bitterly reproached him for the perfidy of his conduct, and vented her feelings in a torrent of invective, indiscriminately bestowed upon Miss Harrington and her imaginary devotée lover. Disgusted by her conduct, and conscious that there was in reality no ground for the accusation, Delme met the charge with equal spirit, and vainly attempting to convince her of her error, they at length parted in mutual resentment. Strongly attached, however, and indulgent to a weakness which he was convinced originated only in the sincerity of her regard, he could not rest till he had finally dissipated the doubts which had interrupted their former amity. A reconciliation of course succeeded, and peace being restored, never was mistress so adored as Miss Arden, never lover so deserving as Mr. Delme! But, alas! the tedious period of the mourning was still unexpired; and during this interval Miss Arden unhappily experienced a renewal

of her alarms, and, in spite of all his protestations, continued to harass her lover with the repetition of her former fears. Delme not considering it absolutely necessary to sacrifice his comfort to mere whims, listened with indifference to her ill-founded assertions of his inconstancy, and provoked past bearing by these tiresome chimeras, he one evening left her in a paroxysm of rage, and joining a party from the Governor's upon an excursion to the interior, left Calcutta without vouchsafing a farewell. At this identical crisis a ship homeward bound was about to sail from Calcutta, and Miss Arden indignant at the independence of this step, and the imaginary defection of her haughty lover, could not endure the idea of witnessing the fancied triumph of Miss Harrington, and left no arguments untried to prevail upon her mother to embark instantly for England, and leave him without farther ceremony to the prosecution of his new attach

ment. Mrs. Arden, not perhaps exactly aware of all the motives which had provoked his present conduct, and listening only to the solicitation of her weeping daughter, who almost upon her knees besought her to spare her the mortification of beholding him married to her rival, gave a reluctant consent; and their preparations being made with the utmost secrecy, they embarked on board the vessel then ready to sail, and had been nearly three weeks upon their voyage to England before Mr. Delme, returning at his leisure to Calcutta, received the slightest intimation of their design. Thunderstruck at this unexpected news, Delme could scarcely give eredit to their departure; but having finally ascertained the fact, and satisfied himself that Miss Arden had actually sailed for England, he severely reproach, ed himself for his share in their mutual folly. It was now so late in the season that the last homeward bound vessel had

already sailed; and certain that if Miss Arden's resentment was sufficiently strong to induce her to sacrifice him so unhesitatingly, there was but little chance of effecting a favourable change in her sentiments could he even have followed her to England, he wisely endeavoured to reconcile himself to her loss, and, notwithstanding the general laugh which her elopement excited against him, wear his willowed honours with resignation to his fate !-Miss Arden meanwhile proceeded gaily on her voyage, sometimes wondering what her lover thought of her departure, and burning with curiosity to know what was said of it in the brilliant circles of Calcutta; but this gratification of her curiosity she was not destined to receive; and during the first few days of her voyage her imagination was too much occupied by the novelty of her situation to feel much regret for the loss of her absent lover. Though born in

England, she had quitted it whilst an infant, and having never since left Calcutta, every object was new and interesting. For a time the festive dinner party, with the social gaiety of the Captain's cabin, the evening dance upon deck, and the civilities of a numerous assemblage of passengers, principally composed of military officers, with wives married in the East; some of them returning in ostentatious splendour to display their conquests in their native country, added to a few fair adventurers sent back disappointed from the marriage marts in India, to lament the failure of such speculations in original obscurity, precluded for a time any serious consideration from assailing her; but when the coast of India had finally receded from her sight, and she found herself at open sea without a single object but the world of waters in her view, a sentiment little short of terror took possession of her mind, and as she fearfully contem