t home and dreamed of Miss Haythorn, and hated all the ugly
successful. He spent a fortnight trying to find out who his beauty
was,--he never could encounter her again. At last he heard of her in
this way: A lawyer's clerk paid him a little visit and commenced a
little action against him in the name of Miss Haythorn, for insulting
her in a railway train.

The young gentleman was shocked; endeavored to soften the lawyer's
clerk; that machine did not thoroughly comprehend the meaning of the
term. The lady's name, however, was at last revealed by this untoward
incident; from her name to her address was but a short step; and the
same day our crestfallen hero lay in wait at her door, and many a
succeeding day, without effect. But one fine afternoon she issued forth
quite naturally, as if she did it every day, and walked briskly on the
parade. Dolignan did the same, met and passed her many times on the
parade, and searched for pity in her eyes, but found neither look nor
recognition, nor any other sentiment; for all this she walked and
walked, till all the other promenaders were tired and gone,--then her
culprit summoned resolution, and, taking off his hat, with a voice for
the first time tremulous, besought permission to address her. She
stopped, blushed, and neither acknowledged nor disowned his
acquaintance. He blushed, stammered out how ashamed he was, how he
deserved to be punished, how he was punished, how little she knew how
unhappy he was, and concluded by begging her not to let all the world
know the disgrace of a man who was already mortified enough by the loss
of her acquaintance. She asked an explanation; he told her of the action
that had been commenced in her name; she gently shrugged her shoulders
and said, "How stupid they are!" Emboldened by this, he begged to know
whether or not a life of distant unpretending devotion would, after a
lapse of years, erase the memory of his madness--his crime!

"She did not know!"

"She must now bid him adieu, as she had some preparations to make for a
ball in the Crescent, where everybody was to be." They parted, and
Dolignan determined to be at the ball, where everybody was to be. He was
there, and after some time he obtained an introduction to Miss Haythorn,
and he danced with her. Her manner was gracious. With the wonderful tact
of her sex, she seemed to have commenced the acquaintance that evening.
That night, for the first time, Dolignan was in love. I will spare the