Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER XII. AN OLD LADY OP TUB COURT OF CHARLES X. Madame De R watched her with curiosit and interest. There is no accounting for the likin that some very imperfect people' excite; now th Duke and his sister thought Cattie faulty enoug but their hearts warmed towards her. " She is truthful," said the Duke. Madame de R smiled. " On the contrary, deceitful little puss; she loves Armand." The Duke opened his big eyes very wide. " Sl: treats him like a dog, I know she does," said he. " That proves nothing, or rather everything." " I wonder why women were made so incompr hensible," ejaculated the Duke. " To interest men to guess the riddle," was tl answer. " Let these two unconfessed lovers alom at present they are two instruments out of tun but they will come to be in unison one of thei days." If Madame de R had come to this conclusio it was more than Cattie had done. She comprehended herself less every day. Why was she so distraught ? why, whatever she was doing, wherever she was, so restless and excited? Everything brought her suffering; she never read, nor gave herself to music or drawing—it all seemed so hollow, senseless. From her dressing-room windows there was a fine view of the ocean. Of an afternoon, when she went to dress for dinner, she would linger, watching the white-crested waves toppling over eacL other, sobbing and dashing themselves into spray on the beach; and in pretty contrast files of quiet cattle wending their way home over the hard yellow sands. She would think of another sea, another shore, and sigh, and wonder how it would all end. After that boar-hunt she was more 5ll at ease than ever. She did poignantly regret her violence. Had not her husband's conduct, from the day she had told him she did not love him, been perfect... --This text refers to the Paperback edition.