are a lady."

"My being a lady is a very good reason why the gentlemen should always
offer me the best seat," said Mrs. Gray; "but it is no reason why I
should always take it. Indeed, it is a very good reason why I should
not; for it is not at all ladylike to be monopolizing and selfish in
respect to good seats and good places when there is any thing to see."

Mr. George did not care a great deal about the difference in the seats,
but he was so much pleased with the disinterested and considerate spirit
which Mrs. Gray manifested in this case, that he secretly resolved that
he would invite her and Rosie to accompany him on every excursion that
he made.

The road now left the shore, and soon began to ascend the mountain,
winding this way and that in long zigzags, through rich vineyards and
groves of mulberry trees, all planted on soil which had been formed
during the lapse of ages from the disintegration and decay of the lava
which had come down from the volcano above. This land was very fertile;
and as both the soil itself and the rocks from which it was formed were
of a rich brown color, the country looked even more fertile than it
really was. The road was excellent. Indeed, as Philippe had said, it was
as hard and smooth as a floor. It was macadamized all the way, being
made of lava, broken small, and so compacted together, and worn so hard
and smooth by the wheels that had gone over it, and by the feet of the
horses and mules, that it seemed one continuous surface of stone.

The views on every side were of course continually enlarging and
expanding the higher the carriage ascended, and as, in the long windings
and zigzags of the road, the heads of the horses were turning
continually into different directions, each person in the carriage,
without changing his seat, or even turning his head, had all the
different views presented successively before him.

The whole expanse of the Bay of Naples was coming continually more and
more fully into view, with the mountainous islands in the offing, which
border it towards the sea, and a long line of hamlets, villages, and
towns, extending, like a white fringe upon a green mantle, along the
curve of the shore. Naples was seen in the distance, with the great
Castle of St. Elmo on a rocky summit above it.

Towards the mountain the travellers could see lofty peaks, with immense
valleys between them. These valleys were extremely fertile and
beautiful, except where recent stream