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Surprise, curiosity, and a pleasant sense of satisfaction in seeing what seemed to her a shameless display withdrawn from her lover's eyes, rendered it easier for Ledscha toin her te intently into her expressive face

Was it not too narroholly to please the man who had kno to praise her own beauty so passionately? Did not the outlines of Althea's figure, which the bombyx robe only partially concealed, lack roundness even more than her own?

And yet! As soon as Althea had transformed the sheet into a robe, and held the wreath above hih enraptured, while froht blue eyes a flood of ardent admiration poured upon the man for whom she held the victor's wreath

This was done with the upper portion of her body bending very far forward The slender figure was poised on one foot; the other, covered to the ankle with the long robe, hovered in the air Had not the wings which, as Nike, belonged to her been lacking, every one would have been convinced that she was flying--that she had just descended fro victor Not only her hand, her gaze and her every feature awarded the prize to the man at her feet

There was no doubt that, if Nike herself came to the earth to make the best man happy with the noblest of crowns, the spectacle would be a siarlanded victor could look up to the gracious divinity rateful rapture

The applause which now rang out more and more loudly was certainly not undeserved, but it pierced Ledscha's soul like a mockery, like the bitterest scorn

Hanno, on the contrary, see more powerful was required to stir him He was particularly averse to all exhibitions The utmost which his relatives could induce the quiet, reserved reat seaports was to attend the anihly happy only when at sea, on board of his good ship His best pleasure was to gaze up at the stars on calladly of irl who had seemed to him worthy of his brave brother Abus, his oife

In the secluded monotony of his life as a scar over memory had exalted Ledscha into the htered Abus into the greatest of heroes