breadth for the Fairy Queen's robe, and we breathed more freely.

But a severe trial awaited Laura, too. "Night" was to appear in a black velvet robe, garnished with black lace and diamonds-lace and diamonds were already provided; both, it is needless to say, of the richest fabric and the purest water. A magnificent piece of velvet had been seen at Beck's a day or two earlier, and, with her usual decision, Laura had instantly ordered it home; but the order had most unaccountably been misunderstood; no velvet appeared, and to-day the mortifying intelligence arrived that some lady, on a shopping excursion from Baltimore, had carried off the entire piece. Conceive our just indignation if you can! That an order so positively given, an order of Miss Frippery, should thus be neglected, was past comprehension. In vain were all apologies and explanations -in vain were twenty pieces of very rich velvets, from the principal warehouses in town, unrolled and displayed; the beauty was not to be appeased. True to her noble feelings, she scorned even to touch, with her taper finger, any inferior fabric. The lost piece was generally admitted to have been unrivaled, a richer velvet had never yet crossed the ocean, and nothing, a shade less perfect, would Laura condescend to wear. It was impossible not to admire Laura as she stood in tragic dignity the centre of a sympathizing circle; her beautiful figure swelling with proud displeasure; her fine head turned in wrath towards the luckless apologizing clerk; her magnificent eyes flashing with indignation. Again the French lady came to our relief. Send to Paris, she proposed. Six weeks must still elapse before the fête of Madame In six weeks a velvet equally rich with that mademoiselle had lost might arrive in New York. True, the time was short; true, also, that velvets of that highly. superior quality were extremely rare even in Paris; still she felt convinced that, within six weeks, a piece, equally faultless with that now enriching the wardrobe of the Baltimore dame, might even be manufactured, and reach Thirtieth street in time for the great occasion. This was tolerably satisfactory, though a certain degree of anxiety must still be felt. O, for the submarine telegraph! Why was it not in activity for this our great emergency! Some ad

ditional annoyances were also experienced, on this occasion, with regard to a promised fan, surpassingly beautiful, intended to complete the costume of Nell Gwynn, represented by Helen, and a huge old-fashioned watch and pocketglass required to finish the dress of Olivia, who was to appear as Marguerite de Valois. If the choice of these last characters should surprise the reader, let him not confess the sensation.

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Nonsense, Tom, we mean no harm. What are the characters to us? The dress, as you very well know, is all we care for, and we have set our hearts on these very costumes. You are altogether too prudish at the Stumpery," exclaimed Olivia, in reply to a very subdued and kind hint of mine on this point.

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Hobbling into the boudoir the following morning, I found the young ladies engaged in a very animated discussion. 66 Berthe," 'bretelles," "bretelles," "berthe," were the words which greeted me, repeated over and over again, in the usual tones of the sisters, whichlet me whisper the fact in the reader's ear-were often rather shrillish.

"A berthe en cœur, I assure you. Good-morning, Mr. Fairfax. Bretelles spring from a higher point, and droop lower. Clearly a berthe à façon," observed the fair Laura, as I took a seat near her. A berthe à façon, trimmed with nœudlets-white satin nœudlets, with a pearl edge, a Tom Thumb tassel drooping from each, and just touching the row of Honiton inserting, within which ran a galon satiné, taste width!" Berthe," "bretelles," 66 'Honiton," "Tom Thumb tassels," "noudlets," "bretelles," "berthe," "Maltese," was the rather confused chorus in which the other sisters joined. The last word caught Laura's attention. "Maltese! My dear Olivia, the second row was Honiton!"

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Like Greek tragedy, the conversations in the boudoir were often kept up chiefly between two interlocutors, generally Laura and Olivia, the attendant sisters forming the necessary chorus.

"Please bear in mind that I danced in the same quadrille with Jane, and I could not keep my eyes off her berthe. It was the loveliest thing in the room!" "More lovely than the fair wearer?" I ventured to inquire.

Laura opened her beautiful eyes in unfeigned astonishment.

"Jane Stevenson is not in the least pretty-in fact, very plain," she replied. "I have not the honor of her acquaintance."

"She is Henry Stevenson's sister— cousin of John Stevenson."

Henry Stevenson was an excessively stupid and hideously ugly fellow, but a favorite partner of Carrie Frippery's. He was worth a million or two. John Stevenson, a clever young lawyer, was a hopeless admirer of Emma's. He was so poor he could scarcely pay his office-rent.

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Jane is, perhaps, the plainest girl in town. But such taste! Such an exquisite dresser!”

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Exquisite,' • delicious," ," "dresser," dresses," dressing," "admirable," 'faultless," "perfect," dresser," dresses," "dressing," dress," "dress," "dress," exclaimed the chorus, with a full burst of generous enthusiasm.

And she never wore anything more perfect in its way than that berthe à façon. So delicate, so fanciful, so distinguished. I have sometimes thought a few other girls dress as well as Jane Stevenson; but that berthe à façon has changed my opinion-so fresh, such an exquisite mélange!"

"Such a mélange, however, would not have been thought in good taste last year," observed the languid Julia, with an air of deep reflection on her Grecian brow.

"Of course not!" was Miss Laura's

rather contemptuous reply. "But melange is the idea of the season, and Jane's effort was perfect!"

"I wish, though, we could settle about the different rows-it would be such a satisfaction!" repeated Olivia.

"My dear Olivia! Do you not see that the second row must necessarily have been Honiton? The first, you will admit, was Valenciennes."

"O yes," "Valenciennes,” “certainly," "Valenciennes," 66 Valenciennes!" exclaimed the chorus.

"Very well! Once admit that, and the whole matter is settled. The first being Valenciennes, the second was Honiton, the third Maltese, in the natural order of things. The lightest above, the heaviest below. It is clear as day."

"But," observed Olivia, who, sweet creature, had a blue vein of obstinacy in her disposition, "you know, Laura, that irregularity in trimming is allowable!"

"Allowable, of course-the effect is often very good-irregularity is sometimes a proof of very high fashion. Lawson is often irregular."

Very well-perhaps it was so in this case."

"If I had never seen this berthe d façon, I might, perhaps, suppose so, too. But you forget that I stood full five minutes near Jane; and five minutes are sufficient, I should hope, for a woman of sense to know something of a berthe immediately under her eye. Why, in fact, I have many a time read the whole dress of a lady near me, in half that time, from her braid to her shoe-strings."

"You are certainly very quick in reading a dress, Laura; I admit the fact," was Olivia's cordial confession.

"Nothing is more easy, I am sure, if a woman is blessed with eyes and some sense," was Laura's modest rejoinder.

"But it is not every one that has your great facility in that way-"

"Well, I do hope Jane will wear the berthe to-night, and then we can settle the question," said Carrie.

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No probability of that. The berthe will never be seen again. Jane never wears a ball-dress more than twice."

our devotion to literature showing itself chiefly in attending fashionable lectures; where, of course, the dressing was not thrown away upon us. We were a well conducted household, we went to church regularly every Sunday morning, and sometimes in the afternoon too, when there was no company; but, true to our Vocation, the hats, and collars, and sleeves, in the main aisle, were always carefully reviewed. I acquired a great deal of valuable information about loves of mantillas, or frights of hats, on Sundays. If an engagement was announced, anticipations regarding the style of dress

and furniture were considered more than the happiness of the lovers. If a baby was born, its caps and cloaks were more affectionately handled than the infant itself. If a wedding took place, the laces, cachemires, or diamonds were, of course, the chief items of interest. And more than once, after a funeral, the style of the shroud and coffin ornaments afforded us ample material for boudoir talk.

The physicians had enjoined a course of relaxation and amusement. At first these came very readily. To have all these girls talking nonsense about me from morning to night, was delightful: they diverted me extremely. It was all so new, so strange, so different from my previous bachelor habits. After a while, when the novelty had somewhat passed off, a feeling of wonder and admiration arose-the unflagging devotion

of these fair creatures to the great object, their unwearied perseverance in the good cause, were astonishing. Their zeal literally rose superior to all fatigue; no desire for change of object was ever expressed; not the least symptom of exhaustion could be discovered where the toilet was in question. Nay, even in the midst of the arduous duties of a winter campaign, the sweet creatures were already anticipating the seasonslonging for spring openings:" looking eagerly forward to new summer wardrobes, to be displayed at New York or Saratoga.

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It may have been a consequence of

debility, but I confess that, at times, I now found it difficult to keep up with this extreme devotion to one subject. The powers of concentration seemed relaxed -or, in other words, I was guilty of an occasional yawn. I should, at this period, have made my visits to the boudoir less frequent; but, to take you into my confidence, good reader, I had now an especial motive for being there as often as possible. One morning, when too unwell to leave my room, as I sat languidly looking through the open door, I saw an object which immediately quickened my pulse, and aroused all my attention. The door of the boudoir

opened, and a lady came out. I instantly knew her to be the same who had already appeared to me in the car, and in the railroad cabin. The conviction of her identity flashed upon me at once; but, to make the matter more sure, she wore the same gray dress, and over her arm were thrown the same simple shawl and hat I had once so closely studied. She was alone; and, walking the entire length of the passage without observing me, went quietly down stairs. I was breathless with surprise and pleasure. Hobbling to the bell, I rang it instantly; but judge of my vexation when it proved impossible for me to discover who this visitor was. The servants had not seen her-the ladies themselves were out-no card had been left! One declared it must have been a milliner's messenger, another a female burglar! My indignation at the last accusation excited so much merriment, that my lips were henceforth closed; but, resolved to watch all visitors to the boudoir very closely, I continued even more regular in paying my court to the ladies than heretofore. Alas! the consequences were not what I had hoped. The gray dress and the gentle face did not return, while I myself began to suffer severely in health and spirits.

I became, indeed, very strangely affected. Singular symptoms, wholly different from what I had hitherto felt, began to appear. I lost all appetite. My spirits, generally so good, were very low. Languor and listlessness crept over me. I became frightfully nervous. The rustling of a silk dress made me turn pale. The fluttering of feathers threw me into agitation. An intricate pattern of embroidery produced giddiness. Bugles made me see double. Furs caused a feeling of intolerable suffocation. Jewelry brought on great oppression on the chest. The play of a spray of artificial flowers had an extremely unpleasant effect. Nay, even the most beautiful natural flowers, if placed in a jeweled bouquet-holder, produced very serious discomposure.

In vain I struggled against the attack; the evil went on rapidly increasing. Feeling, in this condition, wholly unfit for society, especially that of the boudoir and its lovely inmates, I withdrew to the seclusion of my own room, and should, perhaps, have gradually regained calmness there; but, alas! a general conspiracy seemed forming

against me. My uncle, the physician, the ladies-all agreed that now, more than ever, cheerful society was absolutely necessary-quiet and seclusion were strictly forbidden. Some days I was dragged back to the boudoir; at other times, the doors of my own apartment were thrown open, and Mrs. Glit tery, with the young ladies, kindly came to entertain me with their chit-chattalk over the last ball, display a new cachemire, or show the last trinket from Tiffany's. Little did I gain in this way; on the contrary, every day strength and spirit seemed to be wasting more and more.

At length, the very night of the great fancy ball, I was seized with an attack so violent, and so extraordinary in its character, as very seriously to alarm my friends. I had thrown myself exhausted on my bed, just as the ladies left the room, after kindly devoting half an hour to showing me their beautiful costumes, in full completeness. As the brilliant array swept through the door, on their way to the saloons, I fell on the bed, and, closing my eyes in utter weariness, endeavored to shut out the noise of wheels, and clamor of coaches, already commencing beneath my windows. How long I lay in this state, I cannot say; but I was suddenly and most effectually aroused. The door of

As

my room opened again, and, to my surprise, I beheld the same gay troop returning to honor me with a second visit. Led by Laura, superb as a night of the tropics, they tripped in, forming a sort of basket-dance as they entered-their beautiful faces and figures, and charming drapery of laces and flowers, making a picture to delight the eye of one in a sounder condition than I then was. they whirled lightly but rapidly about me, my head began to turn, and the compliments I was about to utter died on my lips. I fell back on the pillows in a half fainting condition. Faster and faster flew the feet of the fair dancers; nearer and nearer the circle narrowed about me. Not a word was spoken, not a sound was heard-all was pantomime: graceful, but rapid, bewildering pantomime. Not the faintest murmur of music reached me. The fair creatures seemed moving like the nymphs on the Grecian vase, to unheard melodies. In the midst of these whirling evolutions, marked and wild in their movement, the fluttering gauzes and laces appeared to pass