a mile, till we came to a deserted mill. Here we found a man with three mules, which we mounted. The stranger silently preceded us.

We kept on at a sharp pace till day dawned, when our conductor turning off the high road, led us to a small venta, where we rested ourselves and mules for some hours.

As I was dressed like a country girl I fortunately excited no suspicion, and after some days of rough travelling we arrived without any accident at Oporto.

Here my husband reported himself at headquarters, where he learnt that his regiment had sailed for England three months before. He determined to follow it the first opportunity, but our harassing journey in his weak state brought on a violent illness, and he was confined for two months to his room. On his recovery, and while we were waiting for a fair wind, my dearest mother and aunt arrived at Oporto, together with several of the nuns from Santa Cecilia.

The whole convent had been broken up in consequence of the unsettled state of the

country, and the necessity there was for using the building as a fortress.

My two dear relatives had obtained leave to retire to England, and take up their residence with some French and Irish nuns settled in the Isle of Wight.

We took a house in their neighbourhood, and thus at last, after all her troubles, my poor mother had the satisfaction of being in peace and seeing me every day.

When my health obliged me to leave England for the south of France, my mother and aunt determined to take up their abode at Brussels during our absence.

You have by this time, I dare say, my dear Theresa, guessed, that the noble, yet gentlelooking nun whom you saw with me in the convent parlour of the Sisters of Mercy at Brussels, was my dear, my long suffering mother. On our return, I should like to show you my kind aunt Bianca.

Lady Henry having finished her interesting narrative, I gratefully thanked her lady

VOL. III.

C

ship for having thus trusted me with her early history, and which accounted for much in her manners which used to puzzle me. Her ignorance of the world, and its commonest affairs, had often astonished me. Her whole soul seemed wrapped up in her husband, whose devotedness did indeed deserve all the affection she could bestow upon him.

CHAPTER II.

"All my ambition is to have my daughter Right honourable; which my lord can make her;"

SUMMER now approached, and we began to make preparations for leaving St. Julien's, which indeed I was not sorry for, as I could not drive from my mind the recollection of the dreadful crime which had been committed within its walls.

The monks had made a good market of the sad tale and the miraculous dream. A painting had been executed of the Virgin, the face having been taken from the likeness of poor Mademoiselle St. Julien.

It was called "the Miraculous Virgin of St. Julien," and hundreds would repair to it in the chapel of the monastery, to implore her intercession to discover various crimes which had baffled the pursuit of justice.

Enormous sums were sent, together with precious stones, from all quarters to decorate the altar of the "Miraculous Virgin."

One fine morning in May we left this scene of bigotry and crime on our route to Nice, where Lord and Lady Henry proposed to stop a couple of months.

Nothing could be more charming than the weather and the journey, and we arrived at Nice without accident, or any event worth recording.

This delightful place has been so often and so well described, that any feeble attempt of mine to do it justice would be ab

surd.

While we were here, an occurrence took place which caused no little conversation and merriment among the English residents.