have the whole world against you. I promised the count I would do myself the honour of dining with him before I set out for Italy so took my leave. W THE TEMPTATION. PARIS. HEN I alighted at the hotel, the porter told me a young woman with a band-box had been that moment enquiring for me. I do not know, said the porter, whether she is gone away or no. I took the key of my chamber of him, and went up stairs, and when I had got within ten steps of the top of the landing before my door, I met her coming easily down. It was the fair fille de chambre I had walked along the quai de Conti with: madame de Rhad sent her upon some commissions to a mar chande de modes, within a step or two of the hó tel de Modene; and as I had failed in waiting up= on her, had bid her enquire if I had left Paris; and if so, whether I had not left a letter addressed to her. As the fair fille de chambre was so near my door, she turned back, and went into the room with me for a moment or two, whilst I wrote a card. It was a fine still evening, in the latter end of the month of may = the crimson window curtains (which were of the same colour of those of the bed.) were drawn close the sun was setting, and reflect= ed through them so warm a tint into the fair fille de chambre's face = I thought she blushed = the idea of it made me blush myself we were quite alone: and that superinduced a second blush, before the first could get off. There is a sort of a pleasing half-guilty blush where the blood is more in fault than the man it is sent impetuous from the heart, and virtue flies after it not to call it back, but to make the sensa= tion of it more delicious to the nerves = it is asso= ciated= But I will not describe it = I felt something at first within me, which was not in strict unison with the lesson of virtue I had given her the night beforeI sought five minutes for a card = I knew I had not one. I took up a pen = I laid it down again = my hand trembled = the devil was in me. I know as well as any one, he is an adversary whom if we resist, he will fly from us but I seldom resist him at all; from a terror, that though I may conquer, I may still get a hurt in the combat = so I give up the triumph for security; and instead of think= ing to make him fly, I generally fly myself. The fair fille de chambre came close up to the bureau where I was looking for a card = took up first the pen I cast down, then offered to hold me the ink: she offered it so sweetly, I was going to ac= cept it but I durst not= I have nothing, my dear, said I, to write upon. = Write it, said she, simply, upon any thing. I was just going to cry out, Then I will write it, fair girl! upon thy lips.= If I do, said I, I shall perish = so I took her by the hand, and led her to the door, and begged she would not forget the lesson. I had given her= She said, in= deed she would not and as she uttered it with some earnestness, she turned about, and gave me both her hands, closed together, into mine = it was impos sible not to compress them in that situation = I wished to let them go; and all the time I held them, I kept arguing within myself against it = and still = = I held them on. In two minutes I found I had all the battle to fight over again = and I felt my legs and every limb about me tremble at the idea. The foot of the bed was within a yard and a half of the place where we were standing = I had still hold of her hands = and how it happened I can give no account, but I neither asked her=nor drew her= nor did I think of the bed=but so it did happen, we both sat down. I will just shew you, said the fair fille de chambre, the little purse I have been making to day to hold your crown. So she put her hand into her right pocket, which was next me, and felt for it for some time then into the left=«She had lost it. » = I never bore expectation more quietly = it was in her right pocket at last = she pulled it out; it was of green taf fetas, lined with a little bit of white quilted sattin, and just big enough to hold the crown = she put it into my hand it was pretty; and I held it ten mi nutes with the back of my hand resting upon her lap looking sometimes at the purse, sometimes on one side of it. A stitch or two had broke out in the gathers of my stock the fair fille de chambre, without saying a word, took out her little housewife, threaded a small needle, and sewed it up = I foresaw it would hazard the glory of the day; and as she passed her hand in silence across and across my neck in the man= œuvre, I felt the laurels shake, which fancy had wreathed about my head. A strap had given way in her walk, and the buckle of her shoe was just falling off = See, said the fille de chambre, holding up her foot = I could not for my soul but fasten the buckle in return, and puts ting in the strap = and lifting up the other foot with it, when I had done, to see both were right = in doing it too suddenly it unavoidably threw the fair fille de chambre off her center and then = YES and then Ye whose clay-cold heads, and lukewarm hearts, can argue down, or mask your passions tell me, what trespass is it that man should have them? or how his spirit stands answerable to the father of spirits, but for his conduct under them? If nature has so wove her web of kindness, that some threads of love and desire are entangled with the piece must the whole web be rent in drawing them out? Whip me such stoicks, great governor of nature! said I to myself=Wherever thy provi= dence shall place me for the trials of my virtue = whatever is my danger whatever is my situation= let me feel the movements which rise out of it, and which belong to me as a man and if I govern them as a good one I will trust the issues to thy justice, for thou hast made us and not we ourselves. As I finished my address, I raised the fair fille de chambre up by the hand, and led her out of the room she stood by me till I locked the door and put the key in my pocket and then = the victory being quite decisive and, not till then, I pressed my lips to her cheek, and taking her by the hand again, led her safe to the gate of the hotel. THE MYSTERY. 18 PARIS. a IR F a man knows the heart, he will know it was im possible to go back instantly to my chamber = it was touching a cold key with flat third to it, upe on the close of a piece of musick, which had called forth my affections = therefore, when I let go the hand of the fille de chambre, I remained at the gate of the hotel for some time, looking at every one who passed by, and forming conjectures upon them, till my attention got fixed upon a single oba ject, which confounded all kind of reasoning upon him. It was a tall figure of a philosophick, serious, adust look, which passed and repassed sedately along the street, making a turn of about sixty paces on each side of the gate of the hotel the man was about fifty-two had a small cane under his arm= was dressed in a dark drab-coloured coat, waist-coat and breeches, which seemed to have seen some years service = they were still clean, and there was a little air of frugal propreté throughout him. By his pulling off his hat and his attitude of accosting a good many in his way, I saw he was asking charity; so I got a sous or two out of my pocket, ready to give him, as he took me in his turn=He passed by me without asking any thing and yet did not go five steps further before he asked charity of a little woman I was much more likely to have given of the twoHe had scarce done with the woman, when he pulled off his hat to another who was coming the same way. An ancient gentleman came slowly = and, after him, a young smart one = He let them |