Abbé descanted in his usual strain, on the manners and customs of the Swiss : be found fault with the finest situations, and complained alike of heat and cold. The Marquis studying the manners of the good Helvetians, and in sleeping in the boats or at inns, seemed equally satisfied. Tiburtius said and did a thousand laughable things: we climbed trees and ascended mountains together. I sketched and kept notes of all that occurred, by which the time passed with great rapi dity.

Tiburtius soon conceived the warmest friendship for me, and I had the good fortune not to displease the Abbé, whom I sometimes questioned relative to the Marchioness de Palmis; when the only answer I could extract, was that of her being a personage of whom it was impossible to say any harm. This was his greatest eulogy when speaking of a female. But Tiburtius never mentioned his mother-in-law without enthusiasm; he shewed us the letters he received from her, nor

could I sufficiently admire the good sense and feeling which marked every line of them. After being married fifteen months the Duchess presented her husband with a son. She not only nursed the child herself, but made him the constant theme in her letters to Tiburtius; frequently expressing a hope that the latter would be a guide and mentor to her boy, when he grew up and entered the world. She dwelt at great length on this topic; nor was it less agreeable to her step-son, upon whose mind it made a very lively impression. Yes, he would say, I am fifteen years older than my half-brother, I shall therefore be quite a man by the time he reaches my age; and can then be much more useful to him than an Abbé. It is then, too, that I shall have an opportunity of proving how grateful I feel to my affectionate mother-in-law, for all her kindness. As he promised, so did Tiburtius act, in the end; for he became one of the most useful and amiable mentors his young brother could have

had. The Duchess found in this and many other instances, a just recompence for her good sense and angelic virtues : it is certain, on the other hand, that if she had been a bad step-mother, her own son would have been a source of infinite wretchedness to his parents; but the care and vigilance of Tiburtius snatched him from many dangers, that a woman could neither foresee or be acquainted with.

In the meantime, and towards the middle of our journey, the Marquis suddenly began to emerge from his apathy; and it was evident that bis health returned daily. We remained some time at Geneva, where he was greatly amused, fell in love, and immediately assumed the manners and conduct of a young rake. I was shocked to see the husband of one of the most beautiful women in Paris, forget himself for a coquette, without either charms of mind or person; but the conquest of a fair Helvetian appeared to be the most flattering triumph he could achieve. While he was giving himself

entirely up to this lady, I received a letter from Durand, informing me that Eusebius had returned to Paris; that the marriage of his sister was at length about to take place, and moreover, that Eusebius himself was to be married in a fortnight after. I shuddered at the fate of Edelie, and waited impatiently for news from her brother; although I did not hear from him till our return to France, when I found a letter of his, at the post office of Lyons. In this he communicated the event of his marriage to a daughter of the Mareschal ***: his letter was both concise and sorrowful. It gave me great uneasiness, and led me to imagine that, like Edelie, he had been sacrificed to the views of ambition which were so well known to influence the Marchioness; nor was my chagrin diminished on reflecting that two persons, who were so dear to me, did not seem likely to increase their happiness by matrimony.

CHAP. XIII.

Julien's return to Paris.-His grief on arriving there. His interview with Eusebius.

THE Viscount d'Inglar had informed me he would have a house to himself, in another year; until which time he intended to live in that of his parents; and that I should, on coming to Paris, immediately be put in possession of Edelie's apartments, which would then be vacant by her marriage.

Having travelled all night to save time, we arrived at the barriers of Paris about eight o'clock in the morning. My first care was to visit Eusebius. What was my grief and surprise to find him confined to his bed, and seriously ill of an inflammatory fever! He was, however, perfectly collected, and received me with the utmost joy. His wife and her mother came regularly three times a day to sit