ve gentleman in our party was sent to ask permission
for us to pass the afternoon there, and a cordial assent was quickly
granted.

A well-trimmed sward, shaded by fine old oaks, was selected as the most
suitable place to lay the cloth, and then, to pass away the time until
six o'clock, several of the party went out in a row-boat.

"We were absent an hour or more, playing cards, singing, and drifting
about; now and then grazing a rock, or narrowly escaping an upset,
owing to the disproportion of weight among the passengers, and at
sunset returned to our encampment. Here we found a blazing fire, and
the tea-kettle singing joyously. An extensive meal was spread upon a
neat white cloth, and we grouped about it upon our bright carriage
rugs, so like leopard skins with their black spots upon a yellow
ground. Hot tea was a very agreeable substitute for the lemonade that
generally forms the beverage at picnics, and as we all had excellent
appetites, the meal passed off very pleasantly.

"What are we to do now!" inquired one restless being, as we walked down
to the beach, leaving Bernard to consume the _debris_ of the feast and
collect the dishes.

"I think this fire so comfortable," said one of the young ladies, "that
I mean to remain beside it, as it is now dark and rather chill."

"Let us play whist by the firelight," was suggested by those who had
not been out in the boat.

"Or, better still, have our fortunes told by its light," said Ida,
throwing a couple of branches upon the burning coals.

"Delightful!" exclaimed Marguerite. "I have not forgotten that we have
among us a Gypsy Queen, whose predictions are always realized;" turning
to a pretty blonde, whose delicate features and sunny curls testified
that she was only a gypsy through her talent for unveiling the future
to her friends.

The rugs were accordingly spread out upon the beach, and we gathered
about the fire whilst the cards were being shuffled and cut for the
past, present, and future. A weird sight it was, and one that the
great Rembrandt would have delighted to paint: a background of dark,
silent trees, before us the motionless lake, illumined by the silver
crescent then setting, while the faint glimmer of starlight, and the
fiery glow of the burning wood, lit up the face of our young seeress,
as with a puzzled brow, but a pretty air of faith, she bent over the
talismanic cards.

In turn our fortunes were all told, and not a little wonder was