When the ball broke up, she retired to her apartment, but not to

sleep. Joy is as restless as anxiety or sorrow. She seemed to have

entered upon a new state of existence;--those fine springs of

affection which had hitherto lain concealed, were now touched, and

yielded to her a happiness more exalted than any her imagination had

ever painted. She reflected on the tranquillity of her past life, and

comparing it with the emotions of the present hour, exulted in the

difference. All her former pleasures now appeared insipid; she

wondered that they ever had power to affect her, and that she had

endured with content the dull uniformity to which she had been

condemned. It was now only that she appeared to live. Absorbed in the

single idea of being beloved, her imagination soared into the regions

of romantic bliss, and bore her high above the possibility of evil.

Since she was beloved by Hippolitus, she could only be happy.

From this state of entranced delight, she was awakened by the sound of

music immediately under her window. It was a lute touched by a

masterly hand. After a wild and melancholy symphony, a voice of more

than magic expression swelled into an air so pathetic and tender, that

it seemed to breathe the very soul of love. The chords of the lute

were struck in low and sweet accompaniment. Julia listened, and

distinguished the following words;

SONNET

Still is the night-breeze!--not a lonely sound

Steals through the silence of this dreary hour;

O'er these high battlements Sleep reigns profound,

And sheds on all, his sweet oblivious power.

On all but me--I vainly ask his dews

To steep in short forgetfulness my cares.

Th' affrighted god still flies when Love pursues,

Still--still denies the wretched lover's prayers.

An interval of silence followed, and the air was repeated; after which

the music was heard no more. If before Julia believed that she was

loved by Hippolitus, she was now confirmed in the sweet reality. But

sleep at length fell upon her senses, and the airy forms of ideal

bliss no longer fleeted before her imagination. Morning came, and she

arose light and refreshed. How different were her present sensations

from those of the preceding day. Her anxiety had now evaporated in

joy, and she experienced that airy dance of spirits which accumulates

delight from every object; and with a power like the touch of

enchantment, can transform a gloomy desert into a smiling Eden. She

flew to the breakfast-room, scarcely conscious of motion; but, as she

entered it, a soft confusion overcame her; she blushed, and almost

feared to meet the eyes of Vereza. She was presently relieved,

however, for the Count was not there. The company assembled--Julia

watched the entrance of every person with painful anxiety, but he for

whom she looked did not appear. Surprised and uneasy, she fixed her

eyes on the door, and whenever it opened, her heart beat with an

expectation which was as often checked by disappointment. In spite of

all her efforts, her vivacity sunk into languor, and she then

perceived that love may produce other sensations than those of

delight.




readonlinefreebook.com Copyright 2016 - 2024