as represented by Le Brun. The violence of this passion alters all the parts of the face; the eyebrows rise in the middle; its muscles are marked, swelled, pressed one against the other, and sunk towards the nose, which draws up as well as the nostrils; the eyes are very open; the upper eyelid is hid under the eyebrow; the white of the eye is encompassed with red; the eyeball fixes towards the lower part of the eye; the lower part of the eyelid swells, and becomes livid; the muscles of the nose and cheeks swell, and these last terminate in a point towards the sides of the nostrils; the mouth is very open, and its corners very apparent; the muscles and veins of the neck are stretched; the hair stands an end; the colour of the face, that is, the end of the nose, the lips, the ears, and round the eyes, is pale and livid. Such was the face of honest Nicholas. He fell into a chair, and let drop the scroll.

‘Heavens! what ails my poor Nicholas?’ cried Gertrude; ‘speak, speak to me, Nicholas.’—‘Let us to our cottage, Gertrude,’ replied Nicholas, ‘let us to our cottage!’—‘What ails you, my dear Nicholas?’ said Gertrude, feeling his hand. ‘Oh dear, how cold!’—‘Read, read!’ said Nicholas.

“Hathbrand took up the scroll, and read—'Know, thou who longest after riches, that the title to these estates is murder; the infant heir to these demesnes was on Christmas night, now fourteen years since, left to perish in the forest of Dean.’

‘What is that?’ cried Nicholas; ‘read it again; as I live, the very night I found our poor Henry.’—‘The very night indeed,’ repeated Gertrude.—‘Are you sure of this?’ interrupted Hathbrand.—‘Most certain, sir,’ replied Nicholas. ‘I remember the night very well; it was bitter cold. Oh dear! oh dear! this is all Providence! this is all Providence!’

“Nicholas embraced Henry: Gertrude embraced him also.

“Henry wept; he understood all that was said; he took the hand of Nicholas—‘Thou hast fed me,’ said he, ‘out of thy scanty pittance; thou must not leave me, Nicholas. I have no friend that I know of, but my dear Nicholas.’

“Nicholas consented to remain in a cottage near the castle, but refused to be rich. Gertrude had no longer any desire to be rich.

“Hathbrand and the servants were delighted to find their young master so noble and gallant a youth, and immediately did him homage.

“As they were speaking of these surprising events, father Benedict entered; he brought with him Hugo, a wretch whom the Baron, in his confessions, had accused of being his accomplice, and who had left the child to perish in the woods; he was strongly guarded, but denied the charge; he bid defiance to the power of his accusers, and insisted that the Baron had died in a state of insanity.

“Surely here are the features of this bravo, full of defiance and resentment; is it not the face of