thought it a liberty, and yet I excused it. This was the first time he had ever attempted to place himself on a familiar footing with me as an acquaintance. Surely gave him no reasons to encourage him to the act?-impossible! there was a mystery in this sudden change that I could not unravel.

CHAPTER IX.

STANLY" Alas! poor lady, she's severely used;
And yet, I hear, Richard attempts her love:
Methinks the wrong he's done her might
discourage him."

TRESSEL" Neither those wrongs, nor his own shape, can fright him.”

RICHARD III.

FROM MARIA TO MRS. MANNERS.

In my last letter, I informed you I should enter into some particulars respecting our family, This I shall now fulfil; and, in order not to confuse you, my account shall be given progressively as events have occurred. The next morning suceeding Lady Sherrington's ball, we received a card of invitation

from a Mrs. Arlington, a lady of high

fashion, enclosed to us by the Countess of Heathfield; whose attentions to Julia and myself are as unbounded as kind. Julia entered the breakfast parlour as I held the card in my hand. I gave it to her, and said, as she glanced over it— "Will you accept the invitation?”

"I may," said she, "but under proviso that no head-ach accompanies me to the party."

"If that is to form a plea, pray ensure the attendance of Lord Eglinton; for he will cure you of all tendency to pains of the head."

Julia laughed, and sat down with me to the table, in order to eat our breakfast. We were joined in a few miuutes by my good uncle, who, as he seated himself, made an observation upon the heaviness and dulness of our eyes, which certainly betrayed the extents of the dissipation we had taken of late.

"Well, girls," said he, in his goodnatured way of speaking, "I have some

news to communicate to you both, at which, I dare say, you will feel pleased. I have received this note (producing one from his pocket, and handing it to us), which comes from an old acquaintance, Colonel Archer, who has just arrived in town, and is anxious to pay his respects to us all." "Ah!" added my uncle," my geomantic table improves wonderfully:-it answered to the Colonel's thoughts this morning at nine o'clock."

1

"The Colonel," said Julia," will favour us with a call at three o'clock this afternoon." She looked earnestly at me- and with a smile of such provoking archness, that I coloured."

"Was Charles at Lady Sherrington's party?" asked my uncle.

"No, papa," said Julia.

"What kept him away? 'Tis wrong, very wrong, of him to absent himself in this manner from society. Where is

he? I have not seen him these three

or four days past."

"Nor have we," said Julia: "he seldom favours us with a visit."

"I must lecture him," said my uncle: "he neglects his family in a way that I by no means approve, or will suffer."

A silence ensued, merely broken occasionally with the clatter of teacups and saucers. My uncle had some strong motive for speaking of Charles in this angry tone of feeling; as, ordinarily he used the fondest expressions whenever he mentioned him. Charles has acted very unkindly towards his sister as well as myself. He shews no amenity whatsoever in our company, and if I am not very much mistaken, he holds us in a poor light. The other day when Julia asked him his opinion of a gentleman she met with at a party, he replied, "that as we had never done him the honor of consulting him at other times, he should decline answering a question