n--that Donna
Paltravi had dozens of gray hairs on each temple, and there were several
wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. He was a young man, and wanted a
young woman for his wife.

"Jaqui was utterly astounded by what he heard. His mind was suddenly
permeated by a conviction which rendered him speechless. He rose, and
without another word he hurried home. As soon as he could he made a
visit to Donna Paltravi. He had not seen her for a week or more, and the
moment his eyes fell upon her he saw that Florino was right. She was
growing old! He spent some time with her, but as she did not allude to
any change in herself, of course he did not; but just as he was leaving
he made a casual remark about Florino. 'Oh, he has not been here for
some time,' said the lady. 'I missed him at first, but now I am glad he
does not come. He is very frivolous, and I have a small opinion of his
poetry. I think most of it is copied, and he shows poor judgment in his
selections.'

"That evening, sitting in his private room, Jaqui thought he saw through
everything. Up-stairs on the second floor was a lady who was actually
seventy-one years old! Her natural development had been arrested by
artificial influences, but as these influences had ceased to operate,
there could be no reason to doubt that nature was resuming her authority
over the lady, and that she was doing her best to make up for lost time.
Donna Paltravi appeared now to be about forty-five years old."

"This is getting to be very curious, John," said the Mistress of the
House. "I have often heard of bodies which, on being exhumed, after they
have been buried a long time, presented a perfectly natural appearance,
but which crumbled into dust when exposed to the air and the light.
Would not this lady's apparent youth have crumbled into dust all at once
when it was exposed to light and air?"

"I cannot say, madam," said the gardener, respectfully, "what might have
happened in other cases, but in this instance the life of youth remained
for a good while, and when it did begin to depart the change was
gradual."

"You forget, mamma," said the younger lady, "that this is real life, and
that it is a story with one thing coming after another, like steps."

"I did forget," said the other, "and I beg your pardon, John."

The gardener bowed his head a little, and went on: "Jaqui was greatly
interested in this new development. He made frequent visits to Donna
Paltravi, and found, to his