our longer, seated on
the sofa near the fire, in the careless, nonchalant attitude of Guerin's
Dido, listening with the attention of an absorbed mind, and looking
at Daniel now and then, without disguising her admiration, which never
went, however, beyond due limits. She slipped away when the carriage
was announced, with a pressure of the hand to the marquise, and an
inclination of the head to Madame de Montcornet.

The evening concluded without any allusion to the princess. The other
guests profited by the sort of exaltation which d'Arthez had reached,
for he put forth the treasures of his mind. In Blondet and Rastignac
he certainly had two acolytes of the first quality to bring forth the
delicacy of his wit and the breadth of his intellect. As for the two
women, they had long been counted among the cleverest in society. This
evening was like a halt in the oasis of a desert,--a rare enjoyment,
and well appreciated by these four persons, habitually victimized to the
endless caution entailed by the world of salons and politics. There
are beings who have the privilege of passing among men like beneficent
stars, whose light illumines the mind, while its rays send a glow to
the heart. D'Arthez was one of those beings. A writer who rises to his
level, accustoms himself to free thought, and forgets that in society
all things cannot be said; it is impossible for such a man to observe
the restraint of persons who live in the world perpetually; but as his
eccentricities of thought bore the mark of originality, no one felt
inclined to complain. This zest, this piquancy, rare in mere talent,
this youthfulness and simplicity of soul which made d'Arthez so nobly
original, gave a delightful charm to this evening. He left the house
with Rastignac, who, as they drove home, asked him how he liked the
princess.

"Michel did well to love her," replied d'Arthez; "she is, indeed, an
extraordinary woman."

"Very extraordinary," replied Rastignac, dryly. "By the tone of your
voice I should judge you were in love with her already. You will be in
her house within three days; and I am too old a denizen of Paris not to
know what will be the upshot of that. Well, my dear Daniel, I do entreat
you not to allow yourself to be drawn into any confusion of interests,
so to speak. Love the princess if you feel any love for her in your
heart, but keep an eye on your fortune. She has never taken or asked a
penny from any man on earth, she is far too muc