A Lovely Lady Lobbyist

That chairinan was nowhero in sight. Such disappointments seldom occur in novéis, but are always happening in real life. She was obliged to make a new plan. She sent hirn anote, and asked him to cali in tlio evening - which he did. She reoeivcd the Hon. Mr. Buokstone with a sunny smile, and said : " I don't know how I ever dared to send you a note, Mr. Buckstone, for you have the veputation of not boing very partial to our sex." " Why, I am sure my reputation doos me wrong, then, Miss Hawkins, I havo been married once- is that nothing in my favor ? " " Oh, yes - that is, it may be and it may not be. If you have known what perfec:ion is in womau, it is fair to'argue that mferiority cannot interest you now." " Even if that were the case it cannot affect you, Miss Hawkins," said the chairman, gallantly. " Fanie does not place vou in tho list of ladies who rank below perfection," This happy speech delighted Mr. Buckstone as inuch as it seemed to delight Laura. But it did not confuso him as ïnuch as it apparently did her. " I wish in all siuoerity that I could be worthy of such a í'clicitous compliment as that. But I am a woman, and so I am gratified for it just as it is, and would not have it altered." " But it is not merely a compliment - that is, an empty compliment - it is the truth. All men will endorse that." Laura looked pleased and said : " It is very kind of you to say it. It is a distinction, indeed, for a country-bred girl like me to bo so spoken of by people of brain and culture. You are so kind that I know you will pardon my putting you to the trouble to come here this evening." "Indeed it was no trouble. It was a pleasure. i am alone in tho world since I lost my wife, ard I often long for the society of your sex, Miss Hawkins, notwithstanding what people may say to the contrary." "Itis pleasant to hear you say that. I am sure it must be so. If I feel lonely at times, beoause of my exile from old friends, although surrounded by new ones who are already very dear to me, how much more lonely must you feel, bereft as you are, and with no wholesome relief from the cares of state that weigh down. For your own sake, as well as for the sake of others, you ought to go into society oftener. I seldom see you at a reception, and when I do you do not usually givo me very much of your attention." "I never imagined that you wished it or I would have been very glad to make myself happy in that way. But one seldom gets au opportunity to say more than a sentence to you in a place like that. You are always the center of a group - a fact which you may have 110ticed yourself. But if onc might come here - " " Indeed you would always find a hearty welcome, Mr. Buckstone. I have often wished you would come and teil me more about Cairo and the Pyramids, as you once promised me you would." " Why, do you remember that yet, Miss Hawkins 'í I thought ladies' memories were rnore fickle than that." " Oh, they are not so fickle as gentleuien's promises. And besides, if I had been inclined to lorget, I- did you not give me sometbing by way of a remembran eer ?" "DidI?" " Think." " It does seem to me that I did ; but I have forgotten what it was now." " Never, never cali a lady's memory fickle again. Do you recognize this ? " " A little spray of box ! I am beaten - I surrender. But havo you kept that all this time ? " Laura's confusión was very pretty. She tried to hide it. But the more she tried the more manifest it becanie, and, withal, the more captivating to look upon. Presently she threw the spray of box from her with an annoyed air, and said : " I forgot inyself. I have been very foolish. I beg that you will forget this absurd thing." Mr. Buokstone picked up the spray, ; and, sitting down by Laura's side on the sofa, said : " Please let mo keep it, Miss Hawkins. I set a very high value upon it now." " Give it to me, Mr. Buckstone, and do not 8peak so. I have been sufficiently puniehed for my thoughtlessness. You cannot take pleasuro in adding to my distress. Please give it to me. " Indeed I do not wish to distress you. But do not consider the matter so gravely ; you have dono yourself no wrong. You probably forgot that you had it ; but if you had given it to me I would have kept it - and not forgotten it." "Do not talk so, Mr. Bucketone. Givo it to me, please, and forget the matter." " It would not be kind to refuse, since it troubles you so, and so I restore it. But if you would give me part of it and keep the rest - " " So that you might havo something to remind you of me when you wished to laugh at my f oolishness ? " " Oh, by no means, no! Simply that I might remember that I had at onco assisted to discomfort you, and be reminded to do so no more." Laura looked up, and soanned bis face a moment. She was about to break the twig, but she hositated and said : " If I were suro that you " - She threw the spray aside, and. continued : " Thisis silly ! We will change" the subject. No, do not insist - I must have my way in this." Then Mr. Buckstone drew off his forcea and proceeded to inako a wily ad vanee upon the fortress under cover of carefully contri vod artífices and stratagems of war. But ho contended with an alert and suspicious enemy ; and so at the end of two hours it was manifest to him that he had made but little progress. Still, he had some, he waa sure of that. Laura sat alone and communed with heraelf : "He is fairly hooked, poor thing. I can play Lim at my leisure and land hira when I choose. He was already to be caught, days and days ago - I saw that very well. He will vote tor our bill - no fear about that ; and moreover he will work for it, too, before I am done with him. If he had a woman's eyo he would have noticed that the spray of box had grown three inches since ho first gave it to rae, but a man never sees anything and nover suspects. If I had shown him a whole bush he would have thought it was the samo. Well, it's a good night's work ; the committee is safe. But this is a desperate game I am playing in these days- a wearing, sordid, heartless game. If I lose I lose everything - even myself. And if I win the game, will it bo worth the cost after all ? I do not know. Sometimes I doubt. Sometimes I half wish I had not begun. But no matter; 1 have begun, and I will never turn back ; never while I live." Mr. Buckstone indulged in a rêverie as ho walked homeward : " She is shrewd and deep, and plays her oards with considerable discretion - but she will lose, for all that. There is no hurry ; I shall come out winner all in good time. She ia the most beautiful woman in the world ; but she surpassod herself to-night. I supposo I must ote for that bill, in the end, maybe ; but that is not a matter of much consequenoe - the government can stand it. She is bent on capturing rno, that is plain ; but sho will find by-and-by that what she took for a sleeping garrison was an ambuscade." A Uase of Somnambulisin. Altogether the most interesting case of somnambulism on record is that of a young ecclosiastic, the narrative of which trom the immediate communication of an Archibishop of Bordeaux, is givon under the head of somnambulism in the "French Encyclopedia." This young ecclesiastic, when the Archbishop was at the seminary, used to riso every night, and writo sermons or pieces of music. To study his condition, the Archbishop betook himself several nights to thochamber of the young man, where he made the following observations : The young man used to rise, to tako paper, and writo. Before he wrote music he would take a stick and rule the lines with it ; he wrote the notes, together with the words corresponding with them, with perfect correctness ; or, when he had written the words too wido, he altered them. The notes that were to be black ho filled in after he had comploted the whole. After comploting a sermón, he read it aloud f rom beginning to end. If any passage displeased him, he erased it and wrote the amended passage corrcctly over the other. To ascertain whether he used his eyes, the Archbishop interposod a sheet of pasteboard between the writing and his face. He took nót the least notice, but went on writing as before. The limitation of his perceptions to what ho was thinking about was very curious. A bit of aniseed cake that he sought for he ate approvingly ; but when on another occasion a piece of the same cake was put into his inouth, he spit it out without observation. The following instance of the dependeuce of his perceptions upon, or rather their subordination to, his preconceived ideas, 3 ttuly wonderful. it is to be observed that he always knew when his pen had iuk in it. Likewise, if they adroitly changed his papers when he was writing, he knew if the sheet substituted was of a different size from the tormer, and appeared embarrassed in that case ; but if the fresh sheet of paper which was substituted for that written on was exactly of the same size as the formar, ho appeared not to be aware of the change ; and he would continue to read off his composition from the blank sheet of paper as fluently as when the manuscript itself lay before him ; nay, more, he would continue his corrections and introduce the amended passage, writing it upon exactly the place on the blank sheet which it would have occupied on the written page.