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The Tired Wife. Ml i\ii\ tf.\ [licwif â-  beoii tPillna. Ki. jii an early i v)Nr m the iiiorii Ati'l iior ImtiJh «n<l li-ut wore wrary Vitb tliebui JriiA ihattli'-v Imd b.*r .a . lint bhe Kaid to h^TM-If . - Th.- trnub! â-  Tliat uoijiln ou II. y iioarl is ttiUâ€" Tlial Ti'in uevvr thmka to^^i.oiu* A c â- mloriiiiK hug ui ;i Iti&i. â- â€¢ I 11) willing to do my lUity 'I . i:suaU ti;\ hlretit^th a'lti ; v Akii! 1l i;takiii»c the huiiii) aliracli^r. I:, -triviiit^iny l'l"i-*ti to till. r...' ihouRh i!.r ftpi'ri)\ al <â- * (i.nK-i-ii' a I - lUi ot, I aiu fri'c ti • say, 'J .; It it Toiu won 111 i-ivc ino a hiiij an 1 a ki i- I wi :.!d taK< all th( tii<' awu> A:. 1 1" countt'ii nv.-r and "\.r 'I ii'- yeari* Bhu had betn To ;: > wit.-. All t th.>ut>ht (if the joys aud h«rif>w9 Ml had known iu I'T imrr'ud l.t-v T" I'f "'jrH Ihcn- waH mur-.ey plt-nty. A:i t t., \ ) a la. k ..t t 1 . }i\ i kits iMW and iluMi imd a W')i'd of praise, \'. , â-  1 li 1 , (• don-' hui a ^Y rid "! it, t ni An uiaii> a 'â- â-  - i" lonuinn 1". .â-  i\ MI i . :liat ar« iii-v«r p;iid Aim :ii my H litartK""* lrji.:irv ] r bi i;j- Uii ^;; bill>i ihaii hr il , Hi;' Ti'in liad au inspiration. A .d u :.â-  n 1 10 ttiul I ain- iimt I ly, llu p)?Uvd hi.-i wif<- aiKl U.i^*i' i iMT I . ;j,'- ol I tiuuv 1 -v-r Ukt wa: . A;, i -'J< -M.rli oi.iRiiiiis an' W(imi-;i ' \\ .iw l;a«l lieidlscrttuK v.i* with pride. A id li«r Inisband B display ol f >udu<>bs. •V ,-L 1.-:o(; ''D Tib tu'ck and cried A:id li«. by tit-r Kind rcnii'ided OI uo, jLIi - hf mi;;ht I avo -.t arnl. K.rid - r.losii .i.y ht,'art wKat a I ml I vu !• n. A.. ! I di in'l suppojio \ on fare<l ' 13EL1NM: A BEAUTY A . i hli.' tella her storiea well . cirania li/iiny a hoeno lu Bi>*niah hero, tlir<iwiu>; m f< >tn'j caastic bit ot mimicry tliure, kecpiij^ her cliaracterB vi\id and li. ing before her audience, &lw») a. " W'l: h»ve h»(i eno'jgh, more th»n enoiiyi Bcaudal," cried Umbo at Lib'.. " Vou have <jiiite tak?D in; breath away, Uelinda. 'ilieg'j m:iy bi the taoralitica ol foreign wat.'ring (ilacea, the iubjucte of foreign con vorsation, but thty are not English. 1 de- clare, when we wcr" girU «e did not know Hie meauing of evil ' ' '' liow hard of comiirehenaion yoti must Live been, my dear," observed Belinda chi!irfully. " 1 suppoao that w«h in the Innousnt d»ya when yo't (irat met Captain Temple .' I'tie ta'iat mukea Ilog'T himself wince. 'Xue innocent da li when he tirat wliiapered Im faiBion to old Khelamdeanea young wife bcii le th? hippojiotamus ! â- ' Von are Bev,;rc Ihia evening, Ittliuda. ' ho remarka coldly. 'â-  Vou make no diatmc- t.or, between friiinl ai:d foe Hose, my dear," bandiugovur the widow and whisper- ing -)(.t liol BO low but tlial neliiida'a ear can c»tch every lo.r lik>' nyllable "is it no'- iite for you Ij b« <)ai. after all the fitiguea of yoar journey ; Let me take you Lack to the hotel, dearest. Vou hiok pale." 'Uh, but lleliiiiia, ' tjays Uijaogaierously, and making a fimt of â- iu;tting her lover's arm. " Don t anybody think of nie ! beo litliuda hour: 'irat.' ' Than ka, very much. Kjsa," cried tll^ (jirl. " Ai lie' idn has been seeing her.sulf Jioiii') (only b1. never had a honiei dii»iug the laat four yeai -i. ohe will probably b'' <juite cajiable of doing ill") .same tonight." ' Jfâ€" if i may bi; allowed'' And Wr. Jones ptitu himself forward in obtuieiioe to a glance bu received frou. Uuaa. '' It is toi late foi Mids O Kii-a to piud throi:gh tho town without in escort ' " iMiaa dSliua has i;ol Cotita ! it bur C's:oM," begins Itelintla, with hir uaual sturdy independence, ili-:i abruptly nho discovers tli*t Uoger Temple ia w«t;hing her fac-, and a new freak of pirveraity tak'B i>o»be»hioii of lior. â-  Mina <) rtlioa has got Coata, but she will \y: only t'Kj glad of jour protection, now nud ai all tuina. Mr. Jonea! ' -aniiliug alfectional«!ly al .lonea with her lipJ. and mocking liirn, riiiciiling liim, deajnaing him with her eyes, ' Vou will ace if that is not a match, ' remarks Koje. aa the two ligurea walk away together in the moonlight CUAl'TKU Ml. MAMIIJ.V In.Nh IIM V VT. 'ihe> walk for a considerable liiuo in uilence, Belinda and Mr. .lonea. At laat, 'I hope you have forgiven nie for not feeding Coata on iiiaccarooas'.'" wUiap^jrh the young man, jiieasing her unrosiioneive hand ever so little to his aide. •â- 1)0 you, Mr. .loneaâ€" why ?" fiho accepts his arm out of alieerest jHirvorsitN , and because aha gu.'saed that curtain eyen were watching her, but her heart feela wicked agninat poor Auguatua, wic:kcd aj{«in.-t iha whole bright world which forma a background fo- Uogar Temple and for J! lao. " Wliou I kn'iw people detest me, I won!. I inn -h rather be wilhout their for- giveniis than with it." Not an encouraging answer for a man on the eve of propo->Hig. Hut Mrs. (J'Shea'a waryarta itiiring that atarlight conversation on the terrai ;) have broughi iji Mr. .loiies' resolution to the atickiiig poini. Ho i.iucli familiar talk of l.ady Altboa and Lord Lionel " l!Llind»'a ueareat relations, Mr. Jones -the people, whenever our dear Kelinda doca settle in London, vs-ith whom she and her hti^jband iiiuat be nonatantly and intimiitely thrown"â€" so mnoh familiar talk, I eay, about pusaiblu coiiahia in (ha peerage, not iinmingled with aiiggestiona that. 111 our dear llelinda'a po-iition, a happy early urnon, ratlu-r than large aottleiiieots ia what Uoaie'aatep maternal heart yi^arna after, haa made Mr. Jones reaolato to win or give np all to night. He doea nut love, he H'jea no remotest chan<:o of bringing liiinHulf to love thi.s meagre, dark-skinned, bitter tungiied initi- of an oarl'a granddaughter. But Jonea is not a man to hi turned from any project, oommurcial or mttrimouial, by obstacles BO paltry aa poraonal likes or dialikes, Th>,' oarlicat aacred truth ioatilled into his i:hild- isb aoiil, hia bighu^it matuiu conception of moral law, ia tliat (Ihriatiaiis and English- men ahould buy in the cheapest market whatever article they reijuire. He, Jones, rojuirea the article birth , has hunted it up and down many Engliah watering places, as men of the (Joruelius U Shea genua hunt money ; aii.l now haa it nmler hia hand, to ba bought for a aong (did not lioaio wisely throw iu the hint about modest settle- ments?) the only dilliculty being a:i to the article'a consent. But after sunning him self in the widow's amilo, and liatoiiing tn the willow's silky tUtteriea during tha past hour and a half, Mr. Jones cannot but feel that he is a very captivating fellow, indeed, ia women's eyes, and enturtaia hut little fears ai to that. "I bavo never been fortunnto unoagh to find you at homa yat. Miss O'Shea." Ue makes this next attempt at tender talk just as they reai h the Maiaon Lobobiague, on the third floor of which Wiaa liurko aud Belinda lodge. " I should like," sentiment- ally, "to aeuthe apartment where you apeud your time, if I might.'" It seuma to him that the taak of bringing her to terms will be eaaier of acuumpliah- ment indoors than out. Never yet haa he !^een Belinda between four walla, aud the idea strikes him that she may prove more manageable within a restDJtud apace; like a -^ juirrel in a cage, a colt within a p^nnd, or any other inferior animal whom it ia man's supreme pleasure to tame and sub- jugate. " The apartment where I spend my time. Burke's den '. Well, if you want to see it, you had better o.ie your lega and walk up now. Mias Burke, as you know, ia away ; our servant actually we have a servant, Mr. Jones, just to set oar aoup going of a morning â€" went otl to the bull light at Eon- tarabia yesterday aud haa not appeared since. So you must not expect to aeo thinga in apple-pie order. " Bheijuits his arm. bestows a series of hugs and farewells on (^oata â€" the poor old dog, well-trained, stopping discreetly three or four paces away from Mi-ts Burke's threshold â€" then vanishes oot of sight be- neath an overhanging atone portfrochiTf or anhwav, whither Mr. Jonea, hia dapper feet tortured by the atones, his yellow- kidded hands exte;:ded to save his nose from collision with the wall, follows her. Tli9 dark, winding staircase seems trebly dark after the intense moonlight of the streets: and Mr. .!3u -j, a careful man not onlv as regards moral bit bodily risks, pauses at the bottom. ' (;ome along, if you are coming," rings out Uelinda'a voice from airy heights over- head. There is plenty of light when once you got ap here, only look out after your ahina mi-anwhile " I he " plenty of light" proceoda from a solitary oil lamp, which sheds its dim, re- ligious rays before the figure of a saint on tiiu landing of the second tl jor. ' Wo live one atorv higher still," aays B. linda, Mr. Joiie-i stopping to turn up hia British nose at this work of sacerdotal art. " And unless Juanita happens to have left a candle, I shall have to entertain vou in the dark. However, there is the moon." "And and the brightness of your eyes, Belinda ! " sayn Jones, groping his way U|> the ateep ataircaae after her. "And what'.'" shouts the girl sharply, through the darkness. " 'Ihere is such an echo, Mr. Jones--uo hearing a woid uilesa you H|H'ak more distiuctiv . What did you say would light us .' But aomothing, eitii<:r in the tone of her voice or in the distance that aeparaica them, reatraina Mr. Jon^s from again launching into the ha/.ardou4 r'^^ion of coniplimeiit. Half ajar stiiuds a huge oakuii doiir blackened with time, crasi -d wiih din, a door aa ol<1. prohably, ai the aolid inaHonry â-  f the house. On a vi^oroua push from the Llirl's hand, it cr.^.aks rilowly ba«-k upon its liiiiKeu aud .Mr. .'ooea is introducod to â- â€¢ Burktt'aden, " a room ligger than Iain of Wijht chnrcn. thj roof joiated and innocent of all uiodurn rehoemeut of lath and plaa- ti-r, the walla of the indescribable amuki-y grey ot ages. \ aat pictures of nainls and martyrs in ditt'erent stages of burning or mutilation, Kreiiih I'.udiea, probably after Hibura, exaggiTati ma, nightinarea of that master's moat e.\pulaiv(i realism, hang around. Kaiuta anil cobweiij may. itulet-il, be said to furiiLsh the room. Of furniture proper there ii â€" » tabli,- that waa once carved and gilt, rrjvv in tlie last stage of rickety decay, an i of which im« log is propped up by a pile of battered b. i )ka , a lefty pier glass, nverd.m with aiiti.|uity for pur poaes ot n.tleclion ; three oripplisl chairs, piled pell-iiiell at the piaaeut moment iu a corner; and a ahilf containing in all about twflve pieces ot crockery, of itifferent ai/.-a and patterns .Mr. Jouu/i KiOlUi around him, op-u- moiithed, Itc.linia l.nTiiig lienn fortunate enough I i lin 1 a caudle wnoae solitary ligiit barely pieri^es fr mi: -r:! to-tud of thn auinlire shadowy room " Anrt you â€" yii livii lure " he exclaims, with unatTecte.1 ama :enieiit. "What a place - what pictonis ! It gives onu the horrors to look at thi.'iii." "Well, \ ea lb) Maiion l.uhobaigiiu is nut fiiriiiahed a xording toClapham taate," retorta Belinda, with her frank imperti iiuiice. " But it suits nie hotter. 1 hka the old, shabby room, Mr. Junes, and the 'orrid pictures and the cobwebs ; yea, ami 1 ahoiild be very sorry to ei'hango them tor any stuccoed cockney gentility. I have lived here two y MIS off and on ; iMiiaBiiike has made it a sort of headijuarters in all her coinings and goings, an I I have i^rown to the place. I! Buriiu would only get killed oil a railway or made a profeaaoress, or anything, I -.li'vild be luito content to atop in the I.iu .uaigue with Coata al ways I " And now Aug isi is feels is the time for him to crush .lown on this poor pauper child with the magiiiticenne of his offer. " Miaa O'Shoa Belinda" ho criea, coining up beside her very close, "there ia no necessity for yon to spend your days iu these miserable for.-ign places any longer. Kinoe I saw yr^i this afternoon 1â€" ahemâ€" I have been talking to your mamma." " Ktep mamma. If you are not accurate you are nothing.' " And 1 have maiia my mind npl I have made m> mind up, fully, saya Jones, with magoaiiimily, ' as to my line of comluct. There may aeum, tlieri are disparities." He glances with an air of condescenaion at tha girl's ilr-ss, at the appointments of the meagre room. " Still, aa Mrs. O'Hhea aays, six months of the lirat educational advan tages in I'higland would work wondera, and, at our aga, wa can afford to wait, oan we not?" " I should answer better if I had a ' glimmering notion of what you moan by ' wo.' Are you going to school again, Mr. Jonea'.' Mind your • h'a,' you know, if you do." " Belinda," hia voice shakes, his color rises. (How hideous he ia, communes Be- linda with herself I How the raoaiiuito- bitea glow and radiate from out that purple bluah !) " Do you think you over 1 mean, I know 1 never " confound it all, why will the girl tix thoae hard eyes of hers â- upon hia face' -"never saw any one so likely to make ma happy. Oh, come, you miisn't take your hand away - " which aho docs, with iinmistakablu energy, the momont she foels hia touch. " I will not let >ou go till you answer mo. Belinda, could you ever oara for ma anouih to be my wife?" ' Vou are a more complete fool than I took yoQ for, Mr. Jones. If yon really want me, ine to marry yon, why not say so like a rational being, instead ot stammering and hesitating and blushing like a schoolboy ashamed to tell the truth .'" Mr. Jonea stands silently recovering his nerve after the plunge. "It will, I know, meet the wishes ot Mrs. O'Shea and of Captain Temple," ho remarka at last, almoat humbly. "What will?" " (^ur marriage, Belinda." " Bid they tell sou ao?" " Mra. O'tihea led mo to believe " " Uose leads everybody to believe every- thing. And ho â€" Captain Temple?" " It can be no interest ot Captain Tem- ple's to put himself in the way ot your settlement, I should say." She turns from him, aho walks quickly to the turlher end of the room; a certain dignity, a child though she be, iu every movement of her poor little ragged figure. Then she comes back to tha young man's side and looks steadily with her honest eyes into his. ' A thing like this cannot be decided in a moment, Mr. Jones. H you want really and truly to marry me, you must, I aup- poae, bavo eome good reaaons for doing ao. That is not my busineaa, however. Every one is free to hava his own crotches about happiuesa 'â-  But what I do want to know, and what I dare say you cau tell me, is â€" why should I marry you ? " I should hope, a little because yon like me," suggests Augustus, trying with im- perfect aucccga to throw alover-like warmth into hia voice. "That ia the reason, gen- erally, I believe, for which young ladies accept men." "Is it, indeed? I thought liking had nothing whatcvy to do with aacli thioi;-,. I thought the lover said, ' I can afford such a house, a carriage, servants, diamonds, on condition that you take inc for a husband !' And then that the young lady reckoned up the sweets and the soar together, and an- swered yes or no, according to whether she found till- bargain good." " Is that the kind of a way yon wiah me to address you, Miss O'Bliea?" " It is the b-jst way for you to address me if you want to gat a sensible answer, Mr. Jones." Ulie perches herself on a corner of the rickety table, tilts her hat back on her head, and swinging her sandalled feet to and fro in the air, b<'giasâ€" as oouUy as though she was acoring up the [loints at paume to reckon the items of the projfoled "bar- gain." " Carriage, so much ; diamonds, ao much ; houae, so much. Wu will begin with the house. How large a houso, exactly, ahuuld you and I havu to live at Clapham?" " I am not joking, and you are," replied Jonea, sullenly. " Of course if you do not choose to take the thing aerioiisly, I have nothing more to aay." " Well, would you mind ray having my supper lirst ' 1 am as hungry aa a wolf, sir ! Burke leaves me on a kind ot beard wages when she goea off literaturing, and I have not eaten a mouthful since your macca- roons. You will not mind ? Thanks. And while I eat, you know, you can make your- self agreeable, till me all the delightful projects \ou and Uosii' have been laying out for my future welfare." Belinda's supper oonaista of a big slice of household bread, and auother rather bigger one of melon, washed down by cold water. Having prodnced these refreshments from the shelf, whii^b at once auawera aa druaser, larder aud pantry, she rcsumea her forinor place on the corner of the table, and unin- cumbered by knife, fork, or plate, saps. " I cannot imagine what put it into yonr h"ad to think of mn, Mr. Jones. Oh, I know why you came to Kt. Jean do IjUx ; of course Kosie planned your tour for you 'â-  But what lirst put it into your head to think of me in that sort of light?" P'or a moment her long eyelashes shade her cheek, the cheek that neither pales nor reddens under his ga/.e. " I have not made iiiyaelf over and- abovn civil to wm. have I '" " Well, no. iioi anything very partictilar, ' Mr. Jones asserts. "Audi am aiire 1 am not what >ou, with your fastidious tastes, would think lady-like " - oh ! the curl, imperceptible per- hapa to .Vugustus, of her upper lip ! " nor what any one," with a thoroughly sincere sigh this, " wonltl think pretty. Now what in the name of Heaven, cau make you wish to marry mo " "II becauae I love you," begins Jonea, atainmering. " Tell that lilaijue to some one else," in- terrupts the girl with sudden passion, " not to inn ! If v,)U loved me, I should feel it here!" elaupiiig her graceful brown hands to her breast, " just as 1 find that (!osta loves me, and 1 wotild marry you yea, even you â€"to morrow out of gratitude, and if you had only a hundred a year instead of all the thousands you talk of. But you do nut. Vou care no more for mu than I tor you, and so " " And so 1 suppose you will not marry me," aays Jones, with mortification that he would fain hide under an air ot banter. Belinda he:iitatesâ€" looks away from him. She is a child, with all a child's instinotive craving fur the sweets of liberty ; but she is a Bohemian as well, with all a Bolnniian's keen appreciation of money, and what money will bring. It would â€" it would be awBct, she feels, to wear flnerdreases, richer jewels than Hoeie'a, to invite Uosio and Captain Temple condesoendingly to dinner, lend them one's opera box, take them tor a drive occasionally in one's carriage. And then to bid good -bye forever to JliaaBurkol The thought ot Auguatua Jones aa a lifs- companiuii may be hideoua, but halt ita hideoiisneas vaniahoa, surely, if one re- members this -he would replace Miaa Burke. " 1 am certain I ahall make you wretched, Mr. Jonea; hut aa you seem, you and Itoaiu, to have eet your minda on this engagement â€" stop, though, I must ask one thing tlrat: n your name on the door-plate, I mean of hoClapham villa ? That I could not stand." "My name" on a door-plate?" says Jones, aa indignantly as though the blood of all the Howards ran in hia \eiii3. "Why. what do yon take mo for? No one but pro- fessional men, apothecaries, or that sort of thing, ever ticket their names outside on a dooi plate." " Well, then, 1 could never suit you nor yon me, the whole thing ia preposterous ; still, if you would like to try it, just as an experiment -" lie rashca forward rapturously. " Oh, I thank youâ€" very ninch obliged, indeed!" Belinda springs upon her feet and puts herself in a not altogether un- aoientillo attitude ot self-defence. " We may ba engaged it you like, but I will have no fooleries of that kind. L>o you hear me â€"I will not! Mr. Jonea, you shall never kiss me." And then, ijniok aa thought itself, tlaahea on her the remembrance of the moment when her eyes lirat met Hoger'a this after- noon, of the hour spent with Koger alone ander the stars, of the moment when be praised her â€" ah, with praiae how unlike the fulsome compUmenta of this legitimate lover!â€" and when vanity, shame, and minglemont of feelings such as her life had never known before, held her dumb. "Never kisa you! Not even when we are married, I suppose?" remarks Mr. Jones, unwisely jocular. " Marriedâ€" who talks of being married ?" cries Belinda ; such mutiny against hir own weaknesa, .such disdain, ancli mockery of her captor iu her eyoa! " Vou talked a moment ago about trying the experiment, did you not ?" " I said that we might try being lovera â€" no, not lovera eitherâ€" that we might try being engaged ; and I keep to it. You are going away to visit the I'as de Roland, you know, tomorrow â€" " "Not now. I ahall have no opare time for aight-aeeing now," interrupts Auguatua, amatively. " Why not ? Beoauae Rose is here ? Oh, Rose has iiuito enongh on her hands with- out you. Vou will go to the moufctaina to- morrow, and you will atay away tour days, as you intended, and admire every water- fall and rock and ruin Muriay bids you. By that time I shall be used to the thought of â€" ot Clapham, perhaps- Miaa Burke will be back for one thing, and I shall have had a good deal," with a sigh, thia, " of Rose. [ ahall feel better disposed toward any change. Mr. Jonea, if you will promiaa never, as long as you live, to kiss me, I dare say I shall not be very sorry to see you comeback." .\nd not one other warmer word or prom- ise can Augustus wring from her. She will try being engaged, ininus love making, aa an experiment; and if he will promise never as long as he lives to kiss her, per- haps after four days' absence she may not be very aorry to see him return. So much for hia present chance ot an alliance with the noblefamily ot Vansittart CHAPTEK VIII. \ ASir\ sF.r.srs consciknck. Mrs. Augustus Jones. Belinda Jones. Mr. and Mra. Jones, (Clapham. So Belinda, when aba ia alone, rings every posaibte change npon her future titles aa a matron, and finds each tuneless. But then the diamonds ! reflection that ore this has governed the conduct ot so many a wiser, older, better woman. Wistfully gazing through the open win- dow at the sky, liulinda thinks ot the re- mote Belgravian days when her papa was in the lirst delightful tUish of Koae'a money the daya of dinner parties aud balls, when eveii ahf . Belinda, wore pretty frocks, aud oocaaionally taste! the society ot lovely, bare necked b.-inga, with tlowers in their hair, ailken trains, fans, lovera, instead of watching thoin forlornly from without, as she did to night. How would she look baro- neckid, with tlowers in her hair, with a train, a fan, lovers? How if aha ahould attempt a rehearael of the effect (lovera ex- cepted i with such rough materials as she may have at band! ' Miss Bnrke, a* it chances, lias Kit the key of her travulling-caie in the lock alas, the frame of mind for wrongdoing given, and when, doea the deuiun opportunity tail any of us ? and in Miss Borko'stravelling- caae lies, neatly folded, that lady's black •ilk dress, la shorter time than it has taken ine to write, Belinda, candle in hanj, glides into the adjoining room, the sanc- tuary of Miss Burke's maiden charms, opens the case, ga/.ea, vacillatea â€" handles! The skirt is too long, lor Misa Burke is of loftier stature than herself. Ko much tha grander will be her train And the sleeves most be tucked up, and the bodice pinned down, and white lace, aleo of Mias Burke's, added here and there, tor lightness. She collects together auch dislocated sewing im- plements as the household can boast, with abaorbed interest stitchea down a fold here, puckora up a plait there; tinally skips lightly out of her own dingy, Cinderella frock, and a minute later stands radiant in themajeaty of rualling silk, abort sleeves, bare throat, and train a young lady. She is not an ugly girl, after all. So much the tarnished glass upon Miaa Burke's dressing table asaurea her promptly. Her neck and ahouldera look lily fair, compared to the sun tan ot her face; her arnia are delicately fashioned and tolerably plump for HHvent"en. But the pigtails! She anatchea olT tli'i hidioua frayed out green riblxniB, iiiipUita them, and behold I the ill kempt, neglncted hair falls round her slender ligiirH in waves ot ailky chestnut. .•\ pair of gloves ot Miss Burkes supplies an irnproinptii cuahion, over which shecoita it high above hor forehead, aa the little Spanish blonde in pink (the blonde Uoger Temple admired) was coifed tonight. A scarlet passion tlower wet with dew, from the balcony, fiiiiahes the picture. Not ugly 1 Why, she is pretty alreadyâ€" a year or two hence will be admirably so, prettier than was even Hose in her prime thinks Belinda, gazing at her own trans- figured self in a kind of rapture. The only thing she lacks now is jewelryâ€" earrings, braceleta, a necklace tor her throat ; the Jones diamond.i, in short. I'endiiig the possession of these, oonld no substitute be found to give one aonie importeot fore- shadowing of their splendor? On the landing of the second floor stands, aa we know, the life-si/.od figure ot a saint ; martyred, satin-slippered, glittoring with gorgdona paate adornmenta. If the good old Beata would only leud that necklace of hers for half an hour, ten iiiinutei, long enough to yield some one faint foretaste of the sweeta of brilliants ! If â€" aasuming her permiaaion - one were to borrow it, aay ! The glaaa caao can ba opened by a cunning hand from the back. And no living soul is about ; and it could not surely ba much of a sin, considering that the saint is but a big wax doll with bead eyes. She creeps down the echoing atone stairs, hor heart beating, her unaoonatomed feet entangling theinaelvoa at every movement in her trailing skirts; she reaches the land- ing of the aecond floor. There standa the Iteata, her livid handa crossed on her breast, her bead eyes awfully wide open. There are the paste brilliants. The cranky fastening ot the glass door gives a groan as she opens it, causing Ba- linda'a guilty conscience to ijuake again; but DO ear save her own hears tha sound. She uDolaaps the neoklaoe, shivering »a her lingers come in contact with the clammy wax throat ; then bears away her booty, her legs trembling under her at every step- upstairs. Bba takes it to the light of her solitary candle ; admires ita mock effulgence; clasps it, trembling, around her little warm soft neck ; aurveys herself on tiptoe in tha tarnished mirror above the chimney-piece; and where is conscience now, where re- morse .' She surveys herself, well nigh awe- stricken by her own fairness. She feela that to be the possessor of real diamonds she would cheerfully become Mrs. Angustoa Jones, ana start tor Clapham to-morrow. Now, nothing ia wanting but a fan and lovera. The fan cm be had â€"a huge gilt and black structure, of the date of thirty yeara ago, which lies for ornament on tha mantel-ehelfâ€" and of thia Belinda poasesaea heraelt. But the lovers ? Bah, some un- important details are sure to be wanting at every reheraal. She struts up and down the room, her train outstretched, her fan in motion, her eyes glancing complacently at the miijium little figure the glass gives her duskily back. " If Captain Temple could see me â€" if Cap- tain Temple could see me now ! ' thinks vanity. " If he knew I could be anything but ragged, and hideous, and a gamin. And if he did know this, what would Captain Temple care?" says another aterner voice than that of vanity. " Of what account ia tha whole world to him by tha aide of Hose, and Iloae'a beauty ?"' A sudden leaden weight sinks dead on Belinda's heart. She is nothing to Roger Temple ; holds no more place in hia present than in his future. She seems to stifle. The aaiQt"s paste diamonds must surely be too heavy, so painful is the choking feeling in her throat. Turning abruptly away from the sight of her finery and of herself, she extinguiahea the candle ; then goea oat bare-armed, bare-necked, in her diamond necklace and train, upon the balcony. It ia now paat midnight, and something like cooler air begins tr. stir across the sleep- ing country, balmy sweet ia the air . every floor ot the vast old house has ita balcony, every balcony its tlowers ; the sky ia aU a-ijuiver with atars ; mouutaius, river, plains, are lying in one great hush of pur- ple sleep. Belinda reata her arm againak the iron balustrade, and, ga/ing away west- ward toward the rugged line ot Spanish coast, muses. Click, click ! goea the sharp aound of a vesuvian.cloae.as it seems, beside Belinda's ear. She turns with a start, and there on the adjoining balcony, en robe 'If clnimOre, and placidly lighting hia midnight pipe of peace, standa Roger Temple. Roger may breakfast with Kosi-, dine with Ho.se, walk with liose, spend any number ot hours dar- ing the day that he chooaea alone with Uose, but it would be the acme of indiscre- tion for him to lodge under the same roof with her. Thus the widow well veraed in the ininuta' ot surface morals decides. And so â€" from S^ylla to ("harybdia â€" fate, and the landlord of tha Hotel Isabella together, have contrived to lodge him under the same root with Belinda. Belinda sees him, graaps the whole dra- matic capabilities of the aituation in a moment, but givea no aign. Now, ahe feels, ia a magniticent opportunity for her to act, and with a purpoae ! A glance at Uoger Temple's face convincea her that be doea not recognize Uoae'a vagrant, out-at-elbowg atep-daiighter under the disguise of civiliza- tion. Now ahe will have a rare opportunity of arriving at a truth or two; now may she even teat the practical worth of a "litelonK fidelity," see if this devoted lover cannot ba led into a passing ilirtation moonlight, loneliness, the certainty of the crime re- maining undeteated, favoring. With au unconaciousuesa the most per- fect she resiiiiiea her former attitude, and after a minute or two of silence sings, in that undertone for which we have no word in Engliah, the whiaper of singing, a stanza ot the Meodioant Student serenade, familiar from one end of the I'eninaula to the other . Deste que aey estudianto, l><.Hili' quB jisTo inanuMt. .\n h« eomiilo fnasiqao so|)ai Cuu surlaa 'U- zapati-ru. She has a sweet, a sympathetic voice in jwtii-, like the beauty of her face ; and melody, and voice alike harmonize delioiuusly with every external accessory of tho scene. " Brava, brava !" exclaims Uoger, when she haa finished. " That first verso waa aa excellently sung that it makes me eager for the aecond." "Senor !" she exclaims, holding her head np with dignity, and in such a position that the moon auiiies upon its soft youn^; outline full. 'â-  1 beg a thousand pardons," saya Roger, putting his pipe hastily out of sight. •' Ha» the seiiora's song was ho charming that I forgot that wo had no maater ot the rere- raoniea to introduce ua. Has it not a second verse?" " My song has a second and a thirel verse," replies Belinda in English, strongly flavored with Castilian gutturals. " I must aci|utunt his lordship, however, that I believed my- self to ba alone. I never sing tor tha pleasure ot atrangera except when I am on the atage." "Tho atage!" repeats Roger Temple, scrutinizing the girlish face and figure criti- cally " Why, ia it poaaible ?" " I have acted aa long aa I can remember,*| saya Belinda, with all tne effrontery con- ceivable. " If hi3 Engliah excellency haa travelled through any ot the principal Spanish towna ho muat have heard of me." " When the senora favors me with her name 1 shall bo able to iinestion my mem- ory more accurately," answers Roger. Belinda paiiaea for a minute or two; then, " My name ou the stage is Lagrimas," she tella him, " or aa you would aay it in Engliah, ' Toara.' Doleful, ia it not? but 1 do not wiah it changed. Who would not sooner be called teara than laughter?" She aigha, and, halt turning from him, reata her cheek down upon the graoefol bare arms that lie folded on the balcony. Seen thua in the moonlight, her bright hair falling around her shonldera, her childish face grown pensive, she seems to Uoger as fair a little creature as ever blessod man's vision in thia proaaic world; and hia pnlae ijuickens. The balconies are distant about four or five feet from each other. Leaning across the giddy intervening apace, two persona of steady nerves might easily clasp handa, or at least touch fingers, if they BO mindud. They are alone together, he and thia girl, abaolutely alone, as were the first pair of lovers in Eden ; and yet impassably divided, aa their Uvea sre des- tined in very fact to be forevermore. And Roger's pulse (laiokena, (To ba Oantinasd). m.