But the strange thing is, that you are now the last person in the world that could have been thought guilty of an imprudence even in early youth.'

"That is,' replied Lady Elderton, 'because I was blessed in my surroundings-blessed with parents who shewed me how to profit by the sharp lesson I had learned. Yet do not think I have not paid some penalty, if only in the painful associations which often arise. I gave up painting early in life, because the occupation constantly recalled scenes I wished to forget. As for emeralds-pieces of green glass, perhaps-they glare at me even across a room, as if in their verdant beauty they were the eyes of a snake.'

But surely, dear mother, you have had a happy life,' said Mrs Dudley tenderly-happy, at least, for many, many years?' she added.

It

'I was supremely happy in my married life,' returned Lady Elderton; and my story would be incomplete, if I did not try to contrast the true love of an honourable man with the deceptive flatteries of an unprincipled fortune-hunter. may be taken as a golden rule, that no lover means well who prompts a young girl to concealment, or seeks to load her with the ever-increasing burden of a clandestine engagement. Poets and novelists have much to answer for in so often making what they call love paramount, something to be indulged, and its blind impulses obeyed, before simple old-fashioned duties. Yet the greatest poets do not sin thus. Shakspeare knew better than to reconcile the Montagues and Capulets while their children lived. And the Moor might have trusted Desdemona till Iago was unmasked, had not Othello remembered that she had deceived her father-though it was for him. Oh, that young people would but believe that their elders do not necessarily forget the emotions and temptations of youth, when they offer advice that is contrary to youthful impulse!'

6

Ah, you don't forget!' murmured Lotty. 'No; I do not,' continued Lady Elderton; 'and yet I declare that a breath of mystery about a young girl's affections dims their purity-impairs all her chances of happiness. Nay, there is no happiness in married life, except where a man leads a woman onwards and upwards; and how can he do this, if he has not himself a true soul! How can he teach her to be strong and faithful, and to walk aright through all the slippery paths of life-if he has previously taught her error, and

been her tempter-if he has offered her the false jewel of his pretended love, and in requital of her acceptance, has robbed her of her sincerity!'

Lady Elderton had warmed with her theme, and her last sentences had been spoken with real pathos. Her summer evening tale had been told and commented on, leaving a deep impression on the auditors. The twilight had by this time deepened into night, and light clouds obscured the moon. Presently, the clock struck; then Lotty rang the bell for the servants to assemble, and Mrs Dudley rose from her couch to conduct the family devotions.

It was midnight, and the house was so utterly still that the ticking of the hall-clock alone broke upon the silence; save in a large bedchamber, where two white beds remained as yet unpressed by Charlotte and Isabel Dudley. The two girls were in their loose wrappers, with their long hair plaited and arranged for the night, just as their maid had left them, so far as the toilet was concerned, but both were weeping, and Isabel was in an attitude of dejection and shame.

'It is a relief, Lotty, to have told you,' exclaimed Isabel; but oh! I am wretched and ashamed. Can it can it be that grandmamma has noticed or suspected something, and so told her own story to-night-every word of which touched my heart as an accusation? Can she have read his intentions -and suspected my folly?'

'I cannot tell,' replied her sister. But, Isabel, if you are wise, you will confess everything to grandmamma, and ask her guidance.'

'I will-I promise you I will.'

'Then do it at once,' returned Lotty. Often she sits reading far into the night. Let me look if the light is shining from her room-it always

shews beneath the door."

'Oh, surely she is asleep by this time.' 'At anyrate, let me ascertain if it be so,' resumed Lotty, opening the door gently. "Yes; I see the light; she is still up. Go now-go while you have the resolution.'

Thus strengthened by sisterly sympathy and good counsel, Isabel knocked at Lady Elderton's door, and was promptly admitted. No room in the house was better known to her than that bedchamber, yet, to-night, its adornments impressed Isabel in a manner they had never done before. Her grandfather's sword and epaulets hung on the wall, with many memorials to his fame and honour; his portrait looked down upon the scene; while the widow, majestic in her age, and serene in her sorrow, sat with her gray hair floating over her shoulders, and an open Bible before her. Serene she was in the sorrow of her widowhood, but tonight there was a trouble on her face-a trouble arising from her belief that Isabel was entangling

herself in a mystery.

Yes, but a mystery that is not to be explained, since at that midnight hour, in that sacred chamber, a full confession was made, and a foolish letter, sealed and stamped quite ready for the post, was burned unread-burnt, together with the letter, something worse than foolish, which had drawn it forth. Was it singing-master, or handsome penniless ne'er-do-well acquaintance, or military partner at a ball, who had been seeking surreptitiously the hand of Isabel Dudley, co-heiress of a large property, but under age, and very inexperienced of the

world and its evil ways? I shall not tell. Such schemers' plans are singularly alike, though always with a difference. It is enough that Isabel Dudley had strength given her to shake off a brief infatuation. Travel, and reading, and cultivated society, during the next year or two, enlarged her mind, and quickened her intellectual faculties, so that her standard of excellence was altogether heightened.

mean

There is a rumour that both sisters are engaged to be married-to suitors perfectly approved by their parents. Perhaps 'romantic' young people may say Approved because they are men of wealth and position.' But that is not the chief because; though, principles being good, and characters being sympathetic, it is no guarantee for happiness that married people are of the same rank in life, have had similar associations, and, in fact, have lived during their early life in a similar social atmosphere. And perhaps unfortunate marriages would sometimes be prevented, if elder friends and relatives spoke sympathetically to the young while yet there was time to retrace a false step; or if they emulated the self-sacrifice of Lady Elderton, when, to 'point a moral,' she related the story of her own girlish folly.

ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS.

Of all that occupies the attention of the naturalist, there is nothing more interesting than the study of the habits of animals, their various instincts, and the intelligence which they display. Anecdotes, perfectly well authenticated, concerning dogs and elephants, sufficiently attest their intelligence; and any one who keeps a dog, and watches its behaviour with attention, will soon see enough to remove all doubt on the point. But many animals, as well as dogs and elephants, exhibit similar proofs of intelligence, although not perhaps in equal degree. We propose now to relate a few anecdotes illustrative of intelligence in animals of different kinds, most of them from personal observation, one or two as communicated to us by persons whose testimony we could not but unhesitatingly accept.

A sinall menagerie exhibited at a fair in a village in Ayrshire was much crowded with visitors. Amongst the animals was a brown bear, not shut up in a cage, but fastened by a chain in a corner of the area, which was fenced off by a slight rail, that people might not go too near him. A woman who was there with a basket, selling gingerbread, however, went so near, that Bruin, putting forth his huge paw, clutched the basket, which he quickly drew from her hand, emptying most of its contents upon the ground within the space allotted to himself. She began to make some attempt to recover her gingerbread, but the animal, offering no violent resistance, quietly lay down upon it, and then proceeded to draw it forth piece by piece, and to eat it at his leisure. Something of reason was surely displayed by the bear, in adopting this method to secure possession of the gingerbread.

A farmer in Renfrewshire had a horse which

systematically got hold of and carried away the young ducklings, even from close to their mother. With a view to circumvent the rats, the maternal duck and her young were housed for the night under a coop, which admitted of no opening for the furtive intruders. The rats were not to be so easily cheated of their prey. On discovering that the mother-duck and her family were closely shrouded from intrusion, they devised a pretty plan of engineering, which was eminently successful. In the course of a single night they excavated a tunnel, going below the outer edge of the coop to its interior, and thus very neatly, without producing any alarm, stole every duckling from under the guardianship of the mother.

Two rats belonging to the same colony performed a feat quite as ingenious. A trap which was baited for their capture, was habitually plundered without securing a single rat. They had evidently invented some plan for safely stealing away the bait, and what the plan was could only be learned by setting a watch on the trap. We shall explain how the theft was effected. The trap was of the kind which is sometimes employed for catching mice. It was a box with a sliding door, which was sustained by mechanism connected with the bait. On the bait being nibbled at, the door descends and makes the mouse a prisoner. The two rats saw through the device, and resorted to the following very simple but effectual method to take away the bait, which was a piece of toasted cheese, and yet escape imprisonment. One of them placed itself under the door, so that it might fall on its back, while the other crept in and successfully carried off the morsel of cheese. The first rat then drew itself from under the door, and joined its companion. This demonstration of rat intelligence, like the preceding incident, is of

recent occurrence.

Our next anecdote relates to an animal of a very different kind, a magpie. Amongst the poultry at a country-house in Renfrewshire was a turkey-hen, that preferred, as turkeys often do, to make her nest among bushes on the side of a burn, some three hundred yards from the house, rather than in the outhouse appropriated to the poultry. A magpie, chancing to be perched one day on a neighbouring tree, saw the turkey visit her nest, and pounced down on the newly laid egg as soon as the turkey had left it, proceeding without loss of time to make a hole in the shell, and extract a portion of its contents. From that day forth, the magpie was never absent from the vicinity of the nest about the hour of the forenoon when the turkey was accustomed to repair to it, but, seated on one or other of the trees, kept watch for the opportunity of so delicious a repast; so that it was found necessary to follow the turkey pretty closely in order to obtain her egg unbroken by the magpie's bill.

The last anecdote that we propose to tell concerns a trout. Few anecdotes have been told of the intelligence of fishes, and they do not generally get credit for much of it, nor do they probably possess much. Yet that they do possess some measure of it, appears from the well-known fact, that carp in ponds have learned to come at a certain signal to be fed, and something of the same kind has been observed of some kinds of sea-fish in a marine fish-pond. It would be worth while for any one who has an aquarium to direct his

attention to this subject, and to keep a record of his observations. Ours were made on a trout in a burn. Its place of abode was under a stone in a small pool, immediately below a wooden bridge, over which the path led from the house in which we resided to the garden. It was a pleasing amusement for boys to feed the trout with worms, which were readily to be procured in the garden; and the trout was fed accordingly, and soon learned to come out from below the stone, and seize the worm thrown into the pool, whatever number of spectators might be close at hand on the bridge, and although some of them might be a little noisy. But it was thought proper to try a trick upon the poor fish, and to present him with a very small long radish, instead of a worn. Out came the trout at once, the radish in shape and colour being pretty like a worm, and caught it ere it reached the bottom; but quickly spat it out again, and retreated to the shelter of the stone. Once or twice afterwards, the trick was successfully repeated; but the trout soon learned to distinguish a radish from a worm, and ceased to come out for the one, although prompt enough in coming for the other.

A WORD ABOUT TIMBER. THOUGH iron ships are now so generally made, it is yet a subject of great consideration how to supply our dockyards with suitable material to be used in ship-fittings. In this country, where our forests are neither large nor numerous, the stout heart of oak is often replaced by the valuable teak from India, which is almost incorruptible, or the mahogany; whilst in France, the oak and the Riga pine are almost exclusively used; the first for the shell of the vessel, the panels, and sideplanks; the second, for the masts. These kinds of wood are sold at a very high price, because they possess a homogeneous structure, and are without a flaw. To the oak must be added the fir, the pine, and the larch, as used for buildings. The pieces for timber-work are cut on the spot; this operation, by despoiling the trees of their bark and some of their sap, reduces their size, and makes their transport more easy. It is from the Vosges

and Jura Mountains that the immense fir trunks come which are used for scaffolding.

When trees are intended to be cut up into planks, the work is usually done in the forests of the continent. The sawyer's work is separate from the wood-cutter's, and it is a long and tedious business to stand across the tree and saw from end to end by the help of a cord. In England, where the wood cannot conveniently be carried away to the saw-mill, small movable steam-mills are placed in different parts of the forest. Resinous woods, which are lighter and less difficult to carry than oak, are cut into logs of four or five yards in length, and taken to the mills, which are placed beside a stream of water not far from the forest. This business is carried on to a great extent in the Vosges Mountains; they run from south to north, parallel to the Rhine, opposite those of the Black Forest, their contemporaries in the age of creation; and being formed of granite, or a kind of red sandstone dry and pulverised, constitute a soil too poor for cereals, but admirably fitted for forest culture.

Wiser than the Swiss, the mountaineers of the Vosges avoid the mistake of denuding their peaks to transform them into pasture-grounds; they only