OF THE FOREST. 23

was an English girl, and an orphan. I
never knew by what chance this child had
been consigned to the care of Madame Bulé,
neither do I recollect her real name; but
she was called Aimée by her preceptress,
and by that name she went amongst us.
Neither do I know more of her age, than
that she was thought too young for confes-
sion till she had been in the house more
than two years, and therefore I judge that
she was between eleven and twelve years of
age at the time of which I am speaking.
This little girl was small for her years, and
was one who would generally have passed
unnoticed in a group of children, yet when
closely examined, she had one of the sweet-
est countenances I ever beheld; her hair
and complexion marked her Saxon origin,
and the tender innocence, and dimpled
beauty of her face, brought her frequently in
comparison, in my imagination, with some
such figure as I have often seen of an infant
Jesus, whom the artist has represented in
the arms of his mother, looking down from
some high altar with love and compassion on
the multitude kneeling before him. Such
were the high comparisons which I made