perhaps the greatest pleasure of her life. To her
eyes they were pearls of aristocratic loveliness; and, indeed, they
were fine healthy bairns, clean-limbed, bright-eyed, with grand
appetites, and never cross as long as they were allowed either to
romp and make a noise, or else to sleep. Lord Frederic, the eldest,
was already in words of two syllables, and sometimes had a bad time
with them. Lord Augustus was the owner of great ivory letters of
which he contrived to make playthings. Lord Gregory had not as yet
been introduced to any of the torments of education. There was an old
English clergyman attached to the family who was supposed to be their
tutor, but whose chief duty consisted in finding conversation for the
Marquis when there was no one else to talk to him. There was also a
French governess and a Swiss maid. But as they both learned English
quicker than the children learned French, they were not serviceable
for the purpose at first intended. The Marchioness had resolved that
her children should talk three or four languages as fluently as their
own, and that they should learn them without any of the agonies
generally incident to tuition. In that she had not as yet succeeded.

She seated herself for a few minutes among the boxes and portmanteaus
in the midst of which the children were disporting themselves prior
to their final withdrawal to bed. No mother was ever so blessed,--if
only, if only! "Mamma," said Lord Frederic, "where's Jack?" "Jack"
absolutely was intended to signify Lord Hampstead.

"Fred, did not I say that you should not call him Jack?"

"He say he is Jack," declared Lord Augustus, rolling up in between
his mother's knees with an impetus which would have upset her had she
not been a strong woman and accustomed to these attacks.

"That is only because he is good-natured, and likes to play with you.
You should call him Hampstead."

"Mamma, wasn't he christianed?" asked the eldest.

"Yes, of course he was christened, my dear," said the mother,
sadly,--thinking how very much of the ceremony had been thrown away
upon the unbelieving, godless young man. Then she superintended the
putting to bed, thinking what a terrible bar to her happiness had
been created by that first unfortunate marriage of her husband's.
Oh, that she should be stepmother to a daughter who desired to fling
herself into the arms of a clerk in the Post Office! And then that an
"unchristianed," that an infidel, republican, un-Eng