fhe added, he had half promised her. As fhe told me this, he took the handkerchief out of her pocket to let me fee it; fhe had folded it up neatly in a couple of vine leaves, tied round with a tendril-on opening it, I faw an S mark'd in one of the corners. She had fince that, he told me, ftray'd as far as Rome, and walk'd round St Peter's once-and return'd back-that the found her way alone across the Apennines-had travell❜d over all Lombardy without money-and' through the flinty roads of Savoy without fhoes-how fhe had borne it, and how fhe had got fupported, he could not tell-but God t༈iན ༦༠ ས tempers " tempers the wind, faid Maria, to the fhorn lamb. Shorn indeed! and to the quick, faid I; and waft thou in my own land, where I have a cottage, I would take thee to it and fhelter thee: thou fhouldft eat of my own bread, and drink of my own cup-I would be kind to thy Sylvio-in all thy weakneffes and wanderings I would feek after thee and bring thee back—when the fun went down I would fay my prayers, and when I had done thou fhouldft play thy evening fong upon thy pipe, nor would the incenfe of my facrifice be worfe accepted for entering heaven along with that of a broken heart. Nature Nature melted within me, as I ́utter'd this; and Maria obferving, as I took out my handkerchief, that it was fteep'd to much already to be of ufe, would needs go wafh it in the ftream. And where will you dry it, Maria? faid I-I'll dry it in my bobfom, faid fhe-'twill do me good. C And is your heart ftill fo warm, Maria faid I. I touch'd upon the ftring on which hung all her forrows-fhe look'd with wiftful diforder for fome time in my face; and then, without faying any thing, took her pipe, and play'd her fervice to the Virgin- The string I had touch'd ceafed to vibrate-in a moment -VOL. II. N 1 'moment or two Maria returned to herself-let her pipe fall-and rose up. And where art you going, Maria? faid I.-She faid to Moulines.— Let us go, faid I, together.-Maria put her arm within mine, and lengthening the ftring, to let the dog follow in that order we entered Mou MARIA. MOULINES. THO HO' I hate falutations a and greetings in the market place, yet when we got into the middle of this, I stopp'd to take my last look and laft farewel of Maria, Maria, tho' not tall, was nevertheless of the first order of fine forms -affliction had touch'd her looks with something that was fcarce earthly -ftill fhe was feminine-and so much was there about her of all that the heart N 2 |