hten with me; they have broken through the guard kept on the hareem door by two old sentries; they ran through the fort and besieged uy house; they are now there, and refuse to go back to the hareem. The rajah returns tomorrow from his hunting-what can I say? I must die! my children, who will care for them? what crime did my father commit that I should thus be disgraced ?" inexpressibly touching. This is not an unfrequent character in the beauty of Asiatic women; the natural result of habits of fear, and the entire submission to the will of others. beauty; a small, dark satin bodice, richly embroidered, covered a bosom which had hardly attained womanly perfection; a zone of gold held together the full muslin folds of the lower portion of her dress, below which the white satin trowsers reached, without concealing a faultless ankle and foot, uncovered, except by the heavy anklet and rings which tinkled at every step she took. After the disturbance that our entrance had caused, had in a measure subsided, the children, who were richly dressed and loaded with every kind of fantastic ornament, came sidling timidly round us, peering curiously with their large black eyes, at the unusual sight of white men. Her features were classically regular, with the short rounded chin, the long graceful neck, and that easy port of head so seldom seen except in the women of the East. Her arms were covered with rich bracelets, and were of Yielding to these entreaties, and amused at the most perfect form; her hands long and the prospect of a novel scene, we mounted our tapering, the palms and nails dyed with the horses and cantered to the fort. The lights" henna." No barbarously-civilized restraint were burning brightly in the bazaars as we rendered her waist a contradiction of natural rode through them, and except a few groups gathered to discuss the price of rice and the want of rain, we perceived no agitation till we reached the Vakeel's house. Arrived here we dismounted, and on entering the square courtyard a scene of indescribable confusion presented itself. The first impression it produced on me was that of entering a large aviary in which the birds, stricken with terror, fly madly to and fro against the bars. Such was the first effect of our entrance. Women and girls of all ages, grouped about the court, in most picturesque attitudes, started up and fled to its extreme end; only a few of the more matronly ladies stood their ground, and with terribly screeching voices, declaimed against some one or something, but Considerably embarrassed at the very new for a long time we could, in this Babel of arbitration which we were about to undertake, female tongues, distinguish nothing. At last B. and I consulted for a little while, after which, we managed to distinguish the rajah's name, gravely taking our seats, and Veneat Rao kavcoupled with epithets most disrespectful to roy-ing begged them to listen with respectful attenalty. This, and that they, the women, begged tion, I, at B.'s desire, proceeded to address instantly to be put to death, was all that the them, telling them, clamor would permit us to understand. We looked appealingly at Veneat Rao, who stood by, wringing his hands. However, he made a vigorous effort, and raising his shrill voice, told them that the sahibs had come purposely to listen to, and redress their grievances, and that they would hold durbar (audience) then and there. "That we supposed some grave cause must have arisen for them to desert the palace of the rajah, their protector, during his absence, and by violently overpowering the guard, incur his serious anger (here my eye caught a sight of the said guard, consisting of two blear-eyed, shriveled old men, and I nearly lost all solemnity of demeanor) that if they complained of injustice, we supposed that it must have been committed without his highness's knowledge, but that if they would quietly return to the hareem we would endeavor to represent to their master their case, and entreat him to redress their This announcement produced a lull, and enabled us to look round us at the strange scene. Scattered in various parts of the court were these poor prisoners, who now for the first time for many years tasted liberty. Scattered about were some hideous old women, partly guardians grievance." of the younger, partly remains, we were told, I spoke this in Hindusthani, which, as the of the rajah's father's seraglio. Young chil-lingua franca of the greater part of India, I dren moved among them looking very much thought was most likely to be understood by frightened. But the group which attracted our the majority of my female audience. I sucattention and admiration consisted of about ceeded perfectly in making myself understood, twenty really beautiful girls, from fourteen to but was not quite so successful in convincing eighteen years of age, of every country and them that it was better that they should return caste, in the various costume and ornament of to the rajah's palace. After rather a stormy their races; these were clustering round a fair discussion, the Mahratta girl, whom we had so and very graceful Mahratta girl, whose tall much admired on our entrance, stepped forward. gure was seen to great advantage in the blaze and, bowing lowly before us, and crossing her of torchlight. Her muslin vail had half fallen arms, in a very sweet tone of voice proceeded from her face, allowing us to see her large, to tell her story, which, she said, was very soft, dark eyes, from which the tears were fast much the history of them all. The simple, falling, as in a low voice she addressed her and at times picturesque expression lose much fellow-sufferers. There was on her face a pe- by translation. culiar expression of patient endurance of ill, "Sir. much shame comes over me, that I. a woman, should speak before men who are not disgrace and cruelties upon us. We, who are of Brahmin caste, for his amusement, are forced to learn the work of men-are made to carry in the gardens of the hareem a palanquin, to work as goldsmiths-and, may our gods parden us, to mingle with the dancing-girls of the ba zaar. His attendants deprive us even of our food, and we sit in the beautiful palace loaded with jewels, and suffer from the hunger not felt even by the poor Pariah. "Sahibs! you who have in your country mothers and sisters, save us from this cruel fate, and cause us to be restored to our parents; do not send us back to such degradation, but rather let us die by your orders.” As with a voice tremulous with emotion, she said these words, she threw herself at our feet, and burst into an agony of weeping. Deeply moved by the simple expression of such undeserved misfortune, we soothed her as well as we were able, and promising her and her companions to make every effort with the rajah for their deliverance, we persuaded Rosambhi, the Mahratta girl (their eloquent pleader), to induce them to return for the night to the palace. Upon a repetition of our promise they consented, to the infinite relief of Veneat Rao, who alternately showered blessings on us, and curses on all womankind, as he accompanied us back to the Residency. "The journey had lasted for many days, and one evening after we had halted for the day I accompanied my mother when she went to bathe in a tank near to our encampment. As I played along the bank and picked a few wild flowers that grew under the trees I observed an old woman advancing toward me. She spoke to me in a kind voice, asked me my name? who were my parents? where we were going? and when I had answered her these questions she told me that if I would accompany her a little way she would give me some prettier flowers And now we had to set about the deliverthan those I was gathering, and that her serv-ance of these poor women. This was a work ant should take me back to my people. of considerable difficulty. "I had no sooner gone far enough to be out It was a delicate matter interfering with of sight and hearing of my mother than the old the rajah's domestic concerns, and we could woman threw a cloth over my head, and taking only commission Veneat Rao to communicate me up in her arms, hurried on for a short dis- to his highness the manner in which we had tance. There I could distinguish men's voices, become implicated with so unusual an occurand was sensible of being placed in a carriage, rence as a revolt of his seraglio; we told him which was driven off at a rapid pace. No to express to his highness our conviction that answer was returned to my cries and entreaties | his generosity had been deceived by his suborto be restored to my parents, and at sunrise I found myself near hills which I had never before seen, and among a people whose language was new to me. dinates. In this we only imitated the profound maxim of European diplomacy, and concealed our real ideas by our expressions. This to the rajah. On his confidential servant we enforced "I remained with these people, who were the disapprobation the resident felt at the sysnot unkind to me, three or four years; and Item of kidnapping, of which his highness was found out that the old woman who had carried the instigator, and hinted at that which these me off from my parents, was an emissary sent princes most dread-an investigation. from the rajah's hareem to kidnap, when they could not be purchased, young female children whose looks promised that they would grow up with the beauty necessary for the gratification of the prince's passions. "Sahibs! I have been two years an inmate of the rajah's hareem-would to God I had died a child in my own country with those I loved, than that I should have been exposed to the miseries we suffer. The splendor which surrounds us is only a mockery. The rajah, wearied and worn out by a life of debauchery, takes no longer any pleasure in our society, and is only roused from his lethargy to inflict * The usual age for the ceremony among the wealthy in India This succeeded beyond our expectation, and the next morning a message was sent from the palace, intimating that the charges were so completely unfounded, that the rajah was prepared to offer to his revolted women, the choice of remaining in the hareem, or being sent back to their homes. Again they were assembled in Veneat Rao's house, but this time in much more orderly fashion, for their vails were down, and except occasionally when a coquettish movement showed a portion of some face, we were unrewarded by any of the bright eyes we had admired on the previous visit. The question was put to them one by one, and all with the exception of a few old women, expressed an eager wish not to re-enter the hareem. [From The Ladies' Companion.] LETTICE ARNOLD. WYNDHAM," &c. CHAPTER I. After much troublesome inquiry, we discovered their parents, and were rewarded by their happy and grateful faces, as we sent them of under escort to their homes. It was painful By the Author of "Two OLD MEN'S TALES," "EMILI to reflect what their fate would be; they left as rejoicing at what they thought would be a happy change, but we well knew that no one would marry them, knowing that they had been in the rajab's hareem, and that they would either lead a life of neglect, or sink into vice, of which the liberty would be the only change from that, which by our means they had escaped. In the inquiries we made into the circumstances of this curious case, we found that their statements were true. Large sums were paid by the rajah to his. creatures, who traveled to distant parts of the country, and wherever they could meet with parents poor enough, bought their female children from them, or when they met with remarkable beauty such as Rosambhi's, did not hesitate to carry the child off, and by making rapid marches, elude any vigilance of pursuit on the part of the parents. The cruelties and degradations suffered by these poor girls are hardly to be described. We well know how degraded, even in civilized countries the pursuit of sensual pleasures renders men, to whom education and the respect they pay the opinion of society, are checks; let us imagine the conduct of the eastern prince, safe in the retirement of his court, surrounded by those dependents to whom the gratification of their master's worst passions was the sure road to favor and fortune. Besides the sufferings they had to endure from him, the women of the hareem were exposed to the rapacities of those who had charge of them, and Rosambhi did not exaggerate, when she described herself and her companions as suffering the pangs of want amid the splendors of a palace. This is the reverse of the pleasing picture drawn by the poet of the Eastern woman's existence-but, though less pleasing, it is true nor need we describe her in the lower ranks of life in those countries, where, her beauty faded, she has to pass a wearisome existence, the servant of a rival, whose youthful charms have supplanted her in her master's affections. The calm happiness of advancing age is seldom hers -she is the toy while young-the slave, or the neglected servant, at best, when, her only merit in the eyes of her master, physical beauty, is gone. Let her sister in the western world, in the midst of her joys, think with pity on these sufferings, and when sorrow's cloud seems darkest, let her not repine, but learn resignation to her lot, as she compares it with the condition of the women of the East; let her be grateful that she lives in an age and land where woman is regarded as the helpmate and consolation of man, by whom her love is justly deemed the prize of his life. "It is the generous spirit, who when brought Unto the task of common life, hath wrought Even upon the plan which pleased the childish thought * * Who doomed to go in company with pain, And fear, and ruin-miserable train !Makes that necessity a glorious gain, By actions that would force the soul to abate Her feeling, rendered more compassionate. More gifted with self-knowledge-even more pure WORDSWORTH. Happy Warrior. O, dearest mother, no! I can not. What! and old have received from you, for now one-and-twenty years, to leave you and my father, in your age, to yourselves! Oh, no! Oh, no!" "Nay, my child," said the pale, delicate, nervous woman, thus addressed by a blooming girl whose face beamed with every promise for future happiness, which health and cheerfulness, and eyes filled with warm affections could give, "Nay, my child, don't talk so. You must Lt talk so. It is not to be thought of." And, as she said these words with effort, her poor heart was dying within her, not only from sorrow at the thought of the parting from her darling, but with all sorts of dreary, undefined terrors at the idea of the forlorn, deserted life before her. Abandoned to herself and to servants, so fearful, so weak as she was, and with the poor, invalided, and crippled veteran, her husband, a martyr to that long train of sufferings which honorable wounds, received in the service of country, too often leave behind them, a man at all times so difficult to sooth, so impossible to entertain— and old age creeping upon them both; the little strength she ever had, diminishing; the little spirit she ever possessed, failing; what should she do without this dear, animated, this loving, clever being, who was, in one word, every thing to her? But she held to her resolution-no martyr ever more courageously than this trembling, timid woman. A prey to ten thousand imaginary fears, and, let alone the imaginary terrors, placed in a position where the help she was now depriving herself of was really so greatly needed. No, my dear," she repeated, "don't think of it; don't speak of it. You distress me very much. Pray don't, my dearest Catherine." "But I should be a shocking creature, mamma, to forsake you; and, I am sure, Edgar would despise me as much as I should myself, if I could think of it. I can not-I ought not to leave you." The gentle blue eye of the mother was fixed upon the daughter's generous, glowing face. She smothered a sigh. She waited a while to steady her faltering voice. She wished to hide, if possible, from her daughter the extent of the sacrifice she was making. the idea of parting with her was really dreadful Yet she hesitated not. So did that man behave, who stood firm upon the rampart till he had finished his observation, though his hair turned white with fear. Mrs. Melwyn was an heroic At last she recovered herself sufficiently to coward of this kind. speak with composure, and then she said: "To accept such a sacrifice from a child, I have always thought the most monstrous piece of selfishness of which a parent could be guilty. My love, this does not come upon me unexpectedly. I have, of course, anticipated it. I knew my sweet girl could not be long known and seen without inspiring and returning the attachment of some valuable man. I have re/solved-and God strengthen me in this resolve," she cast up a silent appeal to the fountain of strength and courage-"that nothing should tempt me to what I consider so base. A parent accept the sacrifice of a life in exchange for the poor remnant of her own! A parent, who has had her own portion of the joys of youth in her day, deprive a child of a share in her turn! No, my dearest love, never-never! I would die, and I will die first." But it was not death she feared. The idea of death did not appall her. What she dreaded was melancholy. She knew the unsoundness of her own nerves; she had often felt herself, as it were, trembling upon the fearful verge of reason, when the mind, unable to support itself, is forced to rest upon another. She had known a feeling, common to many very nervous people, I believe, as though the mind would be overset when pressed far, if not helped, strengthened, and cheered by some more wholesome mind; and she shrank appalled from the prospect. She had prayed ardently, fervently, that day. for courage, for resolution, to complete the dreaded sacrifice, and she had found it. "Oh, Lord! I am thy servant. Do with me what thou wilt. Trembling in spirit, the victim of my infirmity-a poor, selfish, cowardly being, I fall down before Thee. Thou hast showed me what is right-the sacrifice I ought to make. Oh, give me strength in my weakness to be faithful to complete it!" Thus had she prayed. And now resolved is. heart, the poor sinking spirit failing her within but, as I said, steadying her voice with a almost heroic constancy, she resisted her grate ful and pious child's representation: "I have told Edgar-dear as he is to me-strong as are the claims his generous affection gives hi over me-that I will not-I can not forsale you. "You must not call it forsake," said the mother, gently. "My love, the Lord of life himself has spoken it: 'Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife.'" "And so he is ready to do," cried Catherine, eagerly. "Yes, mother, he desires nothing better-he respects my scruples-he has offered, dear Edgar! to abandon his profession and come and live here, and help me to take care of you and my father. Was not that beautiful?" and the tears stood in her speaking eyes. "Beautiful! generous! devoted! My Cath smiled. A ray of genuine pleasure warmed her beating heart. This respect in the gay, handsome young officer for the filial scruples of her he loved was indeed beautiful! But the mother knew his spirit too well to listen to this proposal for a moment. But even this could not make her waver in her resolution. She was a generous, just, dis-erine will be a happy woman;" and the mother interested woman; though the exigencies of a most delicate constitution, and most susceptible nervous system, had too often thrown upon her -from those who did not understand such things, and whose iron nerves and vigorous health rendered sympathy at such times impossible-the reproach of being a tedious, whimsical, selfish hypochondriac. Poor thing, she knew this well. It was the difficulty of making herself understood; the want of sympathy, the impossibility of rendering needs, most urgent in her case, comprehensible by her friends, which had added so greatly to the timorous cowardice, the fear of circumstances, of changes, which had been the bane of her existence. "And abandon his profession? No, my sweet child, that would never, never do." "But he says he is independent of his profession-that his private fortune, though not large, is enough for such simple, moderate people as he and I are. In short, that he shall be miserable without me, and all that charming stuff, mamma; and that he loves me better, for what he calls, dear fellow, my piety to you. And so, dear mother, he says if you and my father will but consent to take him in, he will do his very best in helping me to make you comfortable; and he is so sweet-tempered, so reasonable, so good, so amiable, I am quite sure he would keep his promise, mamma." And she looked anxiously into her mother's face waiting for an answer. The temptation was very, very strong. And, therefore, this kind, animated, affectionate daughter, whose tenderness seemed never to weary in the task of cheering her; whose activity was never exhausted in the endeavor to assist and serve her; whose good sense and spirit kept every thing right at home, and more especially kept those terrible things, the servants, in order of whom the poor mother, like many other feeble and languid people, was so Again those domestic spectres which had so foolishly afraid; therefore, this kind daughter appalled her poor timorous spirit rose before was as the very spring of her existence; and her. A desolate, dull fireside-her own ten dercy to melancholy-her poor maimed suffer- erous daughter, to consider her own welfare ing, and, alas, too often peevish partner-en- and his, in preference to that of her parents. croaching, unmanageable servants. He could only offer, on his own part, to make the greatest sacrifice which could have been demanded from him. Rather than part from her what would he not do? Every thing was possible but that. The cook, with her careless, saucy ways-the butler so indifferent and negligent-and her own maid, that Randall, who in secret tyrannized over her, exercising the empire of fear to an extent which Catherine, alive as she was to these evils, did not suspect. And again she asked herself, if these things were disagreeable now, when Catherine was here to take care of her, what would they be when she was left alone? And then such a sweet picture of happiness presented itself to tempt her-Catherine settled there-settled there forever. That handsome, lively young man, with his sweet, cordial ways and polite observance of every one, sitting by their hearth, and talking, as he did, to the general of old days and military matters, the only subject in which this aged military man took any interest, reading the newspaper to him, and making such lively, pleasant comments as he read! How should she ever get through the debates, with her breath so short, and her voice so indistinct and low? The general would lose all patience he hated to hear her attempt to read such things, and always got Catherine or the young lieutenant-colonel to do it. However, when the mother positively refused to accept of this act of self-abnegation, I can not say that he regretted it. No: he thought Mrs. Melwyn quite right in what she said; and he loved and respected both her character and understanding very much more than he had done before. That night Mrs. Melwyn was very, very low indeed. And when she went up into her dressing-room, and Catherine, having kissed her tenderly, with a heart quite divided between anxiety for her, and a sense of happiness that would make itself felt in spite of all, had retired to her room, the mother sat down, poor thing, in the most comfortable arm-chair that ever was invented, but which imparted no comfort to her; and placing herself by a merry blazing fire, which was reflected from all sorts of cheerful pretty things with which the dressing-room was adorned, her feet upon a warm, soft footstool Oh! it was a sore temptation. But this of Catherine's own working, her elbow resting poor, dear, good creature resisted it. "My love," she said, after a little pause, during which this noble victory was achieved laugh if you will at the expression, but it was a noble victory over self-"my love," she said, "don't tempt your poor mother beyond her strength. Gladly, gladly, as far as we are concerned, would we enter into this arrangement; but it must not be. No, Catherine; Edgar must not quit his profession. It would not only be a very great sacrifice I am sure now, but it would lay the foundation of endless regrets in future. No, my darling girl, neither his happiness nor your happiness shall be ever sacrificed to mine. A life against a few uncertain years! No-no." The mother was inflexible. The more these good children offered to give up for her sake, the more she resolved to suffer no such sacrifice to be made. Edgar could not but rejoice. He was an excellent young fellow, and excessively in love with the charming Catherine, you may be sure, or he never would have thought of offering to abandon a profession for her sake in which he had distinguished himself highly-which opened to him the fairest prospects, and of which he was especially fond-but he was not sorry to be excused. He had resolved upon this sacrifice, for there is something in those who truly love, and whose love is elevated almost to adoration by the moral worth they have observed in the chosen one, which revolts at the idea of lowering the tone of that enthusiastic goodness and self-immolation to principle which has so enchanted them. Edgar could not do it. He could not attempt to persuade this tender, gen upon her knee, and her head upon her hand, she, with her eyes bent mournfully upon the fire, began crying very much. And so she sat a long time, thinking and crying, very sorrowful, but not in the least repenting. Meditating upon all sorts of dismal things, filled with all kinds of melancholy forebodings, as to how it would, and must be, when Catherine was really gone, she sank at last into a sorrowful reverie, and sate quite absorbed in her own thoughts, till she-who was extremely punctual in her hour of going to bed-for reasons best known to herself, though never confided to any human being, namely, that her maid disliked very much sitting up for her-started as the clock in the hall sounded eleven and two quarters, and almost with the trepidation of a chidden child, rose and rang the bell. Nobody came. This made her still more uneasy. It was Randall's custom not to answer her mistress's bell the first time, when she was cross. And poor Mrs. Melwyn dreaded few things in this world more than cross looks in those about her, especially in Randall; and that Randall knew perfectly well. "She must be fallen asleep in her chair, poor thing. It was very thoughtless of me," Mrs. Melwyn did not say, but would have said, if people ever did speak to themselves aloud. Even in this sort of mute soliloquy she did not venture to say, "Randall will be very illtempered and unreasonable." She rang again; and then, after a proper time yielded to the claims of offended dignity, it pleased Mrs. Randall to appear. "I am very sorry, Randall. Really I had no idea how late it was. I was thinking about |