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things were,' and 'that they were most precious. The young earl gazed at her with the tendereft regard, vowed eternal affection, and for a moment wondered how he came to find out fuch an angel.

But while the amiable Geraldine thus pursued her early defign of fecuring, meliorating, and correcting the heart of her lord, his noble relations were employed in adding a little adventitious fuel to their own native fire. The ftranger was arraigned (but not at the bar of justice or candour), and found guilty of the following offences, which, as they were fupported by pofitive evidence, could not afterwards be difproved: Firt, fhe must be nobody, notwithstanding Mrs. Archibald Frazer, of Annale, had affirmed that the Powerf courts were a good family; for lady Madelina had detected her in the very aft

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of fhaking hands with a fervant; befide, lady Monteith's terrified manner at first feeing her, proved that fhe had never been in company with a lady of quality before. Secondly, fhe was no beauty; for fhe was not above the middle fize, and her complexion no better than a brunette her features too had nothing of the Rubens' caft, and were totally diffimilar to all the first-rate toasts in the picture-gallery at Kinloch. Thirdly, The was no wit; for fhe never tried at a repartee all the evening, and her expreffions were as common as those of a houfe-maid. This degraded creature being no longer an object of terror to lady Arabella, fhe refolved to try if she could not live upon good terms with her; and lady Madelina obferved, that as the girl feemed good-tempered, and had a large fortune, perhaps her nephew, who was but a thoughtless kind of a young man, could not have done much better.

CHAP. XVI.

Goed humour only teaches charms to laft,
Still makes new conquests, and maintains the paft ;
Love raised on beauty will like that decay,
Our hearts may bear its flender chain a day ;.
As flow'ry bands in wantonnefs are worn,
A morning's pleasure, and at evening torn ;-
This binds in ties more easy, yet more strong,
The willing heart, and only holds it long.

Pore.

THE Ceremony of congratulatory cards now commenced. It was followed by vifits from thofe ladies who wifhed to form a clofer intimacy, and by the introduction of the bride and lady Arabella at court. The death of fir Simon, though now nearly banished by fublequent events from the memory of his amiable relic, was ftill too recent to allow of her joining in thefe ceremonies.

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She could, therefore, only hear from lady Arabella, what he would rather have feen, that the bride was completely outdone upon every occafion. The fair narrator's laudable defign of making her aunt happy tempted her to fome fmall exaggerations. The Grecian model of beauty, which the form and face of Geraldine refembled, was more confonant to the public tafte than the round vifage, uniform regularity of features, and auburn locks of the northern beauty. The figure of the latter was indeed more confpicuous, but being lefs correctly. moulded by fashion, it feemed to yield in elegance to the polifhed fymmetry of the ever-graceful countefs. The lily and the rose were rivalled by Arabella's complexion; yet lilies and roles may be bought at Warren's, which by candlelight look almoft as well as nature; but what cofmetic can beflow that "pure and

and eloquent blood" which spoke in Geraldine's face, and might almost juftify the opinion of the poet, "that her body thought ?"

If from their persons the observer reverted to the drefs and manners of the fifter beauties, the pilm indifputably b.longed to the counters. In her felection of ornament the correctness of her tafte led her to reject what was exuberant and fuperfluous; and by ftudying fuitableness rather than fplendor, The ever appeared with the graceful propriety of a woman of fashion: while lady Arabella was loft in the maze of taffels and flounces. The terms upon which fir William Powerfcourt lived with his neighbours were not calculated to infpire his daughter's mind with any ideas of inherent fuperiority, farther than what her own merit juftified. His family pride was not of a hoftilé cha

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racter.

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