tion that she intended to give an entertainment to the young ladies on the day of her fête (her birth-day,) Madame Bulé thought it necessary to tell her the state of her family as it regarded the jealousies and rivalries which subsist among her pupils.

Madame la Baronne smiled at this state of affairs, and after some reflection said, Make my compliments to your young ladies, Madame Bulé, and invite them on my part to the chateau. Tell them that my fête this year is to be called the Feast of the flowers, and that I shall expect each young lady to appear adorned with a gar land or wreath of her favourite flower; adding, I shall bestow a crown on that young lady whose ornaments please me best; and lest, she added, that my taste should be disputed, there shall be a motto woven with the myrtle of which my crown is to be composed, which shall signify the rule by which I am to make my selection.

Madame Bulé assured Madame la Baronne that her message should be faithfully delivered; and I was very solicitous to know of the lady what was to be the import of her motto.

I assure you, father, she replied, that it l

lest

be one you shall not dare to disapprove; but you should give a hint to some little favourite you may have, I cannot tell you. I was therefore obliged, after having shrugged up my shoulders several times, to acquiesce in my ig

norance.

Madame Bulé did not fail to inform the young ladies of the kind invitation of the Baronne ; and the next day, when these young people had concluded their morning exercises, an envoy was sent to request my company at the collation, in order that I might be consulted respecting preparation for the Feast of the Flowers.

As soon as I arrived, various questions were put to me by one and by another, to many of which I was not able to answer.

To whom, said one, does Madame la Baronne mean to give the crown, to the one who has the fairest garland, or to the one whom otherwise she likes best.

With respect to the beauty of the garland, I answered, it might perhaps be hard to judge; tastes may differ; one person may think that no wreath can be compared to that which is formed of roses, whilst another perhaps might prefer a garland of jessamine as being more elegant.

Then you do not suppose, said another of my inquirers, that she will bestow the crown on her who has the fairest wreath?

Indeed I cannot tell, I replied.

You are in the secret, we know, Father Raffré, said Mademoiselle Victoire, we are sure of

it.

Well, it may be So, I answered; but you shall none of you be the better for my knowledge. I will for once keep what I know to myself.

Mademoiselle would have been angry at this, had I cared for her anger, but as I did not, she proceeded to discourse the choice of the garlands with her favourite pupils.

Each one was, it was understood, to select a different flower, and the eldest chose first; Susette chose the rose; Fanchon would, she said, be royal, and adorn herself with the lily; a third selected the jessamine; a fourth a white thorne. The laurel, the honey-suckle, the sweet scented clematis, the convolvulus, and the orange flower, were none of them forgotten; and as there was a fortnight to elaps before the day of the fête, great pains were taken to nourish and preserve such flowers as might then be required to add beauty and fragrance to the festival.

It was on the eve of the fête, as I was walking with Madame Bulé in one of the avenues in her garden, being in deep conversation on subjects which at that time exercised our minds, in common with many others—subjects which had indeed some tendencies to what our Church would have deemed heretical; for my opinion on many of our doctrines were beginning to be more and more confused-when we suddenly heard several angry voices, proceeding from an arbour, in the centre of which was a circular range of seats, where the young people often assembled during the hours of leisure. Standing still and looking through the openings of the trees, we saw several of the lesser children gathered round Aimée, who had formed a small wreath for her waxen baby from an azure flowering creeper which hung in festoons from an archway of lattice work at the entrance of the arbour. The exclamations of rapture uttered by the lesser children had, it seems, attracted the attention of Susette, Fanchon, and several others of the larger girls; and Susette had expressed so much admiration of the wreath, as to declare that after all, Aimée had made the best choice, and that

there was no wreath hitherto thought of that would prove so light and beautiful as that she had chosen. It was just at the moment she had uttered this opinion, when Madame and I stood to listen to what was passing.

The little sly thing! said Fanchon. I doubt not but that she had a wreath of this kind always in her mind, and that she would not mention it, lest any of her elders should have insisted on taking it from her.

If she had such an intention, she would have done well to have waited a little longer, said Susette; for it is not now too late for us her elders to change our minds. I am out of humour with the idea of wearing red roses; I have been thinking this very day that I should prefer another colour for my wreath; I like that beautiful azure, and I will wear it; and therefore, my little lady, you must please to look for some other ornament for yourself.

I am content, replied Aimée, meekly: adding, if you approve it, Mademoiselle, I will help you to make your garland.

And what will you wear yourself? said Susette: you shall, if you please, adopt the rose I have relinquished.